Money worries? FSA promises help

STRUGGLING to make sense of your finances? You‘re not the only one - but help will soon be at hand in the shape of a seven-step strategy from the Financial Services Authority to help you get to grips with them.

The FSA, the main UK financial watchdog, says Britons are not financially literate and that action is needed to increase financial awareness among consumers.

Consumer bodies have long complained that lack of awareness has made it all too easy for unscrupulous financial services companies to pull the wool over consumers‘ eyes and misrepresent the true nature of their products.

Work is already going on in schools to educate children about the potential perils and pitfalls of managing their money.

The latest FSA strategy will include initiatives to help people who are no longer at school get to grips with personal finance issues - many for the first time.

There will also be personal finance learning programmes in the workplace.

Education chiefs say that one of the big problems with putting personal finance into schools is that teachers are not yet adequately trained to pass on help and advice to pupils.

Personal finance is also not yet on the national curriculum and with schools still focused on the core curriculum subjects, getting class time will be a challenge.

The FSA says it has to help get education initiatives in front of parents as well, since children will be influenced by what they see in the home. Parents who are not financially ?savvy‘ and have problems with debt are not the best examples for young people, the FSA admits.

FSA projects will include programmes to educate parents financially; on making informed decisions before borrowing; how to plan ahead for retirement; and the role of advice in helping people to become financially aware.

John Tiner, chief executive of the FSA said: 'Improving the financial capability of people in the UK is a big challenge. The seven projects highlight the scale of the programme we need to put in place if we are to start to make real improvements in general financial understanding.‘

The announcement was welcomed by the charity Personal Finance Education Group (pfeg), which has been running a consumer education programme in 300 schools across the UK.

Chief executive Wendy van den Hende said the campaign was long overdue.

'Equipping young people with skills, knowledge and confidence in financial matters will enable them to make informed and independent decisions,' she said.

David Harker of Citizens Advice agreed. He blamed consumer confusion on the vast array of complex financial products available in the marketplace and said education would help tackle a growing problem.

'There are so many financial products out there now that many people feel swamped with information and unable to make an informed decision. This lack of knowledge plays a contributing part in increasing levels of debt and poverty.'