How to look after your money

Thanks to our supporters at the Financial Times and their brilliant Financial Literacy & Inclusion Campaign we were able to offer our ambassadors an online workshop to help them learn more about managing money. It was a great session and our ambassador Isadora has summarised it in this blog post.

Hi, I'm Isadora, a second-year BA Business Management student at Greenwich University, and a proud Ambassador for The Girls’ Network. I recently hosted my very first workshop - and I can honestly say, it was a brilliant experience. Taking part in the prep session before the workshop gave me the confidence I needed and helped me feel fully prepared.

I became an Ambassador after completing The Girls’ Network’s mentoring programme, which truly changed my life. When I joined the programme, I was new to the English language and still learning how to navigate many different challenges in life. My mentor was absolutely brilliant - she supported me in ways I never expected and helped me grow into the confident young woman I am today.

Now, I’m working on developing 'The Greenwich Finance Group', a student-led initiative that focuses on helping others improve their understanding of personal finance. Hosting this workshop felt like a full-circle moment.

Hosting my first workshop

The workshop was held in partnership with the Financial Times’ charity, the Financial Literacy & Inclusion Campaign (FT FLIC), and it was all about helping young women better understand how to manage their money. The session was called “How to look after your money” and was delivered to a group of amazing young people from The Girls’ Network.

Adelaide Bowden-Doyle and Duncan Cornish from the FT FLIC team led the session. They broke down the often confusing elements of payslips, budgeting, and shared practical tools for managing money. Adelaide, FT FLIC’s Partnership Manager, described the experience perfectly:

We explored the different (often confusing) elements of a payslip, budgeting and practical tools for managing money. The young people were incredibly engaged, making the session a real pleasure to deliver. We hope they came away with valuable insights and tools to help them in their future.

The workshop was very interactive and it was inspiring to see everyone so engaged and eager to learn. Gathering feedback and data from our sessions is essential for The Girls’ Network - it helps us understand what’s working, measure impact, and shape future Ambassador activities to better meet the needs of the young women we support. 

Here's some of the feedback we received:

  • “I now understand how deductions work and where they come from, and what correct taxing looks like.”

  • “It helped me understand pay slips and deductions.”

  • “I learned new information on budgeting and taxes that I was never taught at school.”

  • “It helped me decide on my budgeting plan.”

  • “Yes, I think they have done great and they have been excellent.”

Knowing that I played a small role in helping others gain this knowledge really meant a lot to me.

What FT FLIC Offers

the FLIC logo and a group of diverse young people wearing colourful clothesFor anyone working in education or youth development, I can’t recommend FT FLIC enough. They offer a free, comprehensive financial literacy curriculum for secondary schools. Each year group receives six interactive, 50-minute lessons that cover:

  • Making informed financial decisions

  • Managing financial risks

  • Preparing for the world of work

The curriculum is super flexible, which makes it easy to tailor to your school or community needs. And best of all, all the resources are free to download from FT FLIC’s Learning Hub.

If you'd like to learn more or bring these resources to your school or youth group, feel free to contact Adelaide Bowden-Doyle, FT FLIC’s Partnership Manager, at [email protected].

Click here to watch the workshop on our YouTube channel.

A big thanks to Isadora for this blog post and for hosting the workshop so brilliantly. Thank you also to the team at FT FLIC for their time and commitment to ensuring young people have the necessary skills and confidence needed to manage their finances positively. 
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