New figures show that more than 750,000 young people haven’t claimed their matured Child Trust Funds – savings pots worth an average of £2,242 each.

If your children, employees, or even apprentices are aged between 18 and 23, there’s a good chance some of them could be sitting on money they don’t know about.

What is a Child Trust Fund?

Child Trust Funds (CTFs) were set up by the government for children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011. Each account started with a government deposit of at least £250, and many families topped them up over the years.

The accounts are tax-free, and once the child turns 18, the money becomes theirs. They can either withdraw it or reinvest it.

Why so many are unclaimed

When the scheme was running, if parents didn’t open an account, the government did it for them. Now, according to HMRC, 758,000 accounts are sitting unclaimed.

September is the most common birth month so there is a new wave of 18-year-olds who have just become eligible to claim their savings pot.

How to find out if you’ve got one

If you already know who the provider is, you can contact them directly. If not, there’s a locator tool on GOV.UK – it takes a few minutes to submit a request, and you’ll usually hear back within three weeks.

You’ll need the young person’s National Insurance number and date of birth when using the tool.

A quick reminder for business owners

If you employ young people in this age group, it might be worth mentioning this to them. Some may not know they might have a CTF waiting. A quick word could genuinely make a difference to their finances – and they’ll likely remember you helped point them in the right direction.

See: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/savings-stash-worth-thousands-waiting-for-758000-young-people