17 April 2023
If you are covering Rishi Sunak’s speech and his desire to extend the maths curriculum, please see the following comment from Bethan Lloyd, head of responsible wealth management strategy at Quilter:
"Rishi Sunak’s desire to improve maths education is commendable but it is crucial to ensure that any revamped maths curriculum includes practical skills relevant to work and life, specifically financial education. The world of work has undergone a dramatic transformation in the past 20-30 years, making it essential for children to acquire the necessary skills to succeed after completing their education and while complex maths skills might be useful for some, practical money skills are crucial for all. Sunak's plan to mandate maths education until the age of 18 can only be effective if it equips students with applicable skills for various aspects of their lives, including personal finance management.
"Enhancing numeracy skills is undoubtedly a sound strategy, but the current economic climate, marked by a cost of living crisis underscores the importance of financial literacy. It is imperative to address the severe lack of financial capability in the UK, which can only be achieved through comprehensive financial education. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) revealed in 2022 that 12.9 million UK adults, or 24%, exhibited low financial resilience, highlighting the vulnerability of a significant portion of the population to financial shocks and difficulties. Incorporating financial education into the compulsory maths curriculum could empower individuals to make better financial decisions and weather financial crises more effectively. Although financial education cannot directly reduce living costs, it can certainly enable individuals to better manage their resources and cope with financial shocks.
"We also live in age where there has been a huge rise in social media being used as a platform for financial advice and insight. This means it’s more important than ever to ensure students can judge and interpret the vast array of online information effectively. Part of this financial education should focus on empowering students to use the information available online positively and responsibly, enabling them to discern between credible sources and misleading advice.
"In his speech, Sunak also emphasised the importance of educating teachers to prepare them to provide effective financial education with further qualifications. This is particularly crucial for financial education, as it is a specialist subject that has long been absent from mainstream education. It will be important to ensure teachers are suitably equipped through investment in teacher training and learning resources. Enabling teachers to partner with external organisations who already work in this space such as charities like MyBnk is another great way to enable this.
"This could be a golden opportunity to equip students with practical financial skills, address the prevalent issue of financial incapability and foster a generation of individuals better prepared to navigate the complexities of today's economic landscape. Ultimately, such reforms could contribute significantly to the nation's long-term economic growth and stability."
