The recently launched Money and Pensions Service is calling on organisations throughout the UK to contribute towards the development of the service’s strategy to improve the nation’s financial wellbeing.

The newly-named firm, which has officially launched today, aims to combine services and support consumers with high-debt levels and provide money and pensions guidance, with the ultimate aim of improving financial wellbeing throughout people’s lifetimes.

The government-backed organisation is sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions, and has an “ambitious vision” to tackle the complex financial wellbeing challenges faced by people in the UK, through working in partnership with organisations across many sectors.

To facilitate this, the Money and Pensions Service is undertaking a UK-wide programme of listening events, providing the opportunity to discuss views on varied topics, ranging from pocket money to pensions. The events will include stakeholder roadshows in ten locations across the UK, offering stakeholders the opportunity to discuss what is needed to improve the financial wellbeing of the UK.

In its business plan, the Money and Pensions Service said it aims to provide debt advice to 560,000 people in England, deliver 205,000 pension freedoms transactions and provide over 290,000 personalised pensions guidance sessions.

Commenting, Money and Pensions Service chief executive John Govett said: “Improving the UK’s financial wellbeing is only possible through collective action, and engaging a wide community of organisations and businesses for their views is the first step. It is crucial that anyone who has an interest in improving people’s ability to manage their money and pensions is able to contribute to the conversation about what’s needed.”

Chair of the service, Sir Hector Sants, added that its vision is “to create a society where everyone is making the most of their money and pensions”, which will be accomplished by changing the relationship we have with money.

“Making financial decisions is not unlike shopping at the supermarket – consumers are confronted with many options and must decide what is the best choice for them based on what they need, on price and quality. There has been a lot of great work over the past few years to enable people to make more informed food choices; it’s time to think about financial wellbeing through a similar lens.

“With 47% of adults saying they do not feel confident about making decisions about financial products and services, its essential people feel empowered to engage more regularly and more confidently with their money and pensions, so they can enjoy greater financial wellbeing throughout their lifetimes,” Sants concluded.

Minister for pensions and financial inclusion Guy Opperman commented: “This Government wants to ensure that it is as easy as possible for people to get all the help they need to make effective financial decisions throughout their lives. The launch of the Money and Pensions Service is a big step towards meeting that commitment, providing a one-stop-shop for high-quality, free and impartial information and guidance.

“The Money and Pensions Service will be there for those most in need as well as helping today’s younger generations to become the savvy savers of tomorrow. It will play a vital role too in the creation of ground-breaking pensions dashboards which will bring pensions into the 21st Century.”

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