Financial Education finally makes it to the National Curriculum

To much applause from all of us who have been campaigning for financial education in schools, the Government has published the new National Curriculum which finally recognises that young people need to be taught money skills.

Finance will be taught in mathematics at all key stages and in citizenship n Key Stages 3 and 4, where pupils will learn money management, plan for future financial decisions and understand the links between personal and public money, such as income tax.

To much applause from all of us who have been campaigning for financial education in schools, the Government has published the new National Curriculum which finally recognises that young people need to be taught money skills.

Finance will be taught in mathematics at all key stages and in citizenship n Key Stages 3 and 4, where pupils will learn money management, plan for future financial decisions and understand the links between personal and public money, such as income tax.

The final publication is the culmination of years of campaigning by, amongst others, MPs and Peers in the All Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Education for Young People, pfeg (Personal Finance Education Group) and MoneySavingExpert.com’s Martin Lewis.

Tracey Bleakley, pfeg chief executive, welcomed the news and said the organisation was pleased that the Department for Education has incorporated many of its suggestions on what financial education topics should be taught since the initial draft was published earlier this year.

To read pfeg’s briefing on the new National Curriculum, click here.

The publication was also welcomed by MoneySavingExpert’s Martin Lewis, who said : "In 20 years' time, if we get the launch right, we should have a much more savvy and less ripped-off populace due to this. A boon for the country.”

However he sounded a note of warning, because the National Curriculum is only compulsory for around half of all secondary schools.  Others, such as free schools and academies, do not have to follow it. 

He said: "The next step is to ensure parents, teachers and head teachers of the other schools realise its importance and teach it as well, even though they don't have to. So pfeg, the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Education and I will continue to work together to try to make that happen too."

To read the full MoneySavingExpert response, click here.

For the full National Curriculum publication, click here.

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