The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) was established in 2018, in line with the Financial Guidance and Claims Act but its origins, go back to 2004 when the then Financial Services Authority produced the first national financial capability strategy. In my former role as Chief Executive of the FSA, I was involved in that exercise and so when the I heard about the MaPS Chair role, it felt like not only a once in a lifetime opportunity to establish an organisation which can really change lives but also unfinished business.
What I believed then, and what I believe now, is that financial wellbeing matters. As is forcefully brought home to us through the current cost-of-living pressures, feeling confident and in control of your financial situation is crucial to personal wellbeing and thus to living a contented life.
In my early days as Chair of MaPS, I set out my initial objectives for this new organisation. I had five focus points for the first five years, this is a timely opportunity to see how we fared.
The first was raising the importance of financial wellbeing through establishing the importance of financial wellbeing as a top priority for policy makers and raising its awareness in society to a level comparable to that of mental and physical health.
With our partners and stakeholders, we have definitely made progress in this regard, with greater and more widespread understanding of the importance of financial wellbeing amongst government, employers, healthcare providers, schools and universities, local government, housing associations, and the financial services sector as a whole. I believe we are at the point where the importance of financial wellbeing is no longer a point of debate.
Secondly, I wanted to ensure that all those who need pensions guidance, receive it. I’m not sure we can say that we have wholly delivered on that very ambitious aim but, through our expert pensions helpline, Pension Wise service and digital content, we are definitely reaching more people as MaPS and MoneyHelper than the legacy organisations did individually. Furthermore, ongoing work on an integrated pensions strategy and pensions dashboards lays the groundwork for delivering on this goal.
Thirdly, I wanted us to significantly increase capacity to remediate financial distress – “help consumers in vulnerable circumstances”.
On this, progress is significant. Securing an increase in funding – from £43m per annum pre-pandemic to £76m now – to help meet increasing need for debt advice is a significant factor here.
There has also been good progress in building links with healthcare providers – including mental health organisations – and connecting financial wellbeing with physical and mental wellbeing. Overall, we are well on our way.
Fourth, we wanted to “establish a credible National Strategy” to achieve our vision of everyone making the most of their money and pensions.
This has been a major undertaking for MaPS. Following months of listening to more than 1,000 stakeholders around the UK through a series of engagement events, MaPS developed a UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing that received widespread support from a diverse range of partners.
The Strategy sets challenging but easy to understand goals across five main contributors to financial wellbeing: meaningful education, creating a culture of regular saving, reducing reliance on credit for everyday expenses, provision of better debt advice, and making sure people have the confidence, skills and information they need to plan for and retirement. This Strategy provides a lasting framework for MaPS, and for the UK as a whole.
Following its launch, and in the midst of the pandemic, more than 140 senior stakeholders engaged in challenge groups to turn this strategy into delivery plans for each of the four nations, which were published last year. These set out the activity and commitments that will ensure progress is made towards the national goals.
From the most recent financial wellbeing survey, we know that this progress is much needed. It is still the case that:
- Over half of UK adults don’t feel confident in making decision about financial products and services
- One in six UK adults are often borrowing for the everyday
- About 1 in 7 of UK adults do not have savings of any kind
- And 52% of adults living in the UK say they do not have a plan for their finances in retirement
These stats show this isn’t much change from when we started but that is to be expected. The national goals around savings, financial foundations, credit, debt advice and planning for and in retirement had ten-year timelines attached to them for a reason. This scale of change takes time and the pandemic and cost-of-living pressures were not on our radar back then.
I am confident, however, that alongside MaPS’ own services – directly delivered and commissioned – we are reaching more people than ever. I am hopeful that, by 2030, good progress will have been made towards our vision of everyone making the most of their money and pensions.
Our final objective was an internal one, to establish an efficient, sustainable and respected organisation. Here, good progress has been made also.
I am proud of what MaPS – and what all of our partners and stakeholders – have been able to achieve over the past few years. Maintaining a collective focus on financial wellbeing when we are all being pulled in many different directions will continue to need strong and effective engagement. But I am confident that you and MaPS will deliver. To conclude; I have always said that I would do one term at MaPS, and that term is coming to an end this year. I know that I leave MaPS in capable hands with Sara Weller CBE taking my place as Chair of this great organization – she shares my passion for financial wellbeing and for ensuring that MaPS and MoneyHelper are at the forefront of the nation’s response to cost-of-living pressures.