Parents 'must teach students money management skills'

Oct 4
07:50

2011

Sam Gooch

Sam Gooch

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Parents can play a vital role in educating their children financially before they go to university, it has been said.

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Parents can play a significant role in helping new  holders adapt to living away from home for the very first time.

That is the opinion of Yvonne Goodwin,Parents 'must teach students money management skills' Articles managing director of the independent financial advisory firm Yvonne Goodwin Wealth Management, who believes youngsters will often need guidance if they are to cope with having complete control of their  balance.

Often, individuals can be tempted to spend the majority of their student loan immediately on luxury items such as clothes and meals out, but this means they will struggle for cash later on in the academic year.

And with this in mind, Ms Goodwin indicated that Britons should look to foster a culture of prudence within their offspring a few years before they fly the nest through leading by example.

The expert explained that waiting until a few days before children leave home to speak to them about such matters will not work as they will be "too excited to listen", meaning creating a financially-conscious environment in their household early is vital.

Recently, a study conducted by Marks & Spencer Money revealed that 52 per cent of people are not currently thinking ahead with the intention of helping children with tuition fee charges.

However, Ms Goodwin went on to indicate that if individuals are "planning in advance to help their children with the extra costs at university", this will show offspring the value of "real money that has been hard earned and hard saved".

In turn, this should give youngsters "more of an incentive to spend it wisely".

The specialist also stated that supermarkets can also help encourage students to budget properly through the promotion of cheap food offers in store near to universities.

Meanwhile, she noted financiers should be "more frugal with overdrafts and credit cards" to stop individuals running up large amounts of debt.

It has also been shown that many parents across the UK have not set up savings accounts such as  or  on behalf of their child by new research.

A study published recently (September 27th) by The Co-operative Bank showed that 36 per cent of all Britons are not storing cash away for their offspring's future at present, primarily due to factors such as high inflation and the rising cost of living.

It was found the average amount stashed away by parents on a monthly basis is £10 or less, with 65 per cent of respondents indicating they wished they could afford to save more.

James Hillon, head of savings at the financier, observed these figures are a clear sign that the current economic climate represents a "tricky time" for parents.

Recently, Yvonne Goodwin of Yvonne Goodwin Wealth Management urged people to lead by example with regard to acting prudently in front of their children.