This article was first published in Society Matters magazine.

Financial shocks can come from anywhere, at any time and affect any of us at any age. From a global pandemic to rising utility costs, events large and small can turn our finances upside down. The Covid-19 pandemic quickly followed by a cost-of-living crisis has been testing for all of us. But for those without good financial resilience, these challenges have been even tougher to navigate and recover from.

At Yorkshire Building Society, we believe improving financial wellbeing is in everyone's interests. It sits at the heart of our purpose. Since our foundation 160 years ago, we've focused on helping people to save and to achieve the security of a home of their own. Helping young people to strengthen their finances is a key part of our ambition. It's also why supporting and championing campaigns like UK Savings Week mean so much to us.

The challenges facing Generation Z

As we embarked on this year’s campaign, we wanted to understand better the challenges of - perhaps an unfamiliar audience to us as a Building Society – Generation Z – when it comes to their finances and savings and how we, our peers, and policymakers can help to improve their financial wellbeing.

We completed a comprehensive research study that considers financial resilience across several factors – how well people across different generations can handle financial shocks, how they approach financial pressures, how they manage their finances, and their ability to save. It specifically focuses on 16–27-year-olds, members of Generation Z – those born between 1997 and 2012. 

Using national economic data and polling of 1,000 16–27-year-olds and 2,000 UK adults we have been able to shine a light on how young adults have been impacted by recent economic turmoil and an apparent lack of robust or consistent financial education. 

Generation Z is the first generation where most members should have experienced at least some financial education during their school years, however, provision of this across the UK is inconsistent. Although financial education has been on the secondary school curriculum since 2014, over 80% of secondary schools in England are academies1, and do not have to follow the curriculum. Primary school curriculums in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland do include financial education or financial capability. 

The results of the research show the stark reality of just how many of our young people are struggling simply to pay their bills and to build the financial safety net that we all need in a crisis. Despite a willingness to learn and save, many are unable to do so because they struggle to meet their outgoings.  Many young people also said they lack confidence to make important financial decisions, and only two-fifths said they had received any formal financial education at school – this is despite it being on the secondary school national curriculum for ten years. 

Delivering financial education consistently in schools could help more people enjoy the benefits reported in the research – including more optimism and better understanding of topics like debt, budgeting, tax and mortgages.

The report makes several recommendations, which we intend to take forward with peers, stakeholders, and policy makers:

• Improving financial education in schools
• Targeting financial information at Gen Z more effectively
• Developing financial products that reflect the challenges facing Gen Z

Bristol University Study on savings and wellbeing

This research followed the Bristol University Study we sponsored as part of UK Savings week. This in-depth study spanned over 10 years of insight and demonstrates the positive impact even a small amount of savings can have on people’s life satisfaction. 

We know saving isn’t easy for everyone and that some people find it challenging to meet the costs of day-to-day life. But as Bristol University found in the report, building a safety net - no matter how small - really does pay off in peace of mind and providing security. 

For me, one of the most powerful findings of the study is understanding how impactful getting into a regular saving habit can be. Regular savers tend to feel more optimistic, are more satisfied with life, and sleep better.  What was also significant is that 82% of regular savers go on to become homeowners compared to just 15% of non-savers. 

As one of the UK’s largest building societies it’s no surprise that we’re committed to helping people realise their homeownership ambitions, but we want to continue to find ways to innovate and support aspiring homeowners and movers through products like our comprehensive £5k deposit mortgage and First Home Saver Account, or our other regular saving accounts which help people achieve these life goals.

We’ve used the findings from both of these reports as valuable input to help us shape our activity for UK Savings week this year. We know that it is important to start to build financial resilience, and healthy savings habits, as early as possible, which is why a significant amount of our activity throughout the week is specifically targeted at a younger audience. Ultimately, ensuring our younger generations feel supported to enter adulthood with a good understanding of their finances will really help make us all healthier, happier, and as prepared as we can be for whatever life brings.

Supporting initiatives like UK Savings Week give us a platform to talk to customers about their savings and ensuring they make the most of what they have, be that supporting someone on the onset of a new saving journey or helping a more established saver ensure they are choosing the right home for their money and making it work as hard as they do. 

Find out more:

You can read more about both of these reports on our website:

https://www.ybs.co.uk/w/saving-genz-report 
https://www.ybs.co.uk/w/saving-small-amount-can-help-financial-and-mental-wellbeing