Dee,
Laurie and I both have Sqiers and they DO stay in tune ok and yes they are cheap n cheerful but they are good for starting out. Laurie (who's 11) can play some pretty good stuff on his and doesn't struggle with it at all. The amp is not gonna be brill but the ones that came with our kits sound pretty good and are fine for bedroom/living room playing. No they are not gonna be any use for a gig but I assume that's not what you want it for. One thing I would definitely get is a tuner though, unless Dad's got a spare one?
A few on here seem to be forgeting your budget!
ps Think yourself lucky, Laurie is after a drumkit for Christmas