My future is Magenta

August 26, 2016 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

Some people say the situations life presents dictate what kind of life you will have. Others maintain it’s the way you react to life’s challenges and opportunities that determines your satisfaction in life. I certainly believe that the latter is true.

Next week, Magenta Financial Planning will start to trade. This is a big deal for me and very exciting!

It’s been a while in the making, a lot of hard work and a significant learning curve – but now it’s all becoming a reality and that really is very satisfying.

When Julie Lord (my business partner) approached me with this opportunity, I was nervous and wasn’t sure if I was ready for it. I have never had major aspirations to run my own business and was worried about taking on the responsibility and risk. But as I thought about it more, and discussed it with my friends and family, I knew that this was a challenge worth accepting – that this opportunity had the power to significantly change my life – making me happier, both in the short and long term.

I’ve worked closely with Julie for some years and we have our ups and downs, like you do in any relationship (friends / family / colleagues). However, as we have been discussing our plans for Magenta over the past few months – it’s been great to know we are both on the same page for our plans for the business and our futures.

The last year has taught me that it’s really important to be happy at work. This has an impact on all your life – your health, wellbeing and relationships. You have more energy for friends, family and yourself, if you are satisfied at work.

I’ve always given my all in every job I have had, both for my clients and for the team, but this has historically been associated with long hours, stress, regular tears and backstabbing from other colleagues.

I’m still tired at the end of the week, I’m still juggling lots of different roles and I still get frustrated by some things…. But generally I can say that I enjoy most of my days at work now. That’s pretty amazing.

I am determined our business will nurture a team that cares about our clients and their dreams, and how we can help them to achieve these.

I believe that our team can be truly successful and happy – if we try to consistently be positive about work, health and life in general and treat others how we would want to be treated.

Be in love with your life, every aspect, every minute of it!

More news next week and some pictures!

Beating those Monday Blues

August 8, 2016August 8, 2016 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

Everyone suffers a little with the ‘Monday Blues’.

My sister, Geraldine and my brother-in-law Steve, regularly used to suffer from ‘Sunday lows’ – where they just worked themselves up into a mini depression each Sunday night about returning to work. That’s changed a bit since the birth of Jackson, but they are both still inclined to dread the return to work after a holiday or time off. It will be super tough for Geraldine when she goes back to work after maternity leave in a few weeks!

I’m certainly not suffering from the usual Sunday night dread now I have moved to a job I love, but you still get that feeling about needing to work yourself up for the week. Often my Sunday night’s sleep is the worst of my week.

So, here are some tips for beating those blues or lows – taken from www.lifehack.org where they suggest the idea of one small task to do every day – to help control the gloom of your Sunday night.

1.Sunday Evening – Key goals for the week. Take 5 minutes to remind yourself of any important goals you may have for the week and which days you intend to achieve them. They don’t need to be big goals. Remember the journey of a thousand miles starts with your first step. Factor in that daily exercise you should be doing, however short. With this mini-plan, when Monday comes, you’ll have lots to look forward to.

2. Monday morning – Make someone else happy. Think of the people you know and decide which of them might appreciate some kind gesture from you. It could be something small. Even saying hello to someone you see often but never greet can do wonders for their day. You hardly need to be reminded that you too will feel happier when you see how your action is appreciated.

3. Tuesday morning – Plan some surprise fun activity with your partner this evening. Surprises are always nice to receive, so your partner will find this even more fun than something they’re expecting. If you don’t have a partner, then get in touch with a family member, friend or colleague to join in something that gives you both pleasure.

4. Wednesday morning – Eat a healthy lunch. You should be eating well throughout the week, but take special pains today to have a nutritious and healthy lunch, perhaps at some eating venue you don’t visit very often.

5. Thursday morning – Plan your weekend. Plan some recreational activity for the weekend and do whatever preparations are needed to make it happen. The only people you need to keep happy are you (and your family) so make the most of every weekend opportunity you have.

6. Friday morning – TGIF so do something different. Everyone tends to let their hair down a little on Friday, so make this the day that you do something very different each week. That could be a lunch time visit to a nearby art gallery or a quick round of mini-golf.

7. Saturday morning – Make sure you get some exercise today. You should be getting convenient exercise every day, but don’t forget to include Saturday. The weekend is not a time to be a vegetable. Don’t sleep the weekend away. Rise early, enjoy the day and get moving with that recreational activity you planned on Thursday.

Being an adult – the truths

July 28, 2016 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

According to Wikipedia, being an adult is: “biologically: – a human being or other organism that has reached sexual maturity. In human context, the term adult additionally has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a “minor”, a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of majority and is therefore regarded as independent, self-sufficient, and responsible.”

However, we all know that these three things – independence, self-sufficiency and responsibility – come at different ages and time in life for young people, often depending on the course in life they may choose, opportunities that present themselves, success, determination, ability, want or motivation.

I’m not sure when I ‘officially’ became adult, I certainly know it wasn’t just when I attained a legal age, moved away from home, got my first car or got my first job. In those years my parents continued to support me, emotionally and financially…. It took me quite a while.

But I think its time to admit now, that at 37, I am actually an adult, in all meanings of the word. I own a house and pay for my own bills and holidays, I am an Auntie and a Godmother multiple times. I have a Will. I have my cat-child, Basil, and I am about to become a business owner.

I’ve spent some time thinking about what I’ve learnt, or accepted is the way things will be – because let’s face it, it’s not always easy. Here’s what I came up with:

1) You will lose touch with people. I thought that some of my university mates and first housemates were going to be my best friends forever, but relationships are hard to maintain. I have lost touch with at least a few of the people I expected to be around forever. Whilst it’s often been a conscious decision to let these people go, I do feel sad about this. But my real, best friends are still around.

2) You have to take responsibility for yourself. All the little things I took for granted as a child require quite a lot of effort. When I run out of shampoo, there isn’t magically be a new bottle waiting in the cabinet, until I buy it (unless my Mum has been to visit). My bills don’t get paid unless I do this and I won’t eat unless I work.

3) It takes longer to recover from a party / blow out. I still love to go out and have a drink and enjoy myself, but more often than not my friends and I will be home before midnight – and then the times that I’m not, it takes much longer to recover. A bottle of full-fat coke won’t fix the hangover anymore!

4) You will always have people in your life that you dislike. No matter what you do, no matter where you go, people you don’t like will find you. This could be at work, or that friend of a friend, or (god forbid) a friend’s husband, that you just can’t get on with. I’ve got them, everyone has. You just have to make sure they don’t spoil your day and ultimately, weigh up how important the job / other person is to you, and if it’s worth putting up with their bull****.

5) An emergency fund is vital. Whilst I haven’t been in the situation where this has been really desperate, even a change in job, or a house boiler breakdown, can mean you have a month with no income or a hefty expense to pay, it quickly shows how important this is.

6) You should understand your tax code. Sounds boring – but I’ve learnt the hard way that you should double and triple check them as they are almost always wrong (especially if you have benefits at work) and then your either owe, or are owed tax. It’s simpler to get it right at the start of the year.

7) You will have less free time. One of the great injustices is that as a teenager I had limitless amounts of time to fill with epic adventures, but no money to fund said adventures, and now, as an adult, I have the money to do what I want but no time with which to do it. Whilst working hard is important, we should also try to seize the day whenever we can and don’t be just all about the work. Life is about relationships and experiences and I want to do more of that.

8) Meditation can help ease the pressure of life’s busy-ness. I’m quite lucky because as a student I went to meditation classes run by a Buddhist Monk in Cardiff. He taught us how to meditate using the full body scan technique. The body scan as a way to get in touch with the body, let go of feelings of needing to get stuff done, and release pent-up emotions. I find that, when my brain is full, I’m juggling a lot and I can’t sleep or I am starting to panic, that undertaking this exercise can really help. This is a good example https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsCVqFr6j1g

9) Wear what you want. I love clothes. I probably love patterns and pink a little too much. But I have learnt not to worry about what others think. Don’t try and squeeze yourself into the same jeans or look like everyone else. People don’t remember you if you blend into the crowd.

To prove this point – here are my cat shoes!

The bridge of wellbeing

January 15, 2016 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

I touched on the concept of wellbeing and financial planning in a previous post in 2015 and this is a subject that really interests me.

The aim of Lifestyle Financial Planning is to help you enjoy a good life (whatever that means to you), knowing you have sufficient money to support you. The key point here being “enjoy a good life” – it must also address your wellbeing – it’s not just about having more money and possessions than the next person.

Last October I talked about wellbeing being much more than just physical or financial wellbeing, including career wellbeing, social wellbeing and community wellbeing. Any financial plan you make should consider and include all these things.

For anyone, your plan should start by establishing your goals and values and making your choices in life consistent with these. It should be for yourself – not for your money. So how can you do this?

This is where I revert to the Bridge of Wellbeing and it’s 3 pillars:

Define and understand your values and goals;
Deploy financial strategies that use your resources in a way that is consistent with your values and achieves your goals;
Develop your personal investment strategy.

A solid financial plan is important for everyone to enjoy the life you choose to live. It doesn’t have to be complex or lengthy. But it’s sometimes hard to know where to start.

Here are some questions that may help to explore your goals and start to build your first pillar in the Bridge of Wellbeing.

What is your biggest achievement, and why?
What is your greatest fear in relation to your future?
What would you say motivates you most?
Where do you want to be in 5-10 years time, professionally, personally and financially?
What is the one personal goal you would like to achieve within the next year? what about 3-5 years?
What causes you stress?
If you had unlimited means, what’s the one thing you would like to do with your time that you are not doing today?
What are your hobbies? or what do you like to buy with your spare money?
What are the most important things that you and your family want to achieve in the future? How would you feel if your couldn’t achieve them? what are you prepared to give up now to achieve them?

Prepare for tomorrow

January 5, 2016January 5, 2016 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

I had the worst nights sleep ever on Sunday before going back to work. I was not particularly worried or stressed, but my brain seemed to be “waking up” again!! I imagine many other people struggled as well.

This is an extract from a book I’m reading about Mindfulness and I wanted to share it – I think it may help!

“At the end of the day,

When you’re lying in bed at night, before going to sleep, spend a few moments going back over the day….

Think of the people you met and talked to and the events and progression of the day.

If you mind starts to wander off into other thoughts or worries, or thinking about what you have to do tomorrow, gently bring it back to the present and continue reviewing the day in the wavelike motion of your breathing.

You are custodian of your own day. See this exercise as preparing for tomorrow by having put today to bed.

You will be asleep very soon.”

(Tiddy Rowan, Mindfulness)

This year I am not making resolutions….

December 21, 2015 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

Christmas this year is making me happy and yet melancholy at the same time. I miss family who are no longer with us and I have been thinking a lot about those I know who are having a tough time. I have friends & family who are grieving from losing loved ones and some for who just things are not going too great, at home, work, you name it.

Then there are some really good things to look forward to in 2016, like new babies coming, weddings to attend and my new office, which is almost ready!

2015 has been a busy and exciting year for me. Here some of the highlights I can think of (in no particular order!):

I fulfilled one of last year’s resolutions and learnt to crochet.
We remodelled my front garden so that I have not had to cut any grass this year!
I had a brilliant reunion with old friends at Bluestone in Pembrokeshire, where we reminisced and giggled, as well as discussing how our lives have changed over the past 10 years.
I left one job and joined another, with exciting and new opportunities and experiences, working with a team who are genuine and hardworking.
I was shortlisted for the Certified Financial Planner professional of the year award.
Basil has lived with me for over a year and is now a lovely, funny, sweet natured cat.
Jackson was born and I became a ‘real’ Auntie for the first time. I am so proud of Geraldine and the wonderful mum she has become.
My brother, Oliver, proposed to his girlfriend and there will be a fabulous Anglo-Sikh wedding in 2016. I get to have two outfits.
My family have spent another year being healthy and happy and long may it continue.

So, as 2016 approaches we will no doubt all spend some time looking back to the past, but more importantly, forward to the coming year. It’s a time to reflect on the changes we want (or need) to make and resolve to follow through on those changes.

Last year I decided not to give myself unrealistic resolutions and set only a couple. They were, to enjoy work and stress less and to learn to crochet. I gave up on the exercise more, eat better – as that’s just a given and something we know we should all do anyway.

I have managed to achieve both of these resolutions, although the ‘less stress’ takes work each day, as it’s easy to let things get too much.

I have read that most people fail to achieve the resolutions they set at New Year. Either they forget, get distracted, or give up. Year after year people set the same resolutions but don’t quite get there. Is that because we make these things too huge and unachievable?

I have been thinking that instead we should look at it like setting a goal at any other time of the year and maybe we shouldn’t make such a big deal out of it.

Goals / aims / ambitions are important in life. They help us to function every day. Be it setting goals and planning for your finances, or for a specific event like a wedding or party, get the note pad out and start your plan. It will make you happier!

Here are some important reasons for setting goals.

It’s how we get things done – we set ourselves tasks/goals every single day. To eat, get dressed, get to work.
They can make us feel good – we get satisfaction and happiness by aiming for a target / goal.
It’s how our brain works. Most other creatures work on instinct, humans take action based on planning.
Goals mean clarity – they provide vision and direction so that we don’t waste resources (time, money or energy).
Goals can measure progress and give us purpose.
Goals keep us connected to others. Common goals / interests are the foundation block of families, friends and colleagues.

So, what will 2016 bring for you?

For me it shows signs of being a great year. I am happy at work and home and we will be able to work at the new office. I’m Bridesmaid for my friend Becca and Oliver’s Sikh-Anglo wedding will be wonderful.

So this year I have decided I am not setting resolutions, but rather things I want to do more or less of. Here is my list so far:

Finally, my New Year wish is that Basil will sit on my lap.

Best wishes for Christmas and 2016 and have fun!

Hobbit at home

December 4, 2015 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

Working from home for the last few months has been hard. The novelty of ‘no commute!’ and ‘no office politics!’ soon wears off and you risk becoming a little hobbit, isolated and alone in your office come spare room, and I’ve never liked hobbits.

Despite that I am often out and about to see clients, this doesn’t take up all week and there needs to be time taken to write-up meetings and get the advice out the door. So you then spend a large amount of hours alone.

It makes you consciously aware of your flaws! Laziness, ability to be distracted, tendency to procrastinate, lack of self-discipline, of conscientiousness, and need to check with someone else that what you are doing is right every 30 seconds. Your days become a personal battle between your good and bad qualities.

It’s honestly more isolating and more draining than my old commute. I have found I’ve become quite emotional, since I can’t regularly express any exasperation, happiness or stress to anyone else, other than to Basil (!), so I think it all builds up.

I’ve taken for granted in the past how much you gain from seeing your colleagues and having a quick 10 minutes talking about your weekend plans or to share joys or problems. Doing this on the phone is just not the same.

The second worst problem is the fact that my office is now my home and my home is now my office. I used to love coming home to my home, my haven and enjoyed my space, time out, alone. Now, there’s not really any true escape.

Whilst of course, when working in an office you still fret about the work awaiting you on your desk, or check your email on the mobile out of hours, but there is still a great advantage and mental release in being able to walk out of the building when your day is done, and mark the beginning of a time and a space that officially belongs to you.

The good news is that in the New Year this will all be easier as I will be in an office. We got the keys this week! It will be small and basic and just as an administration hub to begin with, but I can work on a daily basis with the other members of the team and we are all looking forward to it.

We get desks next week and phone lines the week after and it can’t come quick enough for me! Roll on 2016 when we can be there full time!

Keeping it in the family – pensions technical post

November 23, 2015 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

As a planner, I’ve always liked pensions. However, it’s true… they are confusing and are not helped by the Government changing the rules all the time!

The latest pension changes – known in the industry as ‘pension reform’ – that came into place from April 2015 – means that everyone should be using them more and trying, at least a little, to understand them better.

This is because, thanks to the changes, pensions can now be passed down from generation to generation and this should be very attractive to lots of people.

So… I’m going to try to explain in simply terms how pensions can be used to pass wealth, tax efficiently, to the future generations – and keep more wealth in the family, rather than HMRC’s hands.

Tax and pensions

Before the new rules there were already good reasons for using pensions:

Tax relief on way in + tax-free growth =

greater pension pot and better lifestyle in retirement

These still remain positive planning reasons for using pensions but now, pensions are even better!

Passing down wealth

The new rules will allow holders of flexible pensions (but not members of Defined Benefit plans) to nominate an individual to inherit their remaining pension fund.
This can be anyone at any age and is no longer restricted to ‘dependents’.
This means adult children (who may have long since left home and have families of their own) can now benefit and don’t have to wait until their own pension years to access the money.
Beneficiaries can continue to have the advantages of tax-free investment returns and, potentially for some beneficiaries, tax-free withdrawals.

On and on…

The ability to pass on and on pension wealth does not stop with one generation.
The first nominated beneficiary can nominate their own successor who will take over the fund following their death.
This will allow accumulated pension wealth to cascade down the generations, whilst continuing to enjoy the tax freedoms that the pension wrapper will provide.

TECHNICAL BIT: The Age 75 rule and income tax

If the original member dies after age 75, any withdrawals will be taxed at the beneficiary’s marginal rate of Income Tax.
If death occurs before age 75, the nominated beneficiary has a pot of money they can access at any time completely tax-free.
In either case, the funds are outside the beneficiary’s estate for Inheritance Tax while they remain within the pension and will continue to enjoy tax-free growth.

Tax rate determined by age at last death

Each time a pension fund is inherited, the tax rate will be reset by the age at death of the last beneficiary / owner.

For example:

Mary, a widow, dies age 82 and had nominated her son Oliver to receive her pension. As Mary died after age 75, Oliver is taxable at his marginal rate on any income withdrawals. This could mean he pays 45% income tax (highest rate).

Sadly, Oliver dies age 65. He leaves the remaining fund to his daughter Simone. Simone can take withdrawals from her successor’s pension account tax-free as Oliver died before 75.

Review review review

The death benefit rules changes mean that for those looking to pass on any remaining pension funds on death to their family a review of the current plan is required.

This means revisiting existing death benefit nominations to ensure they continue to do what you want. Under the new rules, the scheme administrator cannot pay out a nominee’s pension drawdown if there’s an existing dependent (or an existing nomination in place that says something different).

Don’t forget that a nomination doesn’t have to be all or nothing. It’s possible to nominate a number of different beneficiaries and to perhaps skip a generation with some of the fund.

It’s also important to check that the current pension provider can allow what you want to do. Just because the legislation allows, doesn’t mean everyone will be able to in the contract they hold.

For the purposes of this blog and to keep it simple I have just referred to a ‘pension’. However, it should be noted that this ‘pension’ will need to be a Flexi Access Drawdown Pension. In addition, all of this type of planning relies on the existing pension arrangement being able to offer the nominees’ and successors’ drawdown accounts.

You will need financial advice to establish the correct pension contract / vehicle to use and some existing providers may be unable to provide this as an option.

Make sure you seek advice and #planitwell – call me on 07974 329864 for more information.

Dancing to your height

October 30, 2015October 30, 2015 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

I am a huge Strictly Come Dancing fan. I even loved the original ‘Come Dancing’ with Rosemarie Ford. It’s the glitter, costumes and drama of it! I love Autumn and Winter Saturday nights, cozied up with a glass of wine and enjoying the wholesomeness and fun of it all with family and friends.

Earlier this week, on the sister show, It Take Two, Jeremy Vine spoke about how a professional dancer had told him right at the start of the competition to “Dance your height”. This really stuck with me and got me thinking.

I’ve read a lot about successful people having two characteristics: they believe in themselves and they are always maintaining a positive disposition in everything.

I think this is easier said than done, especially when things do not go according to the plan and emotions come into play.

I’m generally a very positive person, but sometimes life and things can just get you down. My Father refers to it as having the devil on your shoulder, that nagging voice, wearing you down saying that ‘you can’t do it’ or ‘don’t bother no one cares’.

A lot of this, I think, is about mindset and your support network. If you can master the art of positive thinking and surround yourself with helpful and optimistic people, then I think you can be better equipped for the hurdles and obstacles that get thrown in the way of your plans.

A step towards mastering this positive thinking is to be proud of your achievements no matter how big or small they are – this itself I think can help maintain a positive mindset.

It’s surprising the time and energy we expend on worrying what other people think of us; our appearance, our intellect and our faults. We should more often use the time to consider our strengths, our abilities and our best points.

Saying this, I’m not very good at receiving praise or accepting compliments without being embarrassed. But, I’m determined to learn that there is absolutely nothing wrong with celebrating your successes and achievements. I’ve put in the hard work and I should feel happy!

On that note, I am proud to show you the wonderful badge that I received from the IFP, showing that I was shortlisted (down to 3 people) as CFP Professional of the year 2015. I am very proud of this.

Enjoy Strictly this weekend if you watch it! It’s the Halloween spooktacular! I’m routing for Jeremy to Dance Tall and Proud.

Children and savings

October 26, 2015 ~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

I’ve been asked twice this month about options for investing for children, specifically for Grandparents of very young children. One of these times of course was for little Jackson Strong, the other by a friend, as her Father wants to give money to her children.

So I thought I would give a summary here of what can be done, although not giving specific investment advice about where to invest the money – for that, you need to speak to me!

Tax and savings

Most generally and for small amounts, it makes sense to save in the child’s name, rather than parents / grandparents.

This means interest earned is generally tax-free (up to certain limits) as children get the same tax-free allowance as adults. So, whether you are saving into a Junior ISA (JISA) or an ordinary savings account your child’s interest will remain tax-free up to the HMRC personal allowance limit, set at £11,000 for 2015/16.

The exception to this is the so-called ‘£100 rule’. This stipulates that any amount of interest exceeding £100 that results from a payment made by a parent / grandparent to a child must be taxed at the parent’s tax rate. This rule is applied to almost all children’s savings accounts except JISAs – which are totally tax-free in the same way as adult ISAs are.

Financial responsibility

Bear in mind that any account held in a child’s name becomes legally theirs to do with as they wish at age 18! And as we all remember, that is not always the best age to have a large lump sum to hand!

The alternative is to hold the money in your own name (see below) or set up a Trust – but I am not going to into detail about that today.

So….Investment Options

JISA – Junior ISA

These work like an adult ISA
They are tax-free, but are for the long-term.
They replace the Child Trust Fund (CTF) and if a child was not eligible for the CTF they can have a JISA.
JISAs have an annual savings limit of £4,080 (current tax year) which can be held entirely in cash, stocks and shares or any mixture of the two.
Anyone can pay into the JISA although a parent or legal guardian must set it up and funds cannot be withdrawn until the child turns 18.
As an added bonus, JISAs can be held concurrently with an adult ISA between the ages of 16 and 18, giving the child a boosted tax-free allowance for two years.
Only two JISAs may be held per child at any one time – one cash, one stocks and shares.

Regular savings

Children’s savings accounts offer varying interest rates depending on your chosen bank or building society and the tax rules stated earlier apply.
Be warned – you will have to apply for gross interest to be paid by completing a form R85, the bank should provide this to you!
They allow instant access to the funds at any time, unlike JISAs which effectively lock the money away until age 18.
They can be added to by anyone, anytime, without limit.
They can be useful for teaching children financial housekeeping as the child is given access to the account at age seven and can pay in and out of the account as they grow. I remember how nice it was to save in my Nationwide Teddy!
NOTE however, regular accounts that pay good interest rates tend to have lower savings limits than JISAs with many providers cutting interest rates if deposits exceed a certain amount.

Pensions – forward planning by 55 years!

Child pensions allow parents to pay into a pension for their child from the moment they are born.
Like adult pensions, child pensions are hugely tax efficient and are eligible for 20 % tax relief meaning that you only have to pay in £2,800 per year to receive £3,600 back.
The maximum that can be paid per annum is £2,800.
They are incredibly attractive if you are the kind of person who really enjoys planning ahead and you want to help your child enjoy their twilight years.
At an assumed growth rate of 5%, 18 yearly payments of £2,800 would equal £1,053,405 by the time your child reaches 65! Now that’s proper forward planning!
Like all pension plans however, they cannot be accessed until 55 at the earliest and many see this as a real downside.

Adult savings

It is perfectly possible to save money in your own name for your children or grandchildren.
The advantages are that you will be able to control the money, even when the child turns 18.
The disadvantage is that the money will be taxed on you in the normal way.
It’s also worth considering that the child has no automatic legal right to the money and this could cause problems in the event of death or divorce.

What’s best you ask? …. Well… what’s it for?

What you are saving for and therefore the term. A Car? University? House deposit?
How do you feel about access? At 7, 18 or retirement?!

It’s likely to be best to consider a mix of a few things, but bear in mind most offer really poor cash returns, so shop around for the best deals and remember you can’t beat the excellent tax efficient growth a JISA can offer (and it can convert into an adult ISA).

Hope this helps some of you!