In reply to GravitySucks:
£50 should be fine as a nice starters racquet. As mentioned above, breakages are possible and the lighter the racquet the more fragile they are. As he becomes more experienced then he'll develop a preference for a certain type of racquet, string tension etc. Spend a bit more then.
On another note, might be worth suggesting some goggles. Now I'm being a total hypocrite as I never wore them in 30 years of playing, but my wife's lad has just knackered his vision in one eye by taking a mis-hit ball to the face. One of those things - a sliced shot and a fluke hit, but more common with beginners.