THE importance of money and personal finance will soon be taught to students at Royal Wootton Bassett Academy .

Chosen to join the Centre of Excellence programme in financial education which forms part of a ground-breaking partnership between the UK’s leading financial education charity, Young Enterprise, and Santander, the academy will work with an educational specialist to create a detailed programme of financial education for students.

Teachers will be assisted in the delivery of effective personal finance lessons and learning activities, drawing on the charity’s 55 years of experience of aiding educators in schools, centres and colleges across the UK.

Santander is supporting the development of the school to achieve Centre of Excellence status in the next year, turning it into a beacon of best practice in teaching young people about money.

The school is one of 38 across the country who are currently benefitting from the programme.

Anita Ellis, assistant headteacher of RWBA, said: “We know just how important it will be for our students to manage their money well throughout their lives.

“These skills don’t come automatically – they need to be taught, and as it is our responsibility to prepare them for adult life we believe embedding financial education into our academy curriculum is a necessity. We are pleased to be working with Young Enterprise to become a Centre of Excellence in this crucial area, for the benefit of our students.”

The school will be supported in sharing its new expertise with other centres in the local area to benefit the wider educational community and, once they receive their award, RWBA will join the other 82 schools, colleges and centres which have already been awarded or reaccredited with Centre of Excellence status.

The Swindon branch of Santander will be supporting the rollout of the project.

Branch director Sarah Morris said: “Our purpose is to help people and businesses prosper and we are committed to supporting people in our communities through skills, knowledge and innovation.

“Young people are encountering money earlier than ever so it’s imperative that they have the skills they need to manage their money well.

“The Centres of Excellence programme offers a tailored programme designed by education experts to ensure no young person is left behind.”