First Communion spending rises 12% to €836 per child

Spending on First Communions rose by 12 per cent this year to €836 per child, according to a survey by lenders.

The average amount received by each child in 2016 was €546, compared to €543 last year.

Almost one in four children, or 22 per cent, received more than €800 this year, the annual Ulster Bank Communion survey found.

The average amount of money received by boys in 2016 was up by 4 per cent to €533, while the average received by girls dropped a modest 1 per cent to €563.

Overall, there was a marginal increase in the amount of money received by children in 2016.

Much of the increase in spend on the day is attributed to entertainment such as bouncy castles. The survey published today also found that 87 per cent of parents financed the day through their own savings.

A breakdown of spending for 2016 found that €370 was spent on party/celebrations/ food and drink, an increase of 13 per cent on last year.

The child’s outfit for the day cost €176, up 1 per cent. Outfits for other family members was €212, an increase of 10 per cent, with €149 spent on children’s entertainment up 25 per cent. Make-up and hair for girls cost an average €56, an increase of 12 per cent on last year.

Purchases

Nine per cent of parents surveyed said their child had already spent more than 75 per cent of the money received or collected for their Communion.

However, the average amount spent so far was 25 per cent of what the child received, with 34 per cent saying they had yet to spend a penny of their “Communion money”.

Of those children who spent Communion money, their most likely purchases were clothes at 43 per cent, toys at 40 per cent, computer games at 34 per cent, and sports equipment at 28 per cent.

The survey was carried out online between May 15th and June 6th among 205 parents of children who had made their Communion this year.