Youth Checkpoints research project on providing money guidance for young adults
2021
Youth Checkpoints research project on providing money guidance for young adults
ProMo-Cymru and Youth Cymru recently completed a project commissioned by the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS). We aimed to research and test ways to provide money guidance for young adults (18-25) in Wales who are about to enter the workforce (including apprenticeships).
Through a combination of primary and secondary research, we consulted with over 6,000 young people and 60 practitioners and undertook a literature review of existing evidence.
Using a Service Design Methodology, we developed and tested three prototypes to provide MaPS with learning and recommendations based on user feedback to guide future developments.
Key Recommendations
Following six weeks of prototype testing with 25 practitioners and ten young people and critical analysis and evaluation of our findings, our overall project recommendations are:
Recommendation 1 - Adopt a holistic approach to provide money guidance for young people.
Recommendation 2 - Develop youth-friendly money related resources.
Recommendation 3 - Develop a clear navigation pathway of support for young people in Wales.
Recommendation 4 - Use modern communication methods and techniques to engage young people on the subject of money.
Recommendation 5 - Raise awareness amongst practitioners of young people’s needs to better identify underlying money issues and provide more relevant and appropriate support.
Recommendation 6 - Develop specialist training for youth practitioners to equip them to be more confident to help young people.
Recommendation 7 - Make the existing MAPS resources and tools more accessible for practitioners and young people practitioners to use.
Recommendation 8 – Use a combination of online and face-to-face training for practitioners.
Our research echoed previous findings and evidence on how best to provide money guidance for young people (18-25). It also confirmed our hypothesis that by providing financial capability training to practitioners and developing an accessible website with a curated list of valuable resources and tools, young people would be able to receive better financial support. Crucially, we created a pathway of support, which begins where young people are at key teachable moments.
You can download a copy of our report here:
English: https://www.promo.cymru/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/MAPS-REPORT-English-Final-.pdf
Welsh: https://www.promo.cymru/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/MAPS-REPORT-Welsh-Final.pdf
