Financial services sector helped over 4 million young people become financially literate last year

While financial education is increasingly considered an essential life skill, there’s a lack of public funding toward it.

Financial services organisations provide 80% of the total funding (£7.5 million) towards financial education, making them the biggest funder of the cause.

A new report by Finance UK found that in 2023, the industry provided lessons to over 4.1 million children and young people, focused support to more than 83,000 vulnerable children, and engaged with over 25,000 schools.

But there’s more work to be done.

Boosting financial literacy

We’ve been calling for better financial education to help close the money-skills gap between vulnerable youngsters and their peers.

Finance UK’s report sets out five key recommendations which they believe will improve financial literacy in the UK:

• integrating financial education in the national curriculum across all devolved nations
• creating a structured financial education curriculum roadmap
• compulsory financial education in every school
• practical maths education until 18
• enhanced support for teachers

What is financial literacy?

Financial education helps people manage their money, make informed decisions and plan for a secure future. Having a better understanding of money-related concepts allows people to make better choices and achieve their financial goals. 

In today’s world, money-related products can be varied and complex, so financial literacy is a crucial skill and can help people avoid common pitfalls. Learning about personal finance at a young age can give you an early awareness of budgeting, saving, investing and debt management. 

When we asked our customers which topics they would have benefitted from knowing more about: 

• 76% said budgeting
• 68% mentioned understanding credit and debt
• 62% said saving money

Why financial education matters

We asked our customers how financial education might have improved their current situation. They said it would have:

•  helped them make better decisions on saving and spending (75%)
• given them confidence in managing their money (68%)
• given them a more positive attitude towards money (51%)