Personal finance qualifications
Specific qualifications and awards offer a further route to developing financial capability
Qualifications and awards for personal finance education have grown in recent years. They offer another vehicle that teachers can add to a full portfolio of approaches for developing financial capability in their students.
Qualifications
The table below lists qualifications that are centred upon personal finance. Qualifications that are accredited by the new Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulator (Ofqual) have an accreditation number and are part of the National Qualifications Framework. They are also listed by this number on the National Database of Accredited Qualifications (NDAQ), which can be searched for details of all qualifications accredited by the regulators of external qualifications in England (Ofqual), Wales (DCELLS) and Northern Ireland (CCEA).
There are other qualifications which are wider in scope but contain units on personal finance, such as qualifications in life skills, personal, social, health and economic education and applied numeracy. These can be found by using the sector subject area search on the NDAQ.
| Accreditation number | Qualification title | Level | Guided Learning Hours | Awarding Body |
| 100/4856/X | Award in Financial Literacy (Entry 3) | Entry | 60 | NOCN |
| 100/4857/1 | Certificate in Financial Literacy (Entry 3) | Entry | 90 | NOCN |
| 500/3748/1 | Award in Personal Finance | 1 | 30 | BCS |
| 100/6245/2 | Certificate in Personal Money Management | 1 | 30 | NCFE |
| 100/0657/6 | Free-Standing Mathematics Qualification: Managing money | 1 | 60 | AQA |
| 100/5820/5 | Foundation Certificate in Personal Finance | 1 | 60 | ifs School of Finance |
| 100/4854/6 | Award in Financial Literacy | 1 | 90 | NOCN |
| 100/3558/8 | Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (Level 1) | 1 | 120 | ASDAN |
| 100/4855/8 | Certificate in Financial Literacy | 1 | 120 | NOCN |
| 500/1490/0 | Diploma in Personal Finance | 2 | 30 | IAB |
| 100/0674/6 | Free-Standing Mathematics Qualification: Calculating finances | 2 | 60 | AQA |
| 100/6413/8 | Award in Personal Finance | 2 | 70 | BCS |
| 100/5821/7 | Intermediate Certificate in Personal Finance | 2 | 90 | ifs School of Finance |
| 100/6414/X | Certificate in Personal Finance | 2 | 90 | BCS |
| 100/6415/1 | Diploma in Personal Finance | 2 | 110 | BCS |
| 100/3559/X | Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (Level 2) | 2 | 120 | ASDAN |
| 100/4328/7 | Award for Introduction to Investment (Level 3) | 3 | 70 | SII |
| 100/3560/6 | Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (Level 3) | 3 | 150 | ASDAN |
| 100/3360/9 | Certificate in Financial Studies | 3 | 150 | ifs School of Finance |
100/4535/1 | Diploma in Financial Studies | 3 | 150 | ifs School of Finance |
| 100/3931/4 | BTEC National Award in Personal and Business Finance | 3 | 360 | EDEXCEL |
Awards
Awards are not the same as qualifications. Awards are offered at different levels and schools can use awards to contribute towards a recognised qualification. For example, ASDAN’s Personal Finance Award carries no points as a standalone award. However, if used as the curriculum content of the Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (CoPE) it is a qualification with points on the DCSF (now DfE) Achievement and Attainment Tables. More information is available from specific awarding bodies.
The Network for Accrediting Young People’s Achievement (NfAYPA) lists more than 40 non-formal education award schemes. These are designed to accredit the skills and competencies of young people, and in many cases are specifically targeted at ‘hard to reach’ young people. They offer a means of accrediting the achievements that many young people undertake as part of their everyday lives, which can often lead learners to access more formal learning opportunities.
| Award title | Level | Guided Learning Hours | Awarding Body |
| Personal Finance Award | Multi level: Entry to Level 3 | up to 60 | ASDAN |
| Financial Awareness Youth Achievement Award | Multi level: Entry to Level 3 | 60-120 | UK Youth |
