MORE than a third of parents and grandparents are not intending to help their offspring buy a home, research reveals.

The survey found that 34 per cent of people do not intend to offer financial support to children or grandchildren to help them buy their own place.

The research from insurance society Royal London found that the “Bank of Mum and Dad” is not open to everyone.

The number of those willing to offer help varies greatly on a regional basis.

For example, people in the East Midlands are least likely to offer support with 40 per cent saying they had not and did not intent to offer support for a home.

They were followed by respondents in the North East where 39 per cent said they did not intend or could not offer this support, in the North West it was 37 per cent and 35 per cent in Yorkshire and Humber, the West Midlands and the East of England.

Despite this a sizeable proportion of parents are still willing and able to provide assistance to cash-strapped family members. Overall, parents in London were most likely to want or be able to help their offspring with 39 per cent saying they either had or intend to.

“The rising phenomenon of the Bank of Mum and Dad has received much publicity but the findings make clear that not all parents have, or are willing, to offer financial support to children,” said Royal London Personal finance specialist Helen Morrissey.

“There are several reasons for this. House prices in areas such as the North West and East Midlands are much lower than in areas such as London so it may be the case that parents and grandparents feel their family members do not need their support as much as in other areas of the UK.

“It may also be the case that these people have other demands on their money and cannot simply hand it over.

“Anyone looking to hand over money to help a loved one needs to ensure they take their own future needs into account before doing so.”