Formed in 2021, The Centre for Financial Capability was launched with the mission of ensuring every child in the UK has the opportunity to develop the skills and behaviours necessary to navigate critical financial decisions in later life, starting at primary school, inspired by ground breaking research by the Money and Pensions Service which found money habits form around the age of 7.
We are passionate believers in the value of financial education for primary aged children. Bean Research was commissioned as the research partner by The Centre for Financial Capability to advise on this. Working with partners such as the Money and Pensions Service, TISA and the APPG on Financial Education, Bean helped author the APPG report on Primary aged Financial Education. Bean conducted research among teachers and children on financial knowledge and Buy Now Pay Later, and supported RedStart on the development of its randomised control trial evaluation to understand the long term impact of financial education in primary school.
Bean undertook research to understand ‘How grassroots community organisations can best support young families through financial education’. The research focused on organisations that work with families and young people in communities across the UK, given that research suggests that helping families talk about money can be particularly effective at building long-term financial literacy and resilience for both the parents/guardians and children. The research and report considers a range of key challenges for small organisations and seeks to identify what they need to improve financial capability for the families and young people they work with.
Bean also conducted research and reported on ‘How can we deliver effective financial education in schools?‘. The report was informed by research among teachers, as well as insights from the parliamentary roundtable we co-hosted with Baroness Sater on ‘The Future of Financial Literacy in 2024’. One of the key focuses of the report is on how teachers can be better supported in their delivery of the subject. Placing teachers at the heart of the conversation, it highlights key barriers and solutions for improving the provision of financial education, focusing on teachers’ perspectives.
The resulting report, which offers a series of recommendations, details teachers’ enthusiasm for delivering the subject, but also highlights the “unfortunate truth” that many teachers do not feel confident, empowered or supported in how to provide effective financial education.
https://www.tcfc.org.uk/centre-publishes-report-on-teachers-views-of-financial-education-provision
In late 2024, TCFC made the decision to close the charity. With a series of policy changes by both the previous and new government, “it is no longer required as a vehicle for driving the debate for early intervention financial education”.
