Turning 18 years old with a Pilling Child Trust Fund

For the attention of Pilling & Co Child Trust Fund holders as they become 18 years old

18th Birthday CTF

What is a Child Trust Fund (CTF) and why do I have one?

A Child Trust Fund (CTF) is an investment account given by the government to all children born between 1st September 2002 and 1st January 2011. An initial payment was given to a CTF Provider. We, Pilling & Co, are your CTF Provider and as required by the government, we have been investing the money in a CTF for you.

How much is my CTF worth?

Shortly before your 18th birthday we will write to you with a CTF portfolio valuation showing how much your CTF is worth. On the valuation the figure in the “current value” column is what your CTF is worth in pounds. The value can change daily and as such the current value figure is an indication of what your CTF is worth.

What are my options?

At 18 you become the legal owner of the CTF and are the only person from whom we can take instruction. You will have the following options:

  • Transfer the whole account to an ISA
  • Withdraw the whole of the account
  • Withdraw part of the account, and transfer the remainder to an ISA

What is an ISA?

An Individual Savings Account (ISA) is a tax-free investment account you can take out at 18. Your CTF can be transferred to an ISA with us. You can add further money to an ISA. You can find full details of our ISA on our website, including terms & conditions and charges, together with the application form you would need to complete.

How can I add money to an ISA?

You can set up a standing order to make regular monthly contributions for as little as £10 into an ISA. You can also transfer money directly into our bank account. We will provide our bank details to you upon request.

Can I have the value of the CTF paid into my bank account?

Yes. This is the quickest and safest method and is free of charge. We will require proof of who you are, which maybe a passport, provisional or full driving licence, birth certificate or a letter you have received from HMRC (e.g. informing you of your National Insurance number). We will also require a copy of a bank statement in your name showing the bank details where the payment is to be made (sort code – six digits; and account number – eight digits). You should download a bank statement before you start the CTF Selection Form– please note we can only pay money into a bank account in your name.

Can I have the value of the CTF paid to me by cheque?

Yes. We strongly recommend you download a bank statement or obtain a bank document you can upload to enable us to pay directly into your bank account, but If you cannot do that, we can pay you by cheque, which we will by post to the registered address we have for you. If you have changed address you will need to provide a document with proof of your new address. This can be a letter from HMRC informing you about your CTF. We will deduct a small administration charge for cheque payments and your bank may well do similar. Please note we can only make the cheque payable to you.

How can I request payment?

Withdrawal requests can be made:

You must quote your Pilling account number and/or HMRC/URN reference when contacting us.

The documents required for a bank payment (detailed further above) must be included with a postal request or attached as a scan for an email or online request.

Please note we will not sell the investment in the CTF until your 18th birthday. You have the right to cancel or change your instruction up until your 18th birthday.

How soon will I get paid?

Once we have a payment request with the required documentation, we have to sell the investment in the CTF and receive the proceeds to pay on to you. The price of the investment units gets fixed once a day. Your CTF will be sold within 1 working day of a payment request being accepted by us, but not before your 18th birthday. It will take approximately 5-10 working days from your CTF being sold to make the payment to you.

Is there a cost to withdraw?

There is a standard charge of 1.65% of the sale proceeds to sell the investment, so for example, if your CTF is worth £1000 then you will pay £16.50 which will be deducted before payment. There is no charge to make the payment to you.

As per the terms and conditions of the CTF, we apply an annual management fee to your account. Depending on the date of sale of your CTF, you may be due a refund on the annual fee, in which case the standard commission to sell of 1.65% will be reduced to incorporate the annual fee adjustment. Where you owe us a final fee to the date of sale we may apply this as a separate charge on your contract.

How can I find out how much my CTF is worth?

You will need to quote your HMRC Unique Reference Number (URN) or National Insurance Number We will also run through some security questions. Please telephone 0161 819 4801 and have your HMRC number to hand to find out the current value of your CTF

How can a disabled CTF holder receive payment?

Currently there is no specific guidance on this issue by the government. We currently can only accept instruction from the CTF holder after they reach 18, but in certain cases the holder will not have the capacity to give this. We have asked for this important issue to be looked at urgently with the hope that a sensible, non-costly solution can be introduced at the earliest opportunity to enable CTF holders without the capacity to instruct us themselves to be able to access their money, whilst ensuring vulnerable people are not financially exploited.

We will update on this issue as soon as there are developments.

Can I view my account online?

If you choose to open an ISA you will be able to register for Client Web Access (CWA). This will enable you to view the account at any time and it is also where future statements will be available to view and print.

Please contact us at ctf@pilling.co.uk if you require any further information.