This award, offered at N4 and N5, has been designed to cover a range of financial topics that young adults may start to become aware of as they move into employment or further study. The content of the units provides an introduction to financial matters such as tax, savings, mortgages and loans, insurance, the rate of inflation, the rate of interest, the exchange rate and safety and security relating to finance.

Topics covered include

• Investigate financial risk and security
• Investigate standard deductions from earned income
• Investigate bank accounts and credit cards
• Set, and maintain, a household budget
• Investigate the effect of fluctuations in rates
• Compare household costs and methods of cost reduction
• Investigate cost, risk and payback periods for different form of borrowing
• Investigate insurance, pensions and tax-free savings schemes
• Investigate costs associated with buying and selling