The government will contact thousands of young people about forgotten Child Trust Funds (CTFs) in a bid to reunite account holders with their accounts that are now worth £2,200 on average.

CTFs were introduced by the government in 2005 and applied to children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011.

The government is now undertaking an extensive awareness campaign urging young people to locate their CTFs through the free ‘Find My Child Trust Fund’ service on GOV.UK.

Many young people are unaware they have a CTF and over 750,000 accounts are unclaimed. The government says it is determined to act so every young person that has a CTF is aware of how to access it.

In order to build on existing efforts, HMRC will be writing to all 21-year-olds whose accounts remain unclaimed to make them aware they have a CTF.

Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Lucy Rigby, said:

‘Hundreds of thousands of young people in this country don’t know they have a CTF, let alone how to access it. Some will have a couple of thousand pounds sat there that would really help them as they begin adult life.

‘I’m determined that those who have CTFs are made aware they have this money.

‘Together, we will ensure funds from these Child Trust Funds can be accessed by young people to help give them the best start to adult life.’

Internet link: HM Treasury website