The financial basics you wish you’d learnt at school

A survey of British employees reveals that a significant proportion of working adults wish they’d been taught more about basic financial topics at school.

According to research¹, the number one topic UK adults wish they’d learned more about at school is pensions: 40% of respondents to a survey said that learning about pensions at school would have encouraged them to take their own pension more seriously as a young adult.

Would these skills have helped you?

Other popular financial topics British workers wish they’d learned about at school include:

Basic money management (e.g. budgeting) – 28%
Saving methods – 28%
General investment knowledge – 27%
Understanding interest rates – 23%
Mortgages and how to apply for them – 21%

The vast majority of the respondents (68%) felt they would have benefited from this type of general, everyday financial know-how at a younger age.

You’re not alone

If you feel at sea with the financial basics, you’re certainly not alone – and yet many people are needlessly ashamed of their lack of financial understanding. A more recent study² revealed that 55% of adults struggle to open up about money with nearly one in five (18%) citing shame or embarrassment as the primary reason. We’re here to tell you nobody is expected to know everything about their finances.

¹ Portafina, 2019, ² Money and Pensions Service, 2020