Children are like sponges – let’s not waste time

My tweeting has been quiet of late partly because I have been trying to get the financial education message out there, this has been a challenge but there are some exciting opportunities.

One of the most exciting opportunities is through our charitable trust where we are going to help two charities in Bristol which deal with homeless people and young people from socially deprived areas. One of the areas we will be helping with is in the area of basic financial education which is vital as these people move to independent living.

Today I saw a link to a paper called the Financial Education and the Curriculum which discussed the pending changes to bringing financial education to schools. The proposed changes are due to come in, in 2014 but in reality it could be years. The problem is that we need it now and if 31% of schools don’t see it as a priority then we have a problem.

One thing the report pulled out was that 42% of respondents would welcome volunteers from the financial sector however it appears that although there are plenty of opportunities for schools to take this they are not doing it. This to some extent is my experience of schools. Through our charitable trust we are offering schools free education lessons to children but to date no school has responded or accepted this. When speaking to other charities offering financial education I was warned this would be a challenge.

Over the last few weeks I have spent time at home doing our New Year budget, writing down our financial goals and basically setting targets for this year. Having been out of work twice in three years our finances are not healthy but we have targets and goals. My daughter who is just starting in secondary school sat with me last night and I explained it to her, I was so surprised how quickly she understood the concepts of financial management. She also understood that to start with she might need second hand furniture or go without rather than saddle herself with debt which she might not be able to pay back.

The point is that children are sponges and they soak up information. If we don’t go to them now then we are wasting another generation. Children need to understand about basic financial management, and they need to understand that the “now” culture comes at a cost.

This paper is excellent but my challenge is who is going to speak to these schools and say there are people knocking on your door offering your pupils free financial education classes you must take them up.

If you are involved with Financial Education in the Bristol area it would be good to share experiences and work together.