Your Money, Your Life: experiences of young people's borrowing

Dr Lindsey Appleyard, Research Centre for Business in Society, Coventry University gives a seminar on young people's borrowing

Young people in the UK have been identified as having high levels of unsecured credit use, alongside low levels of financial wellbeing, and little resilience to protect them from financial shocks.  This matters because the use of credit can have implications for young people’s financial wellbeing and future financial decision-making as they transition toward independence.   

At this seminar, Lindsey Appleyard will share her research findings on young people’s (aged 18-24) personal experiences of borrowing and their use of unsecured credit across the UK. We will explore how young people viewed credit as an essential part of everyday life, due to a broader normalisation of credit in society and as a tool to manage their financial wellbeing. We also show how a series of ‘hackathons’ – participatory, solutions-focused workshops – helped inform young people to design effective and relevant solutions to support their financial wellbeing. This put young people at the centre of the decision-making process and allowed them to influence how their financial wellbeing should be best supported in relation to credit and borrowing.   

Dr Lindsey Appleyard is an economic geographer with interdisciplinary research interests in financial geographies. Lindsey’s recent research has focused on reducing financial vulnerability. Through Lindsey’s networks and collaborations, her body of research aims to make a significant impact by influencing policy and practice to develop financially resilient communities. Since 2017, Lindsey has been successfully awarded over £900k of funding for research and impact from a range of sources, including UKRI, abrdn Financial Fairness Trust, Barrow Cadbury Trust. Lindsey has published widely in peer-reviewed journals and through broadcast, print, and social media, and Lindsey regularly engages with the public. 

If you would like to attend, please email Helen Harris – chasm@contacts.bham.ac.uk – and the Zoom link will be sent to you.