Responding to new research from the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) on financial education in schools, Sarah Hannafin, head of policy at school leaders’ union NAHT, said:

“Schools want to provide the children with a broad and balanced curriculum which prepares them for the opportunities and responsibilities of adulthood.

“Financial education is a vital part of that as it can help protect children from increasingly complex financial harms including gambling, scams, in-game purchases and online exploitation. Financial wellbeing is also important in supporting children and young people’s mental health.

“But it can already be challenging for schools to cover the National Curriculum and qualification specifications in the time available, and this is exacerbated by government policies and high stakes accountability measures focusing on particular subjects.

“Schools need sufficient curriculum time, appropriate, properly-funded training for teachers, and freely available high-quality resources to support children and young people to develop their understanding of financial issues.”