OneFamily Junior ISA

A JISA (junior individual savings account) is a savings account for children. It has the advantage of being “tax-exempt”, which simply means that HMRC doesn’t claim any tax on the money your child withdraws when they turn 18, no matter how much it’s grown.

Junior ISAs are available as stocks and shares JISAs and cash JISAs. OneFamily’s Junior ISA is a stocks and shares JISA, which means it invests in a fund that buys shares in the stock market.

Other providers offer cash JISAs. These aren’t invested, instead they grow by building interest like a current account does.

Children can have one of each, but the total amount paid into junior ISAs in a child’s name can’t be more than £9,000 in a tax year (tax year runs 5 April to 6 April).

A OneFamily Junior ISA can be opened for children who:

- are under 16, and
- a UK resident (or their parent is a Crown Servant or married/in a civil partnership to someone who is), and
- do not already hold a stocks and shares junior ISA or a child trust fund (but these can be transferred).

The person who opens the junior ISA must:

- be over 16, and
- have parental responsibility for the child

Anyone can pay money into the Junior ISA by Direct Debit, bank transfer or by sending a cheque. The only condition is that each payment must be at least £10.

You can invest up to £9,000 in junior ISAs in a child’s name each tax year (tax year runs 6 April to 5 April, so the limit resets at midnight on 5 April each year). This limit is set by HMRC and could change in the future.

No. Only the child can access the money in the money in the junior ISA and only once they turn 18.

When the child turns 16, they can then decide if they want to become the Registered Contact of the account which will give them the power to make account decisions. However, they still won’t be able to withdraw any money until 18.

The money in your Junior ISA is invested in one of two funds, which have slightly different risk profiles. Both funds aim to achieve long-term growth and you’ll be able to choose which you’d like to invest in when you open the Junior ISA. You’ll be able to choose between:

- The Family Balanced International Fund, which invests in a wide range of global assets including company shares and property, as well as fixed-interest assets. This approach is designed to lower risk, but it does mean there’s less potential to grow.
- The Family Charities Ethical Trust Fund, which is the slightly riskier of the two but the fund with the greater potential to grow. This fund invests in UK-based companies that focus on operating in a more sustainable way and ensure good supply-chain labour standards.

Please bear in mind that the value of stocks and shares can fall as well as rise and the child could get back less than has been paid in.

Our Junior ISA is designed for parents looking for a long-term investment. You should only consider this account if you are comfortable with the risks involved with stock market based investments and you expect the money to remain invested for at least 10 years.

Please note that neither WHSmith nor OneFamily provide advice on this product. If you have any doubts about the suitability of this product, you should seek independent financial advice.

Junior ISA statements are sent quarterly. You can view these statements by logging into your online account.

Yes, you have 30 days to cancel the account if you change your mind. This 30-day period begins from the date you receive your Welcome Pack.

You can cancel the account by phone or in writing. If you instruct us to cancel, any shares held will be sold. If the value of the account has fallen, the proceeds will be less than the amount that has been paid in.

For details of your options following the cancellation of a transfer, please contact Customer Services.

Cancellation rights are not offered on transfers between two junior ISAs that are both provided by OneFamily.

If you have a complaint, we want to know. In the first instance you should contact OneFamily’s Customer Service team on 0344 8 920 920* or write to us at:

OneFamily Junior ISA
OneFamily
16-17 West Street
Brighton
BN1 2RL

*Our phone lines are open from 9am – 7pm Monday – Friday, and 9am – 1pm on Saturdays.

We will aim to provide you with a full response within four weeks of the date we receive your complaint and our response will be our final decision based on the evidence presented. If for any reason there is a delay in completing our investigations, we will explain why and tell you when we hope to reach a decision.

If you are dissatisfied with our response or don’t receive a final answer within eight weeks of us receiving your complaint, you may have the right to refer your complaint to an independent authority for consideration. That authority is the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) at:

Financial Ombudsman Service
Exchange Tower
Harbour Exchange Square
London
E14 9SR
Telephone: 0800 0234 567 or 0300 1239 123
Email: complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
Website: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Please note that if you wish to refer this matter to the FOS you must do so within six months of our final decision. You must have completed the above procedure before the FOS will consider your case.