Half of UK girls lack financial confidence - Gender pay gap starts age 8

Young UK women lack financial confidence

· Crisis of confidence in banking, borrowing and insurance knowledge.

· Gender pay gap starts at age 8.

· 10% confidence gap with young men closed after expert-led money lessons.

· Charity calls for sustainable funding of effective financial education for young people.

48% of 11-18 year old UK women are not financially confident, a study has revealed.

The charity, MyBnk, crunched the data on over 1,200 students taking part in their financial education workshops in 2016 - covering everyday personal finance issues such as budgeting, saving, pensions, tax and public finance.

Girls were also 10% less confident in money matters than boys, leaving them potentially less prepared to deal with other inequalities later in life like pay, debt, unemployment and social mobility.

They lagged behind boys in their confidence of borrowing by 23%, banking by 20% and insurance by 14%. They were also 16% less confident their ability to make an informed financial decision.

However, young women showed the most improvement after expert-led money lessons, closing the confidence gap - bringing them level with young men.

Financial inequality starts young

The gender pay gap starts at age 8 with boys receiving 13% extra weekly pocket money than girls. A gap that grows to 18% in adulthood.

Just 36% of girls in the UK receive any form of financial education at school compared to 45% of boys.

Nearly two thirds of Brits struggling with debt are women and the same amount make up the number of insolvencies. Young British women are also the most bankrupt prone part of society.

Addressing the gap early

Money lessons form a limited part of the national curriculum and academies, sixth forms and free schools do not have to teach it at all. Just 26% of teachers taught money lessons last year and of that one in five do not feel confident in doing so.

MyBnk helps address the inequality gap early, delivering workshops to hundreds of thousands of 11-25 year olds in 750 schools and youth organisations - backed by funders such as Prudential plc, the Asfari Foundation and players of the People's Postcode Lottery.

Post-session, students see a 40% increase in understanding credit, interest rates and inflation, an 18% rise in positive attitudes towards money, and a 25% jump in skills.Its financial capability programmes for young people are proven and evaluated by The Money Advice Service.

Quote:

“When it comes to a basic life skill, money management, we have identified a worrying early indicator of divergence in the life chances of young women compared to young men. Yet this study also reveals the huge potential of young women when they are engaged with money and are motivated to act which also affects attitudes and behaviours.

Prevention is always cheaper than the cure and we are calling on education departments, financial services and corporates to back what works in our classrooms to help dodge debt and level the playing field for young people. Funding is tight and it is becoming harder to deliver frontline projects like ours which help narrow the inequality gap.” Guy Rigden, CEO MyBnk.

Methodology:

1,200 young people were asked 14 questions, answering on a scale of 1-4. 1 being ‘Definitely No’ and 4 ‘Definitely Yes’ before and after our sessions.

Examples:

• I can use a budget to help me make effective use of my money.

• I feel confident managing my money.

• I can identify the risks of financial decisions.

• I know how pensions work.

• I know how to prioritise my wants and needs.

About MyBnk:

MyBnk is the UK’s leading designer and deliverer of financial and enterprise education programmes for young people. Its experts bring a range of workshops covering topics such as saving, tax, budgeting and university finance to 11-25 year olds in schools and youth organisations.

Programmes are created by its in-house team and young people. Education Officers are rigorously trained and are assessed by young people and teachers and youth workers after every session.

For more information or to attend a MyBnk session, please contact declan@mybnk.org or call 0207 377 8770.