Building financial skills where you need them

We’re a nation of small businesses, but plenty of owners quietly worry they should know more about their numbers than they do. That stigma is holding people back, and it’s why we’ve spent this year shining a light on financial confidence in the UK.

Last month, we celebrated the progress of The Maple Project, a government-backed initiative set up to break down the barriers to entrepreneurship caused by economic deprivation. As a member of the Steering Board I’m proud of the work underway so far, and there is great momentum behind it. Talking directly to entrepreneurs in the room was a helpful reminder of why this is so important.

What’s holding young people back

We could be losing out on brilliant new businesses simply because young people don’t know how to start. Our research suggests more than a third (37%) of students say they’re held back by a lack of financial skills, and two-thirds (67%) think starting a business feels too risky. 

This isn’t down to a lack of entrepreneurial spirit. With only one in five young people (20%) planning a traditional career path, the ambition is clearly there. The system just isn’t working for them.

The Maple Project moves into action 

Our most recent event brought together Xero small businesses and their advisers at The House of Commons to share progress on The Maple Project with the people who’ve helped shape it. 

One of the things Small Business Britain has been working hard on with government and industry is getting financial skills into schools, so young people leave school with these skills. As a parent of young children, this one is close to my heart and I hope to see it become a reality for the next generation.

But building financial confidence goes beyond education alone. Listening to entrepreneurs speak honestly about their experiences was a reminder that confidence also comes from realising you’re not expected to know all the answers, and having someone you trust to ask for help. Sometimes it just takes being in a room with people who get it.

The power of having someone in your corner 

Young people need to believe running a business is something they could do, and that includes feeling comfortable asking for help. But 61% of students agree that running a business is reserved for people with money or connections. That’s a barrier before the journey has even started.

A big part of the answer is making it normal to ask questions, swap stories and learn from each other, whether that’s peers, mentors or advisors. That’s the thinking behind the support we’re building.

Making financial knowledge more accessible 

While we keep pushing for the recommendations of the Maple Project to come to fruition, we’re working with the community to make financial knowledge more accessible.

Our Unlock Your Numbers programme continues to grow, and the new delivery partners are a reminder of how many communities aren’t yet getting the support they need when it comes to financial literacy. 

Digital Boost is one of those partners, working with over 40,000 business and charity leaders across the UK, 64% of whom hadn’t previously accessed business support. Our content is part of their peer-learning programme where participants meet weekly to discuss what they’ve learnt and what it means for their own business, with an accounting educator on hand to answer questions. 

The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network (TERN) is helping us reach founders in underrepresented groups. TERN connects refugee founders with Xero For Good Ambassadors from the accounting and bookkeeping community, for free one-to-one mentoring. Workshops give founders a grounding in business finance, then the mentoring helps them apply that to their own business.

We also work with Bow Arts, SAMEE and Power 2 Connect, to bring the Unlock Your Numbers resources to people overlooked by mainstream business support. These partners each bring specialist knowledge of their own communities including creative freelancers, disabled and neurodivergent entrepreneurs, and people navigating digital exclusion. 

As a patron of the King’s Trust, we’ve built a Smart Money Webinar to help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds prepare for employment or self-employment. 

In Barnsley – home to the UK’s first government-backed Tech Town – we partnered with the Council, eBay and BT,  to deliver free AI and financial confidence training to around 60 local small businesses. Another reminder of what happens when the right people get in a room together. 

And with Young Enterprise, the charity helping young people manage money and shape a future of their own, we’re rolling out digestible video content on financial literacy topics, like cash flow management.  

What’s next

Running a business can feel hard, and that feeling like you’re “not a numbers person” is something many owners carry. What we’re learning from the communities we work with is that confidence doesn’t come from knowing all the answers. It comes from having a place where it’s safe to ask the questions.

If you’re looking for a starting point, our Unlock Your Numbers programme is there for you – videos, practical guides and mentoring to help you to better understand your numbers and make more informed decisions about your business.