Overview
- HMRC launched a renewed national drive on Friday to reconnect more than 750,000 people with Child Trust Fund accounts holding about £1.6 billion in total, an average of roughly £2,200 each.
- The department is directing people to the free 'Find my Child Trust Fund' service on GOV.UK, which asks for name, date of birth, address and National Insurance number and typically replies within weeks with the account provider.
- Child Trust Funds were set up for children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011 and become payable at 18, with account control possible from age 16.
- HMRC warns it will only contact people about CTFs by post, advises forwarding suspicious texts to 60599, and cautions against paying third-party tracing firms after regulators banned misleading CTF adverts in 2025.
- Officials say many accounts are unclaimed because families moved, lost paperwork or never told children about the accounts, and a new taskforce will work with banks and providers to improve tracing and engagement.