If we can learn anything from recent events in Europe, it is to recognise that financial literacy is a key skill for all Europeans if we are to achieve the inclusive and equitable society that is one of the EU's core objectives. Financial education is essential for life in the 21st century. Yet very little attention is paid to financial literacy in schools. Schools are not teaching children financial skills for real life. The big responsibility lies with parents, who are the most important role models for their children and from whom children learn how to manage their money. But how can parents be good teachers of financial literacy if no one supports them?
As a new era of growth and prosperity gathers pace, there are many families for whom the debt legacy of recent years remains a profound and ongoing problem. Debt consolidation and restructuring, negative equity mortgages, personal insolvency and vulture funds are terms that many adults across Europe are all too familiar with, along with repossessions of goods and property and evictions. These are the visible signs of the stress that many families are under. For many adults, a lack of financial knowledge is at the root of these ongoing problems.