We recognise that saving for your child is a personal choice, so
we offer three different funds for you to invest in. The choice is
up to you – but you need to think carefully about your attitude to
risk. Some of the funds offer the potential for bigger returns if
you’re prepared to take an element of risk. You can also – within
certain limitations – invest in a mix of funds.
Guaranteed Cash
Fund
If you're looking for a secure fund for your
child’s money, the Guaranteed Cash Fund is the safest option of
all.
The money is invested in cash deposit accounts
and your child is guaranteed to get back at least all of the money
that's been paid in - and the interest added, minus the annual
charge for managing the account. This type of fund usually delivers
a lower return than a share-based fund, but gives a full
guarantee.
Cautious
Managed Fund
If you want the potential to earn more on your
child’s investment but don’t want as much risk as the Balanced
Growth Fund, the Cautious Managed Fund invests in a mix of higher
and lower risk investments.
This fund invests up to half of your child's
money in shares. The remainder is used for lower-risk investments
such as bonds and gilts, issued by the Government and companies to
raise capital.
There are no guarantees and the value of the
investment can go up or down, so the child could get back less than
has been paid in.
Balanced Growth
Fund
If you want the maximum potential return, you
could choose to invest in the Balanced Growth Fund. To provide
higher growth potential, up to 70% of the money can be invested in
shares in a variety of companies. The rest is invested in bonds and
gilts and other lower risk investments.
There are no guarantees and the value of the
investment can go up or down, so the child could get back less than
has been paid in.
Both the Cautious Managed and Balanced Growth
funds have the potential to make longer-term gains. Since 1899,
equities have outperfomed cash for 91 out of the 92 eighteen-year
periods.
However, past performance is not a guarantee
of how shares will perform in the future.