Teenagers are dropping out of team sport, switching mobile phone plans and seeking help from their parents to pay for fuel, as cost of living pressures continue to bite.
A national survey of 1000 parents of teens aged 13-18 revealed many families had cut extra-curricular activities, and cancelled tuckshop and takeaways to keep family budgets in line.
The survey, commissioned by the Financial Basics Foundation and Suncorp, ahead of the annual Suncorp ESSI Money Challenge, offers a snapshot into the struggles many Aussie families are facing as inflation continues to soar.
More than half (54 per cent) of the parents surveyed said they had already cut back on school holiday or social activities for their children because of cost of living pressures.
20 per cent of parents revealed they’d paid their teen’s mobile phone bill recently, while 17 per cent moved their teen to a prepaid plan to reduce phone costs.
Another eight per cent of parents had dug into their own pockets to help their teen pay for fuel as petrol prices soared throughout Australia.
Financial Basics Foundation CEO Katrina Samios said the survey showed how important it was that people learn how to budget and manage their finances from a young age.
“I’m pleased to see the survey found more than two thirds of parents had spoken to their teen at some level about the family budget and current constraints,” Ms Samios said.
“That’s something we encourage all parents to do. One of the best ways for young people to improve their financial literacy is to have open conversations with their parents.
“The Financial Basics Foundation provides free financial literacy teaching resources to Australian secondary schools and we have been calling for some time now for financial literacy to be approached in a more systematic and consistent way within schools.
“Many young people leave school and start working with no real understanding about how to handle the money they are being paid.”
Suncorp Bank executive general manager for everyday banking, Nick Fernando said the current economic environment reinforced the importance of teaching young people how to make good financial decisions.
“The Suncorp ESSI Money Challenge supports the financial and personal wellbeing of young people by helping them build the skills they need to work towards a financially secure future,” Dr Fernando said.
The survey found 19 per cent of parents were unable to fit extracurricular activities such as sport, dance or art classes into their budget this year, with a quarter of parents asking their child to reduce their activities and choose only one.
18 per cent of parents said there were things their teenagers needed that they just couldn’t afford, while 25 per cent of parents were now buying uniforms, books or sporting equipment second hand to keep costs down.
The 2022 Suncorp ESSI Money Challenge is open to students in all Australian secondary schools, with more than 26,000 students participating in the challenge since 2017.
Students compete for over $11,000 in prize money across a range of categories.
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