Talking Money: A guide for Students and Parents

As the summer holidays approach many parents may find impending fears occupy their mind as their children prepare to fly the nest and leave for university. It seems like just yesterday they were dishing out their 50p pocket money, and now as they head off to university, they are expected to know how to manage their own money.

A new poll from the DfES shows that young people struggle to understand financial terms and money management, so unsurprisingly the majority of parents are worried that their child might get into debt.  However, despite this, many parents do not feel comfortable or equipped to talk to their children about their finances.  To help remedy this situation the DfES has worked with money saving expert Martin Lewis and the National Association of Student Money Advisors (NASMA) to produce a free ‘Talking Money’ guide aimed at parents.

The 'Talking Money' guide is a 12-page booklet including everything parents and students need to consider financially before they head off to university, including: the Student Finance package explained, different types of debt, Martin's budgeting tips and useful information on working part-time whilst studying.

You can download the booklet for free at www.moneysavingexpert.com/parentguide or get a printed version by e-mailing your name and postal address to talkingmoney@robertguy.co.uk or calling 020 7369 5612 and leaving your name and address.