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Money’s too tight to mention? Not according to the teenagers who recently told Anita Pati how they earn and spend their cash.

How important is money to teenagers - and how do they manage on what they get? A recent survey suggests many young people have a sophisticated approach to finance, and are also very concerned about financial security in the future. The study Young Lives, Our Future was published in June by children’s charity NCH and Norwich Union and was based on interviews with 13 to19 year olds. A key finding was that teenagers’ top worries for the future were "not getting a job" (35 per cent) and "getting into debt" (17 per cent). Almost nine in 10 have a bank or building society account with three-quarters of teenagers having savings. Parents and family are very important source of information about money and three-quarters depend on them for advice.

Teenagers out and about in London told 0-19 about their money and how they manage it, and their answers backed up this research. Billie, 13, and Gemma, 14, described their earning and spending patterns. Billie posts leaflets for three hours on Monday and Tuesday evenings for her aunt. For this she gets a total of £10. She also works every Saturday for £15 then gets £5 from each parent at weekends, who also save £2 per week for her.

Gemma gets £10 each from her mother and father each weekend. They also save £2 a week for her in an insurance policy which will yield £2,000 when she turns 16. Her own bank balance stands at £800. She thinks it is good to save but has no idea what she’ll do with the money. She doesn’t have a job at the moment but is looking: "You can’t get jobs," she says, "but hairdressers will sometimes take you on. That’s what I want to do".

They get together with friends in the high street usually but occasionally go swimming at the local lido or to the fast food chain Nando’s. Some of their money goes in directions their parents, might not approve of if they knew about it. "I spend it on alcohol, cigarettes and puff," she says, giggling. She and her other friends get older children "or ask adults in the street" to buy it for them. Vodka and Lambrini are favourites. They tend to drink in the park or in friends’ gardens when parents are away. Gemma doesn’t drink or smoke as much as she used to - "only on the odd occasion now".

Both girls are happy with the amount of money they get and it doesn’t cause rows within the family. "The only thing I get into trouble for is getting in late," says Billie.

The odd pound here and there is often saved rather than squandered. Grant, 17, and his sister Becky, 14, were visiting London from the North West to visit relatives. Although their parents finance their routine spending, both siblings make a habit of putting away money whenever they can. Becky babysits every Friday for her younger brother for £2 then every few months she will get around £10 for looking after a family friend’s children. She gets £4 a week pocket money from her parents. "Mainly my parents buy my clothes so I spend it on books quite a lot." She doesn’t get whatever she wants, just "serious stuff", but is happy with what she has.

She also has a savings account. "It’s good because I get interest. I save out of my pocket money and if I’ve got anything left after I’ve shopped or whatever, or when I’ve been babysitting." She puts away about £5 per month.

Grant, 17, has just finished his AS-levels. He works four hours every Saturday in a pet food factory which earns him £10 per week. This is his pocket money. His parents buy clothes and toiletries for him. "My parents will buy me stuff I really need like clothes but I have to save up to buy other stuff like computer upgrades, DVDs and CDs.

"I save up for the biggest stuff - I just went to America and that cost quite a bit."

He is comfortable with what he has "although I always want more", and doesn’t think his Saturday job affects his college work. A friend of his was not so lucky though: "He used to do a lot of work which did affect his school work. He was doing a paper round so he had to be there in the mornings before college, seven days a week. He got quite a bit for it - £25 per week. But he had to give it up in the end."

Anji, 17, is at sixth form college doing her A-levels. She has never worked and gets money from her parents whenever she needs something. "I probably get about £40 per month. When I’m going shopping on my own I have to pay for my own stuff with the money they give me but if I’m going with my mum, she pays. The £40 is for CDs, clothes, concert tickets and stuff."

Anji is more confident than the others about her income. She does have a bank account but doesn’t use it. "I’m thinking of a summer job but I haven’t done anything about it yet. I would like to work in a shop kind of thing, a CD or maybe a clothes shop because you’d get discounts. I wouldn’t fancy waitressing.

"My little sister, who’s 12, gets money too but I don’t think she needs it as much as older people like me. She doesn’t go out with friends as much as I do. At her age, they go round to friends’ houses. It affects people my age more. Some of my friends say: "I can’t go out this weekend because I haven’t got enough money."

Dan, 18, has just finished his A-levels and is financially dependent on his mother, a lone parent. "I’m looking for a job before I go to university. I get all my money from my mum but I need to save up over the summer so that I don’t get into massive debt at university. I don’t get a set amount per week, just when I need it."

He has his own bank account "but that’s just savings. I don’t have an income so I put in money from what I get on birthdays or Christmas, or from my grandparents."

Most teenagers I spoke to feel some responsibility for their own money management, even if their visions were slightly vague. "I don’t know what I’m saving for really," says Becky. "I’m just saving in case it’s useful one day. You see all these people getting into debt and you think ‘I don’t want to be one of them’."

The names of the children quoted in this article have been changed.