Thousands of young people in Wales are missing out on significant sums of money because they are unaware of trust funds, according to a charity. The Child Trust Fund (CTF) was set up in the name of every child born in the UK between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011, using money from the UK government.
More than 750,000 of these funds remain unclaimed across the UK, with The Share Foundation estimating that £83m is held in Wales alone. The BBC has spoken to one young person who discovered he had £4,000 in a CTF he did not know about, and he is now urging others to check their accounts.
The amounts held in these funds vary, but on average they are more than £2,000. Most of the accounts were opened by parents using a voucher worth £250, or £500 in some cases, which was issued by the UK government.
An additional government payment was made when the child turned seven, and family members were also able to add money. In some cases the Welsh Government also made a small contribution.
If a parent or did not open a fund, the UK government would open one on the child’s behalf. A young person is entitled to take control of the account when they are 16 years old, but the money cannot be claimed until they turn 18.
Why are so many accounts still unclaimed?
According to Gavin Oldham, chair of The Share Foundation, the main reason accounts remain unclaimed is ignorance. He wants to see a system in which money is released automatically in cases where accounts were created on behalf of young people by the government, because they are the group most likely to miss out.
What did Kae Tapscott discover?
Kae Tapscott said he had no idea there was £4,000 in an account in his name until a social worker told him. Kae, from Blaenau Gwent, had never heard of the Child Trust Fund scheme and is encouraging others to do their own research.
“Peidiwch â'i adael a gwneud dim achos mae'n bosib na wnewch chi dderbyn unrhyw beth heb drio,”
He explained that he initially struggled to access the CTF details and used The Share Foundation’s system, external link, to find the information.
“Ro'n i'n meddwl y byddwn i'n derbyn y wybodaeth yn awtomatig, ond glywes i ddim byd.
“Byddech chi'n meddwl y byddai'r llywodraeth yn rhoi o i fi, ond roedd rhaid i fi ei hawlio fy hun.”
What happens next?
The UK Government has been asked for a response.
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