Charity campaigns for financial literacy to be on primary curriculum

Research by charity RedSTART reveals that parents in the UK are scared their children will end up poorer than them, and 44 per cent want compulsory finance education at school.

More than one third (35%) of parents believe their children are destined never to own an home, and 29% are worried that their children will be less well off than them when they grow up.

These worries are driving a new call for financial education in schools, which parents feel is one of the most effective ways for the next generation to avoid the poverty trap.

Parents are also fearful that their own bad money habits will be picked up by their children. Not putting money aside for a rainy day (19%), overspending (18%) and relying on their credit cards (15%) are among the bad habits parents hope their kids can be taught to avoid.

Almost one third (27%) believe their children’s chances of being comfortably wealthy in later life is dependent on them receiving financial education at an early age, with parents under 35 being the least likely to feel confident with teaching the skills themselves. More than a quarter of parents (26%) say their child’s primary school simply isn't doing enough to help, and nearly half (44%) of parents want compulsory finance education at school.

The research also found 26% of parents agree that teachers lack the right support and knowledge to teach kids the critical money saving habits they need.

The charity is commencing a long-term study at a north London school. The initiative will monitor and assess children’s attitudes to money before and after financial education training, over the course of a year, to prove that financial education helps to not only develop good habits that they will keep for a lifetime, but boosts pupils’ prowess at maths and Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE).

The study takes the form of an interactive self-contained micro-economy at Worcesters Primary School in Enfield, where pupils are earning, saving, and spending pretend currency or “acorns”.

Named by pupils at the school as The Oak Bank, three out-buildings have been converted into a bank, shop and product showroom. As well as the pretend currency, there is also an online banking platform.

The pupils, aged five to 11-years-old, will earn acorns, which they can put into a current or savings account, that earns interest over time.

Over the course of the programme, data from the banking platform will be analysed to see whether students move money from their current account to a savings account after attending RedSTART’s ‘Money Matters’ workshops where they are taught about earning interest, along with many other financial skills.

The initiative has been supported by donations from AXA Investment Managers and Mash Virtual, and RedSTART is confident that the results will be extremely useful in the charity’s drive to prove that financial education for primary school children should be compulsory.

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