Over the years dabbled a bit. Tried CFDs, very risky, made a tidy sum and lost most of it. IF you do the direct route of share or CFDs, prepare to invest time in it, otherwise you can easily throw it all down the drain.

I have opted for Managed funds. Charles Stanley Direct have a 0.25% annual charge, and then you pay anywhere from 0.5% to 0.75 on the fds AMC, so assume 1% charge. Buying and selling managed funds tends to be free with most providers.

Now is potentially a bad time as markets are up 20-30% in the last year. But people were saying the same last year, and if you listened then you would have missed out on what has been a VERY decent growth. Managed funds are more of a medium to long term growth strategy, so dont be worried if markets do fall as history shows it only takes 6 months to recoup the losses. So in a year you would probably be back in profit anyway. You can pick funds to match whatever you want.

With ISAs allowing £20k a year, its best to put it in an ISA so there is no tax.