Child trust fund — Scope | Disability forum
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Child trust fund

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squigsy
squigsy Community member Posts: 2 Listener
edited January 2023 in Benefits and financial support
My daughter has a child trust fund. She turned 18 recently and have been told she can withdraw the money. She has severe learning difficulties and couldn't manage her own money. How do I go about accessing the money for her? There's nothing I can find out about it. Can anyone help? Thanks in advance.
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  • Tori_Scope
    Tori_Scope Scope Posts: 12,496 Disability Gamechanger
    edited January 2023
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    Welcome to the community @squigsy :) Thank you for joining us! It's great to have you on board. 

    I don't have any personal experience of this, but I'm wondering if you'll find this page on MoneyHelper's website helpful? 
    What about Child Trust Funds and young people with disabilities?

    Some young people with a disability might not have the mental capacity to manage the money in their Child Trust Fund.

    If your child doesn’t have mental capacity, then you as their parent(s)/carer(s) will need to apply to the Court of Protection to act as your child’s Deputy.

    A Deputy is someone, usually a family member, who is appointed by the court to manage and make day-to-day decisions about someone’s finances. Without this, you won’t be able to manage the account when your child turns 18. This is because they legally become an adult and the money belongs to them.

    At the moment, applying to the Court of Protection can be expensive. This is because there’s a court fee of £365 – and legal costs, if a solicitor is used. There might also be delays to the process due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    It’s important to get legal advice if you want to apply to the Court of Protection so you understand all of the options. Solicitors might provide you with a free initial discussion.

    However, the government announced on 1 December 2020 that all parents or guardians of children or young people who lack mental capacity can ask for court fees to be waived or refunded when seeking access to a Child Trust Fund.

    Have you spoken to a solicitor about this?

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  • squigsy
    squigsy Community member Posts: 2 Listener
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    Thankyou for that. Im waiting on a call back from a solicitor, I can't believe how difficult they make it! Will see what the solicitor says. Thanks again 😊
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  • L_Volunteer
    L_Volunteer Community Volunteer Adviser, Scope Member Posts: 7,978 Disability Gamechanger
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    Do you know when the solicitor might call you back @squigsy, if they haven't already? I'm wishing you the best of luck with your call with the solicitor.

    Please feel free to let us know how it goes and if we can do anything else to support you. We are all here for you and listening to you  :)
    Community Volunteer Adviser with professional knowledge of education, special educational needs and disabilities and EHCP's. Pronouns: She/her. 

    Please note: if I use the online community outside of its hours of administration, I am doing so in a personal capacity only.
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