Last Wednesday I filled out the forms for each child to have a school bank account. I remember when I had one and it was from the Commonwealth Bank (CBA) also. The CBA is the only bank that does it and have done banking in schools for over 80 years now.
When I was little I had a passbook for my deposits. I had to write in it or my mom did and then I gave the money to the school or made a trip to the bank. Now it is a big deposit book that looks like a check book and it is the same, however the account can be linked online to allow parents and other family members to top it up.
Old Passbook – Just like the one I had. Picture from Wikipedia -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_Bank
I could not find a picture of the one the kids would get but it is much more modern than what we had. Every time a child deposits money they recieve a dollarmite token. The token is not dependent on how much the child deposits it just rewards the act of saving.
Once the child has 10 tokens you can redeem them for rewards such as a torch, calculator, moneyboxes, or a handball. As you might have guessed the more tokens you save the more items you can claim throughout the year.
Savings Adventure Island – Commonwealth Bank
The Youthsaver accounts have no fees at all and remains this way until the child turns 18. This is a great way to save for something special or stash away some cash for the future. Once the child turns 18 the account becomes like every normal account and fees kick in. Lets hope by that stage that they have heaps of money that it does not matter.
Redemption Card – School Savings
I cannot wait to get the girls started with their account. I did have a choice of setting it up now or waiting till they start school next year. I have asked for it to be activated now as I would like to put money in it now. Currently the twins have piggy banks that are bursting at the seams and we need to move the money into an account to allow more room for more cash. Maybe we need a bigger piggy bank? That might solve the problem of not having enough room for more money. Pity that the piggy bank does not pay interest.
Colour in the dollarmites
When I was little I remember my money box was a yellow elephant from the CBA given to me at school. Do you have fond memories of having a bank account at school? Have your kids got one? Has it helped them get a better understanding of money and what is a want and a need? Have they saved up for things on their own or have you decided it best not to touch the account, and used it for your child’s future?
Let us know how you have gone with the school banking. I like the idea of saving and have wonderful fantasies of me and the kids on the road to riches. Well you can daydream right? Send in your comments.
