Hello,
I first started banking at 11 years old, I remember going into Lloyds Bank with my mum and proudly opening a young spenders account. Four years on, I thought to myself, there has to be something better than this. My card isn’t even contactless and the mobile app is dreadful! That’s where I found the futuristic world of mobile banking. The only problem, no accounts for under 18’s. I know it’s on the way but what has been requested for these accounts in the forum don’t really appeal to anyone but parents with kids under the age of 12. I understand why you would want full parental control/parental notifications/dumb card that can be enabled by parent. That’s ok for a 9-13 year old, but teenagers do not want their parents having full control over there bank accounts. Bank accounts for under 18’s are about teaching kids how to use money and how banking works, we cannot do this with our parents looking over our shoulders constantly. There should definitely be an option for the non helicopter parents, I couldn’t imagine my parents switching to Starling in the near future so an under 18’s account as a standalone account would make sense. With a normal bank account or cash, my parents wouldn’t have complete control of what I buy when I’m out with my friends. Let kids be kids, learn from their own mistakes and have freedom!
Also, if you ever need a beta tester for Under 18’s accounts, I’ll be more than happy to test for you!
