With technology ubiquitous amongst children between the ages of eight and 15 – almost nine out of ten own a game console and three quarters have a mobile phone – 83 per cent of children surveyed said that they had downloaded a film, TV show, game or app from the internet.

They also admitted to downloading an average of five paid-for music tracks per week at an estimated cost of almost £5.

Spending on these two items outweighs the average weekly allowance of £6.35, though 40 per cent of children who received pocket money from their parents also received money from grandparents and relatives.

The vast majority of children (74 per cent) with a mobile phone rack up an average bill of £12 per month, though four out of five of these kids have parents paying the bill.

Richard Fearon, head of Halifax savings, said: “Children today are growing up in a world where so many things can be accessed at just a touch of a screen, including an almost limitless number of shops and goods. As a result it can be very easy to spend money without realising just how much is going out of your account.

“Budgeting is a great responsibility and parents need to make sure that by awarding pocket money they are also giving their children the tools to understand the importance of managing how that is spent. Previous research demonstrates that a large number of children are saving a proportion of their pocket money, but these latest figures show how easy it could be to underestimate the cost of digital spending.”