Fashion Food and Financial Capability
Posted on by Deeside College | Leave a comment
Students Learn about Money through Barclays Money Skills Week
Students from the Deeside College Group of Colleges have been given the chance to improve their financial skills, as part of Barclays Money Skills ‘weeks’, a national money programme that’s aiming to reach 125,000 students nationwide.
Research from Barclays has highlighted that additional support is needed to help young people to manage their money. With 36% of young people saying they regularly run out of money and 28% stating that they do not discuss financial matters with family, friends, or other students.
As part of the week long series of money related activities developed by Barclays and the National Skills Academy for Financial Services, students from Deeside College, Coleg Llysfasi, Northop College and Wrexham Training undertook a range of structured tutorials and made the most of a number of informal activities, aimed at increasing awareness of money management issues and providing tools to stay in control of budgets.
Alongside quizzing Barclays representatives on money saving techniques, students were also challenged to taste the difference between premium and lost cost branded foods, discover style on a budget in a Gok Wan inspired Catwalk challenge and given an additional incentive to stop smoking on National Non-Smoking day by calculating the money they could save.
The week also marked the beginning of partnership with local money advice agency, Pennysmart, who will now provide regular money clinics at the colleges.
This project forms part of Barclays Money Skills, an industry leading initiative to support one million young people to strengthen their financial skills, delivered by Barclays in partnership with leading UK charities including Action for Children, the National Skills Academy for Financial Services and the National Youth Agency.
Deeside College Head of Programmes for Essential Skills, Welsh Baccalaureate and Tutorials, Shirley Minton said:
“It’s fantastic to be able to offer this innovative money management at a time when students are increasingly being put under pressure due to a higher cost of day to day living. Good financial decisions are essential in today’s tough economic climate and by building students’ financial knowledge we are giving them vital skills for the future.”
Chris Hearn, Head of Education for Barclays Corporate, said:
“It is critical that young people have the skills they need to manage their money effectively. Barclays and the National Skills Academy for Financial Services are working with further education colleges across the UK to deliver an education programme for young people. Barclays Money Skills ‘weeks’ aims to build students’ financial skills, knowledge and confidence, and help them prepare for a secure financial future.”
Sylvia Perrins, CEO at the Skills Academy said:
“The rising costs of education mean that students today have more to consider than others previously. Not only this, continued instability in the job market together with the tough economic climate creates the need to help and support students when it comes to understanding their finances. Barclays Money Skills ‘weeks’ is a proven way of providing this support, with a staggering 83 per cent of students that participated in last year’s sessions saying that they now feel better equipped to manage their money.”