Wealthy 'pay less pocket money'

MIDDLE class parents are not as generous with pocket money as less wealthy families, a report says. Research claims that payments are being driven up by adults from poorer backgrounds wanting to give their children the treats they never had.

And as youngsters demand ever more expensive goods and extras, it is estimated that a rise of around £300m can be expected over the next four years - taking Britain's pocket money bill over £3bn.

Market analysts Mintel said: 'It is certainly the case that lower income parents are considerably more generous towards their children than more affluent parents.

Children under ten from poorer families get an average of £2.97 a week, plus £127 in annual pay for chores, against £2.55 a week plus £120 for those in high income groups. Weekly pocket money currently averages £6.73, which means parents are handing out £2.7bn a year.

The study also shows that parents in Scotland and Northern England are far more generous than those in the South.

While both boys and girls are similarly inclined to spend part of their cash on crisps and sweets, their priorities differ markedly in other areas.

According to Mintel, boys are twice as likely to spend on sports and hobbies. Around half of all boys splurge on computer and video games, against only 14% of girls. Girls are three times more likely to spend their money on clothes and almost twice as likely to splash out on tapes and CDs. Saving, however, is not a big priority for either sex. Only one girl in four and less than one in five boys put any cash aside.

Mintel predicts that, by 2006, average pocket money will have reached £7.73 a week.

Turning to the North-South divide, it says seven to ten-year- olds in Scotland and the North of England currently get around £3 a week, against £ 2.67 in the South. The disparity is repeated among 11 to 14-year-olds, who are given £6.67 in the North and £6.39 in the South.

Extra earnings from chores, paper rounds and odd jobs add up to £129 a year for seven to ten-year-olds in the North, £4 more than in the South. Among the older children, the figure is £165 in the North and £149 in the South.

Around 16% of children say their parents buy them everything they demand. Mintel's James McCoy said the pocket money bonanza meant markets geared towards children would boom in the coming years.