Money Guidance
What is Money Guidance?
Money guidance is the guidance and information people need on the money matters that shape everyday life. It covers areas like:
- budgeting their weekly or monthly spending;
- saving and borrowing, and insuring and protecting themselves and their families;
- retirement planning;
- understanding tax and welfare benefits;
- jargon-busting – explaining the technical language we use in the financial services industry; and
- money guidance is also completely sales-free.
The money guidance pathfinder
In March 2008, an independent review led by Otto Thoresenfound that significant benefits would flow from a new, sales-free national money guidance service. The review recommended that a large-scale ‘pathfinder’ (or pilot) should be set up.
The government accepted this recommendation and, in partnership with the FSA, is taking forward a pathfinder programme that will design, deliver and evaluate a money guidance service.
What we have achieved so far
The development of the pathfinder service is being taken forward under the management of a joint FSA/HM Treasury Programme Board. It will run in the north east and north west of England and will aim to reach up to 500,000 – 750,000 people over a 12-month period from spring 2009.
Development phase – we are building the key components needed to implement and evaluate the delivery phase. These include:
- a strategy and implementation plan for telephone, face to face and online channels;
- selecting partners to deliver money guidance on the telephone, online and face to face;
- setting principles and mechanisms to manage referrals between channels and into and out of the service;
- a training and support plan for those giving money guidance; and
- designing a strategy to engage users with the service through branding, marketing, PR, advertising and sign-posting through trusted intermediaries, building on the work of the FSA-led National Strategy for Financial Capability.
In January 2009 we announced the first group of partners that will deliver the face to face and telephone elements of the service.
Our partners delivering face-to-face guidance:
- Citizens Advice Service - a network of independent charities that helps people resolve their money, legal and other problems by providing information and advice;
- A4E - a private sector provider/contractor of front-line public services;
- Liverpool Money Talk Consortium (RAISE) - a partnership of Liverpool advice centres with several years experience in delivering financial skills training, as well as money advice and guidance to financially excluded people; and
- Knowsley Advice Forum (led by Knowsley Citizens Advice) - a partnership formed by the advice sector working together to ensure that Knowsley residents receive the right advice, guidance and support.
Our telephone partners:
- Teleperformance - a leading provider of outsourced contact centre solutions that has worked with the FSA since 2002; and
- the Consumer Credit Counselling Service - an experienced debt management charity, has offered to provide telephone-based money guidance to its own clients.
What’s next?
We are in discussions with more partners for the pathfinder and will announce details in due course.
For a download of this information, see our money guidance fact sheet.
