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12 January 2005
SIT STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start enables low cost investing for children regardless of CTF eligibility
The Scottish Investment Trust PLC (SIT) is one of the largest investment trusts within the global growth sector*. Its wholly-owned subsidiary, SIT Savings Ltd, is offering STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start to parents irrespective of whether or not their children qualify for the Government’s Child Trust Fund, due to launch in April. STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start offers parents a flexible, low cost scheme which could help them provide their children with an investment for the future.
STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start has one of the most competitive charging structures in the market with no initial or annual management plan charges**. This means money invested into the plan is not eaten up by charges. With SIT’s research revealing that 1 in 3 parents surveyed*** do not want their children to contribute at all towards the costs of university or further education, they will need to look at low cost savings and investment schemes, like the one offered by SIT, which allow their money to work harder for them.
Parents whose children do qualify for a CTF can also use STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start, as an savings and investment scheme in addition to the CTF. Parents looking to make regular or lump sum savings for their children, over and above the CTF annual investment limit of £1,200, could benefit from STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start’s competitive charging structure and spread of investment risk and opportunity.
The plan gives parents flexibility by allowing them to start or stop their investment whenever they wish whether they invest monthly (minimum £25, there is no maximum), via lump sum (minimum £250, again there is no maximum) or through a combination of both options.
The diversity of SIT’s investments means that risk is spread over numerous companies, sectors and countries, while allowing a global search for investment opportunity. History suggests that over the long term the stockmarket has proved to be one of the best ways to create wealth.
Key product features of SIT’s STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start are:
- No initial charges or annual management plan charges, which means the money invested goes further and is not eaten up by costs**.
- Flexible investment options: regular investments (from £25 a month) can be stopped and restarted at any time. Occasional one off lump sums (minimum £250) can be invested at any time. There are no maximum investment limits.
- You can now invest on behalf of a child through STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start in one of two ways: a designated plan or as a bare trust.
- Twice yearly statements
Sherry-Ann Sweeting, Marketing Manager, SIT Savings Ltd, said;
“At the moment most of the children in Britain are not eligible for the CTF due to their birth dates. However this does not mean that parents do not have opportunities to provide an investment which could go towards their children’s futures. STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start can be used by all parents wanting to save for their children, with the potential to help reduce the financial burdens facing parents and their children when the children start out in adult life.”
Savers and investors can find out more about STOCKPLAN: A Flying Start by calling 0800 42 44 22, by visiting SIT’s website - www.sit.co.uk - or by asking an IFA.
* The others being Foreign & Colonial, Witan, the Alliance Trust and Scottish Mortgage
** External expenses (government stamp duty of 0.5% and dealing spread which has averaged 0.9% over the last 3 years) apply.
*** 500 parents with children of university age and under (under-21s) from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland were surveyed. In telephone interviews they were asked about their plans for meeting any educational costs their children may encounter, whether they’d expect their children to help out with the cost of education and how they themselves paid their way. The fieldwork was carried out during July 2004.
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