Foundational budgeting session Guidance for conversations on budgeting 2015 Citizens Advice Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
This session pack has been produced as part of Citizens Advice Financial Skills for Life. Although care has been taken to ensure the accuracy, completeness and reliability of the information provided, Citizens Advice assumes no responsibility. The user of the information agrees that the information is subject to change without notice. To the extent permitted by law, Citizens Advice excludes all liability for any claim, loss, demands or damages of any kind whatsoever (whether such claims, loss, demands or damages were foreseeable, known or otherwise) arising out of or in connection with the drafting, accuracy and/or its interpretation, including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage and whether arising in tort (including negligence), contract or otherwise. Copyright 2015 Citizens Advice All rights reserved. Any reproduction of part or all of the contents in any form is prohibited except with the express written permission of Citizens Advice. Citizens Advice is an operating name of the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux, Charity registration number 279057, VAT number 726020276, Company Limited by Guarantee, Registered number 1436945 England. Registered office: Citizens Advice, 3 rd Floor North, 200 Aldersgate Street, London, EC1A 4HD 2015 Citizens Advice 2 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Very basic budgeting session The aim of this session is to provide guidance to advisers when delivering sessions on budgeting to clients with limited literacy, or with clients where a conversational approach is much more likely to be effective than the usual activity based approach. Objectives for the end of this session are that clients will be able to: Identify ways to reduce their outgoings. Identify ways to increase their income. Understand the uses of a bank account. Understand what is needed to open a bank account. Be aware of different payment methods. General Guidance Notes on delivering a financial capability session are available elsewhere on the Citizens Advice website. These provide guidance for setting up and administering sessions. These notes are for the trainers use only. A separate handout pack should be used with every client, whether that is one-to-one or group. No signposts are included in the handouts, but an adviser is expected to use this session pack to decide on appropriate avenues for further information and guidance. Trainers are encouraged to feedback to the Financial Skills for Life about training materials or resources. If you have any comments, please contact: financial.skills@citizensadcvice.org.uk 2015 Citizens Advice 3 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Contents Session specific guidance 5 Lesson plan 6 1. Top tips for making a budget 7 2. Bills, bills, bills 8 3. Gas and electricity 9 4. Food 10 5. Travel 11 6. Why have a bank account? 12 7. What proof will I need to open a bank account? 13 8. Different ways to pay bills 14 9. Where now and what next? 15 Evaluation Guidance 16 Trainer s notes 18 2015 Citizens Advice 4 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Session specific guidance Manage expectations, make it clear to clients that the session is an introduction to budgeting and that if they want more detail, they will have to make that clear to the adviser. Signpost and empower, ensure that clients are aware that after the session they will have a clear idea where to go to answer certain queries and to get further assistance. Timings, all times are only guidelines. Trainers are welcome to be flexible; if that means expanding some activities and dropping others, that s up to the trainer. Low-pressure commitments, any agreement from the clients to enact any behaviour change (large or small) should not act as a deterrent to further attendance. It should be stressed that this is not a situation to feel pressure about, and that it is a safe learning environment. Any behaviour changes agreed to but not maintained represent a talking-point and learning opportunity. 2015 Citizens Advice 5 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Lesson plan Adult Financial Capability Framework references: 1 B (d) 4 2 B (d) 3 3 B (e) 2 4 B (e) 2 5 B (e) 2 6 B (d) 1 7 B (d) 3 8 B (a) 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 This session can take anything from around 45-120 minutes to deliver: it s completely up to the adviser and the client. After delivering the first activity, the trainer should be in a position to gauge what other activities to use. Activities 6-8 are recommended together. In other words, if you do one, you should really do all three. 7 8 9 Red activities are essential to any session on this topic Amber activities are highly recommended but not essential Green activities are optional activities, if time allows The size of the bubble indicates roughly how much time, relative to the session, to spend on an activity. 2015 Citizens Advice 6 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 1: top tips for making a budget AIC 20 - B This activity is intended to allow you to engage with clients on general budgeting tips and points. It can take as long, or be as quick, as you deem suitable, based on a client s engagement. The following hints are offered as guidance: Feel free to skip some tips if they re not suitable for the client. There is no obligation to discuss every single tip. Advisers are strongly recommended to add their own experience and anecdotes into the conversation. 2015 Citizens Advice 7 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 2: bills, bills, bills AIC 20 - D This activity is focussed on types of bills, specifically in terms of which are priority or non-priority. You will find it best to discuss this in terms of the consequences of nonpayments, but it may also be worth asking clients how they rank the various bills in order of priority. Some of the factors that may seem critical to clients are: Amount of the bill. Frequency of the bill. Number of letters chasing the bill. Number of phone calls chasing the bill. How much they use that particular service. 2015 Citizens Advice 8 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 3: gas and electricity AIC 20 D F This activity focusses on ways to save energy in the home. You are recommended to consider local initiatives for things like cavity insulation, which some local authorities may offer. Clients may also be interested in Energy Best Deal (EBD) sessions if they are available in the area. There is scope for considering potential digital inclusion for the client, as a lot of energy switching involves the use of websites. 2015 Citizens Advice 9 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 4: food AIC 20 - B This activity contains a lot of generic tips, but you are encouraged to tailor the discussion to reflect local factors. This could include food kitchens, but also other local initiatives. The table of supermarket discounts (and when they take effect) is only general guidance. Again, you are encouraged to tailor this with local knowledge. There are opportunities here for you to hold taste tests, a common budgeting exercise where clients can compare the taste of branded products to the taste of own-brand products. However, this would depend on your budget. 2015 Citizens Advice 10 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 5: travel AIC 20 - B You are again encouraged to use local knowledge (local travel cards, initiatives or discounts). The tip for 1 coach fares relates to the Megabus, which only serves certain routes and requires online bookings. A client may benefit from sessions on developing online experience to make the most of this. Splitting the ticket is a complex matter; although the Money Saving Expert has a tool for this, it only splits single journeys via one split. This isn t a bad tool, but it is often easier and more effective to simply ask at a train station ticket office for a ticket to be split. Keep in mind that National Rail employees may not necessarily volunteer information on splitting, but do legally have to do this for you if request it. Example: splitting a return fare from Cardiff to London at Swindon can reduce a 214 fare to only 132. 2015 Citizens Advice 11 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 6: why have a bank account? AIC 20 - A Here you should consider whether to introduce the client to the idea of credit unions. Other resources on credit unions are available in the banking section of the Citizens Advice resources, but localised leaflets and knowledge is always very useful to use. 2015 Citizens Advice 12 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 7: what proof will I need to open a bank account? AIC 20 - A This activity is an ideal one to use to encourage further sessions with the client. This can involve helping them organise existing finances and paperwork, as well as registering for critical documentation that may be of use in many other circumstances (for example, benefit or employment applications). 2015 Citizens Advice 13 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 8: different ways to pay bills AIC 20 - D This is a relatively technical activity compared to the ones before it; you may choose to leave it out, or possibly leave out some of the terms. It does however raise the more technical points to a client, and can lead to other more focussed activities. It can be worth using a computer to show images/logos of each of the methods discussed. 2015 Citizens Advice 14 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Activity 9: where now, and what next? Use the handout to ask the client to pick four things that they will start to do from the end of the session. Refer to these as one week resolutions, like a smaller version of a New Year s resolution. There is no need to make a note of the client s choices, these are for their personal motivation. Help the client to decide what action they can take to start saving money - don t be over-optimistic about what can be achieved. One small achievable step will help to improve the client s confidence and enable them to see that they can start taking control of their spending. If you found this useful, then why not try Budgeting - budget building guide 2015 Citizens Advice 15 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2
Evaluation Guidance Areas that underpin client financial capability These are the Citizens Advice Financial Capability Areas that were carefully researched and developed by The Impact Team at Citizens Advice to help local offices measure client financial capability robustly and consistently across services. They were developed in line with the MAS UK Financial Capability Strategy Adult Outcomes Framework. Sample questions and scales can be found overleaf. An Impact Tool is available in Petra for recording responses and progress. Keeping track of money Keep track of money going out, money coming in and calculate what's left over. Check my current balance and keep my papers in order. Having enough money to live Have enough money to cover the basics I need to live like food, housing and electricity. Looking for the best deals Look at different options and buying the best deal for things like food, clothes, large items or services like phone, electricity or insurance. Get different opinions on what I am buying, like from reviews and comparison websites. Controlled spending Spend or save only what I can afford after covering the basics I need to live, like food, housing and electricity. Planning ahead with money Know when my bills and payments are due and keep on top of priority bills, like for electricity, loans and council tax. Put some money aside for big or unexpected costs. Staying informed about money services Read the main information about money services I get like banking, benefits and loans. Stay on top of changes to these or get help when I don t understand. Mindset Confidence about taking action on my money matters. Copyright 2015 Citizens Advice All rights reserved. Any reproduction of part or all of the contents in any form is prohibited except with the express written permission of Citizens Advice. Please note these areas, questions and scales are owned by Citizens Advice and subject to copyright restrictions so reproduction must include the relevant copyright statement above and no changes to its wording, response categories or layout must be made. For further information please contact Satdeep Grewal on satdeep.grewal@citizensadvice.org.uk or 03000 231 608.
Sample questions and scales for measuring client financial capability These questions can be used to ascertain how good someone s financial capability is and so, what their level of need is. They also allow you to track progress by being used to follow-up with how someone is getting on after you have helped them. Score 1 to 3 Score 4 Score 5 to 7 Low financial capability Average financial capability Advanced financial capability High need Medium need Low need Keeping track of money Calculate money going out, money coming in and what's left over. Check my current balance and keep my papers in order. Rate your knowledge about the above How often do you do the above? No No to some Some Some to Good knowledge knowledge knowledge good knowledge knowledge Good to Excellent Don t know excellent knowledge knowledge 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Never Never to Sometimes Sometimes Often Often to Very often Don t know sometimes to often very often 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Staying informed about money services Read the main information about money services I get like banking, benefits and loans. Stay on top of changes to these or get help when I don t understand. Rate your knowledge about the above: How often do you do the above? No No to some Some Some to Good knowledge knowledge knowledge good knowledge knowledge Good to Excellent Don t know excellent knowledge knowledge 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Never Never to Sometimes Sometimes Often Often to Very often Don t know sometimes to often very often 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Mindset How much confidence do you have about taking action on your money matters? No No to some Some Some to good Good Good to high High Don t know confidence confidence confidence confidence confidence confidence confidence 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Copyright 2015 Citizens Advice All rights reserved. Any reproduction of part or all of the contents in any form is prohibited except with the express written permission of Citizens Advice. Please note these areas, questions and scales are owned by Citizens Advice and subject to copyright restrictions so reproduction must include the relevant copyright statement above and no changes to its wording, response categories or layout must be made. For further information please contact Satdeep Grewal on satdeep.grewal@citizensadvice.org.uk or 03000 231 608.
Trainer s notes 2015 Citizens Advice 18 Foundational budgeting trainer notes/sep16/v2