With 40% of adults saying they are not in control of their finances and four in ten stating to have less than £500 in savings, the UK is clearly facing a financial capability crisis and that calls for a collective response. That is why I Street UK is supporting Financial Capability Week.
What is the Financial Capability Week?
Financial capability is one’s ability to manage their money well, both on a day to day basis and on significant life events, and their ability to handle periods of financial difficulty. This ability is a combination of knowledge, attitude and skills to make decisions that suit one’s financial situations, as well as access to appropriate financial services.
A strategy to improve financial capability in the UK has been developed and launched in 2015. The strategy will last for 10 years and is guided by a Financial Capability Board, made of cross-sector experts and leaders. It includes initiatives to educate young children, working age adults, people in retirement, people in financial difficulties and more – you can read the strategy outlines here.
The Financial Capability Week is a campaign designed to highlight the work of organisations involved in financial capability, amplify their messages and achieve the large-scale change needed to tackle the low level of financial capability in the UK today.
How is Street UK supporting the Financial Capability Week?
Street UK is passionate about improved financial capability and proud to be part of Financial Capability Week 2016. But joining the campaign is not all we do. To improve financial capability in the UK we also:
- Provide affordable credit to people excluded from mainstream financial services such as banks and building societies, people who would otherwise be at the mercy of loan sharks;
- Offer an alternative to online lenders charging a fraction of the abusive APR’s practiced in this market;
- Promote financial education through our blog posts and social media channels.
You can find out more about the Financial Capability Week 2016 and the strategy behind it at www.fincap.org.uk and by following @fincapstrategy.