Skip to content
Money and Pensions Service Website
  • About us
    • Who we are
    • Board
      • Advisory Group to the Board
    • Executive Leadership Team
    • MoneyHelper
      • Share our cost of living campaign
    • Welsh Language Scheme
    • Careers
  • Our work
    • UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing
      • What is financial wellbeing?
    • Talk Money Week
      • Talk Money Week for schools
    • Debt
      • Breathing Space
      • Money Adviser Network
      • Quality Assurance Framework
    • Pensions
    • Money Guiders
    • Talk Learn Do
  • Work with us
    • Build financial wellbeing in your location
      • Scotland
      • Northern Ireland
      • Wales
      • North West England
      • North East England
      • Yorkshire and the Humber
      • West Midlands
      • East Midlands
      • East of England
      • London
      • South West England
      • South East England
    • Employers
    • Financial services
    • Health and social care
    • Housing
    • Local authorities
    • Schools
    • Procurement
  • Media centre
    • Press office
    • Press releases
    • Financial wellbeing blog
  • Publications
    • Business plan and Corporate Strategy
    • Consultations and responses
    • Research
    • MoneyHelper pension take up dashboard

Cookies on maps.org.uk


Cookies are files saved on your phone, tablet or computer when you visit a website. We use cookies to store information about how you use MaPS, such as the pages you visit. For more information visit our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.

Some cookies are essential for the site to function correctly, such as those remembering your progress through our tools, or using our webchat service.

These cookies allow us to collect anonymised data about how our website is being used, helping us to make improvements to the services we provide to you.


Reject additional cookies Save preferences Accept all cookies

Talking money with children and young people during Talk Money Week and beyond

Published on:

11 November 2022

The Money and Pensions Service’s (MaPS) Propositions, Insights and External Engagement Director, Sarah Porretta, on the importance of financial education for children and resources available to schools and families during Talk Money Week.

  • Financial education in schools
  • MaPS' bold target for financial education
  • How MaPS are improving financial education
  • Talking about money at home
  • Support for talking to children about money

This week we’re working to turn talking about money from one of the UK’s least favourite topics into something that becomes as natural and familiar as talking about the weather.

Children’s money habits are formed younger than you think; even by the age of seven, children have started to develop attitudes and habits around money. Talking with children and young people about money from an early age helps them to form good habits that will last a lifetime.

Yet only 48% of 7–17-year-olds receive financial education at home or in school in the UK. This means 5.3 million children and young people are not getting the vital learning they need. What’s more, just 58% of parents feel confident talking to their children about money.

Back to top

Financial education in schools

Too many young people are entering adulthood unprepared for the money-related realities that lie ahead, so financial education in schools is hugely important.

Research shows that fewer than 40% of young people aged 7–17 say they recall having learned about money at school. Those who recalled learning about money management in school are more likely to have a bank account; 10% of young people aged 16–17 have no bank account at all.

Fewer than 30% of young people aged 14–17 plan ahead for how they’ll buy things they need.

Back to top

MaPS' bold target for financial education

The UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing, developed by MaPS, has set an ambitious goal of ensuring that two million more children and young people have a meaningful financial education by 2030.

To achieve this goal, we want to see more teachers with the confidence, skills and knowledge they need to deliver high-quality financial education, and parents encouraged and supported to talk about money with their children.

Many schools and teachers report wanting to deliver more learning about money for their students. However, barriers remain, including a lack of time and resources, and teachers’ confidence, knowledge and access to tools.

Back to top

How MaPS are improving financial education

We are already investing £2.7m in projects to test effective and innovative approaches to securing financial education for all children and young people.

We work with partners to help teachers deliver high quality financial education, including the Financial Education Quality Mark and financial education textbooks for schools across the UK.

Schools and colleges play a vital role in ensuring children and young people develop the skills and knowledge they need to manage their money well, both now and in later life.

At the same time, financial education can enhance your curriculum, strengthen your extra-curricular offering and provide a focus for wider engagement with the local community.

We’re calling on all schools and colleges across the UK to do what they can to help the children and young people they work with to talk about money:

  • Our Talk Money Week Toolkit for Schools is full of ideas and resources to help deliver quality financial education.
  • Schools can contact the MaPS partnership manager in their area for advice about how to deliver financial education in a way that suits the needs of children and young people in their region.
Back to top

Talking about money at home

How parents teach and talk about money also has a huge influence on children’s money skills, knowledge, and habits. The sooner you start the better, but you can make a difference at any age.

As a full-time working mum to children under ten, I have introduced conversations and activities covering financial education in everyday situations. For example, vocalising my choices during the weekly shop at the supermarket, giving them pocket money and helping them understand the concept of saving and spending.

Research shows that giving money to children regularly, setting rules around money and giving them some responsibility for money choices all have a positive impact. However, fewer than 25% of children experience all three of these at home, and not all parents feel confident talking about money.

Back to top

Support for talking to children about money

Our MoneyHelperOpens in a new window service has lots of resources for parents and carers showing fun, easy ways to talk about money with children, from toddlers to teens.

Our advice includes tips on how to talk to children about money according to their age group and fun ways for children to think about spending limits and saving.

Back to top
Sarah Porretta headshot

Published by:

Sarah Porretta, Executive Director - Propositions, Insights and External Engagement

Also see

  • What is financial wellbeing?
  • UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing
  • MoneyHelper

Get all the latest news on our progess and join the conversation

LEGAL

  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy notice
  • Cookie policy
  • Money and Pensions Service standards
  • Public information
  • Subject access requests
  • Accessibility statement
  • Cookie preference

OUR BRANDS

  • MoneyHelper Opens in a new window
  • Financial Capability Strategy for the UK Opens in a new window

STAY IN TOUCH

  • Contact us
  • Sign up to newsletter Opens in a new window
  • Twitter Opens in a new window
  • LinkedIn Opens in a new window
  • YouTube Opens in a new window

Copyright 2025 Money & Pensions Service, Borough Hall, Cauldwell Street, Bedford, MK42 9AB.

All rights reserved.