My friend saves up five pences in a glass coca cola bottle, my aunty puts a chunk of her wages in a savings account every month and my neighbour stuffs twenty pound notes at the back of her wardrobe. Different ways of saving work for different people.
Some folks don’t seem to get this – I know there are lots of insurmountable reasons why but it is something I often think about. It seems to me that most people don’t know their options, let alone the consequences of acting on those options. Credit cards, store cards, over drafts, loans…the decisions you make when you are young about these things can dramatically change your life.
I was chattering to Andy about this very topic last week and there are some pretty interesting services being developed around this issue.
I discovered The Financial Fairy Tales which is a series of books that take a unique approach to financial literacy for younger children by exploring money and business related themes through engaging fairy stories. Dreams Can Come True, the first book in the series is available from Authorhouse from February 2010.
“The Financial Fairy Tales will form the basis of a financial education strategy which will include teachers’ notes, multimedia presentations and guidance for parents. The aim is to promote financial literacy and enterprise awareness around the world.
If ever there was a time for better financial education then surely it is now? When you look at the state of many of the economies around the world it’s a mystery why financial education is not compulsory schools. It is easy to blame banks, big business or governments for the current climate but it is the education of individuals that need to change.”
The founder, Daniel Britton rightly says … at school, we may have learned some skills necessary to get a job, but nobody tells us how to create or manage our wealth. If we cannot educate ourselves on ways to obtain and retain our money, we are headed for a future financial disaster. Follow him on twitter.
I quickly discovered alot of related work – MoneySense is the largest impartial financial education programme for children and adults across the country. Developed in partnership with teachers, MoneySense for Schools is aimed at 11–18s and their teachers. The programme has a presence in over 60% of secondary schools in the UK, supporting students in learning how to manage their personal finances. My Money, My Rights have teamed up with Abbey to launch a new pocket guide offering clear and up to date information on all aspects of money for young people
This would definitely be a dream project of mine and with two thirds of young people demanding a better financial education it might just happen.
Redjotter 
Such a good idea to bring financial learnings to schools. A lot of young (17>) people who go to university without having a clue about money, how to save, how to budget always end up flat on their face. Even people who have money but just don’t understand the value of it.
If this is brought in at a young age then maybe the problems that people face with money in later life can be everted…?
There’s help for adults too, on Learning Connections’ ‘Financial Learning Online’ site (this page has a list of useful resources), but there are plenty of materials for helping adult learners directly too.
The more help there is the better.. Juliane Otterbach is a designer turned writer who wrote a book on Debt and one on Saving, they were intended for younger people but I found them so straight-forward that I’ve recommended them to older people too. http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/jun/20/consumeraffairs3
Hi – many thanks for your interest in my books. I’m hoping to put together a project in Scottish primary schools soon so watch this space.
I believe we should start introducing principles and ideas about money to youngsters from an early age to start preparing for life as consumers and active members of society.