Making your communion in Ireland is a lucrative business.
First Communion day is, of course, a landmark day in the lives of all children who make their communion in Ireland, but one of the most notable aspects of the day, particularly in recent years, is the amount of money involved.
The day often brings with it a financial windfall that children of that age will never have seen before and indeed, in Ireland, saying that an adult still has their communion money is a common way of throwing a gentle dig at someone who doesn’t part with their money particularly easily.
According to a 2017 The 2017 Ulster Bank Communion Survey, children in Ireland received an average of €570 in gifts on the occasion of their First Communion in 2017.
Almost one in four children (23%) received more than €800, with a little over one in 10 (13%) receiving over €1,000.
Overall spending by parents, meanwhile, was calculated at approximately €845, an increase of 1% on 2016, which, in turn, had increased by 12% compared to the same figure a year previously.
The average amount of money received was up by 4% on the 2016 figure of €546, with boys tending to receive a larger amount of money (€591) than girls (€550).
According to the survey, the breakdown of spending on the big day is as follows:
- Party/celebrations/food and drink: €388 (+ 5% on 2016)
- Child’s outfit for the day: €185 (+ 5% on 2016)
- Outfits for other family members: €153 (-27% on 2016)
- Children’s entertainment: €78 (-48% on 2016)
- Make-up/hair (girls only): €41 (-27% on 2016)
As regards what the money was spent on by children making their First Communion, meanwhile, the results were fairly predictable:
- Toys: 42% (+2% on 2016)
- Clothes: 31% (-12% on 2016)
- Sports equipment: 16% (-12% on 2016)
- Computer games: 15% (-19% on 2016)
- Books: 14% (-2% on 2016)
- Music/DVDs: 6% (+2% on 2016)
- Mobile phone credit: 5% (-2% on 2016)
- Tablet: 3% (-5% on 2016)
- Sweets: 3% (N/A in 2016)
- Other: 14% (-2% on 2016)
Commenting on the survey, Chris Wilson, Managing Director of Retail Banking, Ulster Bank said: “Children pick up financial habits from a really young age, so we’re delighted to see that 85% of children making their Communion this year will put some of their money into a savings account and for over a quarter of them, it will be their first ever account.
Financial planning is an important life skill and so the Ulster Bank MoneySense programme is in schools all around the country helping parents and teachers to make savings and spending more relatable to children.
“Using games, quizzes, videos and vox pops, it uses key money moments, such as starting to save pocket money or opening your first account to make learning about money fun and relevant.”
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