East Devon school receives Centre of Excellence Award

Tipton St John Church of England Primary School, East Devon, has been awarded as a Centre of Excellence in financial education, after successfully embedding the subject into its curriculum.

Staff at Tipton St John Primary School have spent the past year working with an education specialist from Young Money in order to create and deliver a detailed programme of financial education for their children.

The programme, funded by Visa, has been successfully completed and the school has now been recognised and awarded as a Centre of Excellence and provider of high quality financial education.

The Centre of Excellence programme has a proven track record in helping children and young people understand more about money and personal finance.

The school joins a network of 111 centres across England and Wales who have already been awarded or reaccredited in financial education. There are an additional 25 centres who are currently engaging with the programme, with Visa having funded 12 centres of this total number.

As a Centre of Excellence, Tipton St John Primary School will now be supported in sharing its new expertise with other schools in the local area.  This is with the aim of benefitting the wider educational community and children in neighbouring schools.

Michael Mercieca, Young Money Chief Executive, said: “Tipton St John Primary School has worked extremely hard to achieve its Centre of Excellence award and we are pleased that its students have already started to see the benefit.  We’re delighted that Visa has supported the school in this achievement, which will be of enormous benefit to the children and have a real impact on their future.

“Our aim is to ensure that all children and young people enter adult life with the skills, knowledge and confidence they need to manage money well – and the partnership with Visa is helping to make this goal a reality.”

Michael Tuckett, Head of School at Tipton St John Primary School, said: “Collectively, the staff at Tipton St John Primary School have worked extremely hard, with Young Money’s help, to embed financial education in our curriculum. I am delighted that our efforts have been rewarded with a Centres of Excellence award.  High quality financial education is already bringing significant benefits to our children as they take their next steps in life.”

Mark Antipof, Visa Chief Commercial Officer for Europe, said: “Visa has a longstanding commitment to improving the financial literacy of children and adults right across the globe. Our goal is clear: to ensure that as individuals gain access to financial services, they do so with a sound understanding of money management.  We are proud to support the Centres of Excellence programme to equip teachers with a tailored programme and specialist resources designed to boost skills, capability and understanding of money management among young people.”