A Child Trust Fund (CTF) is a tax-free savings account which was opened for every child born in the UK between 2002 and 2011 as a part of a government scheme to give children savings when they reach 18 years of age. A CTF matures when the account holder turns 18 years and the money should either be withdrawn or reinvested, for example, in an ISA. As a CTF is an asset, anyone wanting to access a matured CTF on behalf of a young person lacking capacity must have proper legal authority. This applies even if you are the young person’s parent and have contributed money to the fund.
Therefore, if your child lacks capacity to manage their CTF account when it matures, you will need to make a controller application to the Office of Care and Protection. More detail about making an application to become a controller can be found here.
The Court will decide to make either a controllership order (where there is an ongoing need to manage the young person’s finances) or a short procedure order (a one-off type order that may be appropriate where a CTF is the only asset in the young person’s name).
The application can be submitted before the child turns 18 so that the order can be made soon after their birthday, allowing you to access the matured CTF on their behalf.
While there are fees applicable, you may be able to apply for a remission. If you are on a low income, or if you are on certain benefits, you may not have to pay a fee, or you may be able to get some money off the fee. This is known as fee exemption or remission.
Further information on how to apply for help with fees is contained in the guidance - Do I have to pay fees?