Call for money management lessons
Lessons on money management should be added to the National Curriculum to help curb rising levels of personal debt, according to a debt solutions company.
Debtmatters said an increasing number of children were leaving school with good exam results and qualifications, but with no understanding of the fundamentals of managing their personal finances.
It said the integration of a more practical approach to money into maths lessons could help reduce debt levels over the long term.
The company has identified 18 as being a key age at which financial problems can first begin. It said that although some people left school at 16, the age of 18 was the time when the majority of people had no choice but to handle money.
It said moving away from home, going to university and getting a first job put people in a position where they had to handle their own finances, often for the first time.
Michael Shirley, operations director at Debtmatters, said: “We’re not criticising maths teachers, schools or students, but we do think there is a growing proportion of the population that has little experience or knowledge of how to manage their personal finances and it is an area where the school curriculum could help.”
Meanwhile Nationwide Building Society has sponsored the publication of The Teenager’s Guide to Money, which will be available in bookshops from November 8.
Research carried out for the group found that two-thirds of teenagers did not think they had a good knowledge of finance.
At the same time one in five teenagers said they did not consider being in debt to be a bad thing, a third of whom claimed everyone was in debt these days. One in five admitted they would choose a bank or building society based on the gifts or incentives they offered, while 43% simply went to the same organisation their parents used.
Stuart Bernau, Nationwide’s executive director, said: “We are in danger of seeing the young people of today grow up without the confidence or understanding to make informed decisions about their money and plan for their financial future.”