Kids ‘should be taught debt management’

Children should be given information about debt management and other personal finance issues as part of their education, it has been suggested.

The majority of parents believe financial education is more important than learning about geography, music and religious studies, a report from the Association of Investment Companies (AIC) showed.

Of the 93 per cent of teachers and parents who believe personal finance should be taught to scholars, half think such classes should be compulsory.

Teachers felt strongly that debt advice should be prioritised alongside issues such as budgeting, buying a house and finding a mortgage, tax issues, obtaining financial advice and explaining financial terminology.

Parents suggested that debt advice was not as important as teaching kids about the importance of retirement planning.

AIC communications director Annabel Brodie-Smith said parents feel financial education is a “crucial skill” for when children reach adulthood.

She added: “It’s obvious that parents want more financial information themselves so they are better informed and can pass on their knowledge to their children.”

Research published last year by MoneyExpert.com revealed seven per cent of adults in the UK are “very concerned” about their debt management skills.

At the time, the website’s chief executive Sean Gardner warned those who need debt help to not “bury their heads in the sand”.