Where to invest £9,000 for your child’s future

Everyone wants the best for their children – and putting money away regularly will certainly help give them a fantastic head start in life. Whether it’s buying a car, putting down a house deposit or enjoying a round-the-world trip, a financial war chest will be hugely beneficial.

To mark National Children’s Day 2025, we look at how Junior ISAs (JISAs) can be used to give their futures a boost.

What are JISAs?

These are tax-free savings and investment vehicles that were launched back in 2011 for those aged under 18. There are two types: Cash Junior ISAs on which holders don’t pay tax on accumulated interest, and Stocks and Shares ISAs where nothing is due on capital growth or dividends received. A child can have one of each type, while the maximum amount that can be invested in the current 2025-2026 tax year is £9,000 between the two accounts. Anyone can pay into a Junior ISA – as long as the overall annual investment limit isn’t exceeded – although the child themself can’t access the money until they turn 18-years-old.

While Cash ISAs are useful savings vehicles, they may not be the best option for longer-term ambitions. A report from the Investment Association discovered that Junior Stocks & Shares ISAs have a better chance of helping to grow wealth and protecting future savings from the impact of inflation. They cited, £9,000 put into a Junior Cash ISA 18 years ago would be worth £7,453 in real terms – but £20,802 if it had been placed in a typical global equity fund*.

Where should you invest your JISA? 

This largely depends on your attitude to risk and the length of time before the money is needed. For example, if the child in question has just been born then you can take a greater risk – in the hope of generating bumper results – as there’s longer to recover from stock market volatility. However, if they’ll soon be turning 18-years-old and needing the money, then taking a more balanced, less risky approach may be more sensible.

Option one: Long-term global approach

Our first suggestion is the Liontrust Sustainable Future Global Growth fund, which invests in the shares of a broad range of companies across the world. It uses a thematic approach to identify key structural growth trends that are expected to help shape the global economy of the future. We like the portfolio’s flexibility and the fact it’s tapped into a number of emerging sustainable themes to help achieve excellent returns over the past two decades.

Option two: Emerging areas

Emerging areas of the world are favoured by long-term investors as they are still developing and have the potential to surprise on the upside. Here we’d highlight the M&G Global Emerging Markets fund, which looks for companies offering healthy returns on capital, attractive valuations, and strong shareholder alignment. The fund’s manager, Michael Bourke, believes that corporate governance and company-specific factors, such as profitability, drive share prices over the long run. Unsurprisingly, given its dominant role in the region, China has the largest country allocation at 29%**.

Not interested in having an allocation to China? Discover how to invest in Asia while limiting your exposure. 

Option three: Specialist sectors

A popular investment approach is core-satellite. This is when you put most of your money in a main fund, such as a global portfolio, and then add some exciting ‘satellite’ funds into the mix. This will be attractive to investors wanting to take a more aggressive approach with their allocation, while having exposure to a variety of hand-picked portfolios.

Read more: Three different approaches to portfolio construction 

A prime example is Sanlam Global Artificial Intelligence. This fund is at the cutting edge of arguably the most influential sector. AI broadly covers all the various ways in which technology is being used to complete tasks that would have previously required human intelligence. Virtually every sector is embracing AI in some way – and this fund stands to benefit as it can invest in businesses of any size and focus.

Another growth sector is infrastructure. This includes everything from roads and railway networks to technology links being installed around the world. One of our favoured names in this area is First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure. It aims to deliver income and some capital growth by investing in listed infrastructure companies. Electric utilities, highways and telecom towers are just some of the sub-sectors within the portfolio. We see this as an alternative way to play the global equity market with a thematic bias, as well as a reasonable yield. The team at the helm are also very experienced in this area.

Read more: How to use satellite funds effectively

Option four: Balanced approaches

Of course, not everyone wants to invest aggressively for long-term growth over the next couple of decades. Some are more focused on preserving what they have already accumulated. The good news is there are plenty of funds to fit various risk appetites so you need to do your own research to find one that meets your needs.

For example, the IFSL Wise Multi-Asset Growth fund currently has a diversified asset allocation, with 51.8% in equities, 34.1% in alternatives, 8.7% in fixed interest and 3.3% in property**. The managers, Vincent Ropers and Philip Matthews, have the ability to invest up to 100% of the fund in equities. We like this flexibility and the team’s experience.

More cautious investors, meanwhile, may prefer a fund that has less exposure to equities and we think Ninety One Diversified Income could fit the bill. The fund can only have up to 35% in equities – although currently it has just 7.5%** – and aims for attractive, sustainable levels of income, as well as the scope for capital growth.

*Source: Investment Association, 7 April 2025

**Source: fund factsheet, 30 April 2025