Savers Support Fund: Able to Manage

OnSide Youth Zones is one of five not-for-profit organisations in England proud to receive funding from the Savers Support Fund to help young people and families better manage their money and reduce debt. Run by innovation foundation Nesta and funded by Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the grant funding will help scale proven social action models to reach more people.

OnSide Youth Zones has developed Able to Manage, which is a 10-week money management programme. Delivered one-to-one by volunteer mentors to young people aged 14-19, it will help young people make better financial decisions and develop the skills required for independent living.

Financial planning is an area in which social action is well placed to assist; with skilled volunteers able to help local people build the skills, knowledge and tools they need to save for the future and become debt free. The project will be carried out across the Youth Zone network at the following locations: Blackburn, Oldham, Manchester, Carlisle, Wigan, Bolton, Wolverhampton, Wirral and Warrington.

Sarah McLoughlin, Programme Manager at Nesta, commented:

“Building financial competencies in young people and families is essential to developing resilience and to allow people to be better prepared for the financial shocks and changes that affect us all.

“Through their innovative approaches and bold plans for scaling, these five projects are taking significant steps to tackle the widespread issue of debt. They are already making an impact but have huge potential to do more – whether it’s reaching new geographies or mobilising a whole new set of volunteers to help people in their communities.”

Helen Taylor, Network Director at OnSide Youth Zones, said:

“‘We are really excited to have the opportunity to work with Nesta to build the financial competence of young people across our network of Youth Zones. The Able To Manage (ATM) programme will support young people to improve their financial resilience, enable them to make better financial decisions and help them to develop skills required for successful independent living.

“The course covers a broad range of topics including budgeting and enterprise. Across the Youth Zone network, 360 volunteers will work on a one-to-one basis with over 300 young people, aiming to improve confidence, financial resilience, and knowledge of money management.”