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Parenting on Female First
Gone are the days where all a kid needed in their bedroom was furniture and some Lego.
According to the latest research from VoucherCodes.co.uk, the average cost of a child's room in Britain is a staggering £2,869, with expensive technology, clothes and toys racking up the cost.
In a survey of 1,001 parents VoucherCodes.co.uk looked at the total cost of the possessions in the bedroom of the family's eldest child. For the majority of age groups, tech now tops the list of largest expenses - surpassing even furniture - with smartphones, laptops and tablets setting parents back a massive £484. Aside from technology the top five costliest items in a child's bedroom include furniture (£457), clothes and shoes (£451), gaming consoles and games (£347) and toys (£357).
Interestingly, it's not teenagers whose bedrooms cost the most to stock - seven year-olds have the most expensive rooms around, with streaming services, sporting equipment and school equipment posing the biggest drain on parents' finances at this age.
In 2016, the cost of a child's bedroom equates to more than just the material items; now encompassing streaming services such as Netflix and Spotify and phone contracts. These services are burning holes in parents' pockets, with London families spending an average of £407 a year on services solely for their child, and nearly 1 in 10 London families spend between £1,001 and £2,000 every year.
The rest of the country spends significantly less on these services, with almost 50% of parents across most UK regions spending less than £50, averaging out at £151 nationally. Whilst the London average salary of £34, 315 is higher than the national average wage of £27,531, streaming service expenditure in the capital is still comparatively very high.
London children aren't just at home watching TV however, as London parents spend more on sporting equipment for their child than any other region (an average of £439), and far above the national average of £201. Unsurprisingly, children's bedrooms in London are the priciest, while bedrooms in the South East cost their parents the least.
The research also revealed that the typical price of a boy's bedroom is markedly different to that of a girl's, with sons costing parents nearly £1,000 more than daughters on average (£3,279.45 vs £2,315.60). This can in part be attributed to games consoles and games, which are revealed to be staples of a boy's bedroom in 2016. It's also worth noting that boys are also having 62% per cent more spent on school equipment and books compared to girls.
Claire Davenport, Managing Director at VoucherCodes.co.uk said "While parents have always spent a lot of money on their children, over the last decade the advances in technology have led to families splashing out more and more on the hottest gadgets for their kids. Children all want the latest iPhone, clothes and games and this can really add up for parents, shown by the research that an average British child's bedroom costs almost £3,000. Whilst it can be difficult for parents to say no to their children when they are tugging on the purse strings, by shopping around for the best deals and planning ahead families can cut down costs and make sure they're making the most of their money."