Ask Shade About Trusts: My Salary Has Been Slashed, How Can I Give my Child the Best Education? 

Dear Shade,

I am a single mother and for the past 6 years, I have been raising my child alone. I vowed to do whatever I can to give my child the best of education so that she can achieve her dream of becoming a pilot. Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, we had a pay-cut at work where my salary was reduced by 30%, but I still want to fulfill my vow of giving my child the best education. Kindly advise me on what I can do. 

– Stella, Bonny Island

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Dear Stella,

I appreciate you reaching out to me.

Firstly, I must commend your strength and determination to provide your daughter with the very best education.
The COVID-19 pandemic took everyone by surprise and I am sorry to hear that you were directly affected financially. I do hope things revert to normal as soon as possible.

In pursuit of achieving the high standard you have set and uninterrupted education for your daughter, you could consider establishing an education trust. An education trust is an arrangement that allows you to set aside funds for your daughter’s education and welfare by transferring funds to a corporate trustee to hold in trust for the benefit of your daughter. By setting up the education trust, you would be ensuring that your daughter’s education remains uninterrupted regardless of a change in your circumstances, i.e., death, job loss, or permanent disability. An education trust also ensures the protection of the trust fund from unwanted access or undue family interference and promotes tax savings.

Another feature of the education trust worth mentioning is the fact that the trust fund is never left idle. It would be invested to ensure the growth of the fund and liquidity pending when it is required for the purpose for which the education trust was set up for, such as making payments for school fees. In order to find out more about how this arrangement works, I would advise that you speak with a trust advisor.

I do hope that the information which I have provided is very helpful and I wish you the very best as you forge ahead in your endeavors.

Warm regards,

Shade.