Child Trust Fund: Disability

(asked on 22nd September 2020) - View Source

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the financial effect on families of disabled children as a result of being required to apply to the Court of Protection to access their child's child trust fund account.


Answered by
Alex Chalk Portrait
Alex Chalk
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
This question was answered on 25th September 2020

In order for anyone to make decisions on behalf of an adult who lacks mental capacity in relation to their financial affairs, they must be granted legal powers to do so, either by a Lasting Power of Attorney or by authorisation from the Court of Protection - the specialist court that deals with issues concerning a lack of capacity.

We do not hold data on the proportion of holders of child trust funds who have a disability. However, we are working with the financial institutions to ensure that the parents of young people who do not have the required mental capacity to make the decision to access a Child Trust Fund at age 18, are made aware of Lasting Powers of Attorney and the possible need to make applications to the Court of Protection.

Fees are payable to register Lasting Powers of Attorney and for applications to the Court and we recognise that these fees may be difficult for the families of disabled children to afford. Help with Lasting Power of Attorney registration fees, Court of Protection fees and deputy supervision fees is available, depending upon the financial circumstances of the person who lacks mental capacity, and in some cases a full fee exemption may be available.

We consider that our processes for applying for a Lasting Power of Attorney, court applications, the structure of court fees and the policy around Help with Fees are adequate and we keep these under regular review.

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