Further education
Who we helped
Colleges: We gave Student Services and Curriculum staff support in engaging students about their personal finances. This also helped colleges, as money problems can be a main contributor in students not concentrating on their studies, or dropping out of the course.
Students: Learners in the college sector are a diverse group. The student may be a young adult having just left school, often with limited resources and making financial decisions for the first time; or they might be an older student returning to education or training, and juggling finances whilst studying with a job and family.
Why?
Learners from all walks of life face more financial responsibilities than ever before. Whilst striving to complete courses or training, they need to know how to maximise their entitlements and where they can seek advice if they run into financial difficulties.
Our 2006 Financial Capability survey found that the under 40 age-group were the least financially capable; young people told us that they would like personal finance education.
We have been working since 2007 to see how colleges might begin approaches to help their learners deal with money issues in a more confident and informed way.
Our aim was that at least a quarter of the UK’s further education colleges would have begun taking a planned approach to student financial capability by 2011.
Our Money for LiFE project has benefited over 100,000 students in 107 UK colleges between 2007 and 2010 – or 27% of general and sixth-form colleges.
We would like to acknowledge the tremendous work of our main delivery partners to help us raise the profile of financial capability in colleges across the UK and in giving practical support to staff in the sector between 2008 and 2010:
- National Skills Academy for Financial Services
- Scotland’s Colleges
- ColegauCymru/CollegesWales
- Educational Guidance Service for Adults / National Union of Students-Union of Students in Ireland (Adult Learner Finance Project)
We would also like to thank the ten original colleges that helped develop the Money for LiFE CD-ROM in 2007.