Financial empowerment

Video | 6 mins

In this video, we explore what financial empowerment really means, why it’s different from financial wellbeing, and why it plays such an important role in helping people take control of their financial lives.

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How is Lloyds Banking Group enabling financial empowerment?

Boosting digital skills

People can only participate confidently in the financial system when they have the skills, access and trust to use digital tools that underpin modern banking. Without that digital foundation the benefits of innovation, competition and personalised financial support simply don’t reach those who need them most.

More on the work of the Lloyds Bank Academies expandable section

In 2025:

428,000

people have accessed our Lloyds Bank Academy financial and digital skills resources

71,000

small businesses have accessed our Lloyds Bank Academy business skills resources

Supporting customers and communities

Our work extends across all areas of society to support individuals and businesses with digital skills and financial confidence.

From our on demand self-led learning on our Lloyds Bank Academy website, digital skills support in branch, and our in person skills lessons in the community. We reach customers and communities where they are at.

We deliver impactful digital skills programmes across the UK and have received formal recognition from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology for best practice public/private partnership for digital inclusion for our work with Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. We supported 5,500 residents across Liverpool City Region with access to a holistic package of a digital device, connectivity, and skills training through our Academy. Helping residents of Liverpool City Region make the most of the online world.

Our digital inclusion work has grown to support our own housing association clients. We know that for many low income households, access to the digital world is a cost many can’t afford. By supporting residents with access to their own digital device, connectivity and skills training, they have the tools they need to manage and protect their money.

Supporting entrepreneurs and small businesses in every region across the UK

Navigating the ever changing digital landscape can be hard for business owners too. Our Academy offers free resources for business owners that includes online learning and interactive webinars on topics including digital skills, financial resilience, and business strategy.

In 2025, over 500 businesses from every region of the UK have joined our business growth programme, Start-Up, Scale-Up by Lloyds Bank Academy. Providing a free path way to business owners looking to grow.

Supporting young people to develop their digital and financial skills

Lloyds Bank Academy is working with community partner Smartlyte to address digital exclusion for people who face significant barriers to getting online.

St Basils, a housing association based in the West Midlands, supports young people aged 16 – 25 who are homeless, vulnerable or at risk. For these young people, access to a reliable digital device is important for unlocking opportunities such as education, training and employment support. As well as maintaining connections with family and friends.

Through the programme, residents at St Basils have been able to complete online courses that would otherwise have been difficult without their own digital device. This includes a young mum working towards a Level 3 TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) qualification, another completing a design course through The King’s Trust, and one young person preparing for their driving theory test.

Access to a tablet has also helped one young person without a mobile phone stay connected to their family. Beyond education and communication, the tablets have also provided opportunities to relax and unwind, enabling young people to do everyday things many take for granted, such as watching television.

Jean Templeton, Chief Executive at St Basils says “The importance of this type of Inclusion cannot be underestimated in relation to enabling progression, access to education, employment, communication and ultimately wellbeing. We cannot thank you enough.”

Building financial literacy

We’re helping people to build financial confidence and capability, and to take control of their finances in a digital world.

Find out more about the Group's financial education initiatives expandable section
5.3m children

Do not get a meaningful finanical education

9m people

borrow regularly to pay bills or or buy food

Over 50%

of the working age population has the numeracy levels of a primary school child

An understanding of money management is one of the keys to building a strong economy, and providing young people with meaningful financial education allows them to form a positive relationship with money.

Ensuring our communities are provisioning for their futures isn't just about providing them with products; it's about helping to create healthy financial habits at an early age, proactively influencing their approach to managing money, and helping them avoid financial difficulty in the future.

To meet this need, linking with the Money and Pensions Service (MAPs) Young Adults Framework and the UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing, we've worked with Young Enterprise to design a suite of financial skills resources. These tried and tested interactive tools are designed to be one of the UK’s most engaging and informative ways of helping children and young people understand money and financial management.
Hi, I'm Nikki from Bank of Scotland. It's National Numeracy Day and we're here at the Tennessee Academy in Edinburgh.

We're here to help young people understand the value of money and how they can protect it with tips to help them look out for scams and frauds.

First up, we're looking at how we manage our money and stay in control.

I think it's great to have initiatives like this from Bank of Scotland or Skills because it's helping us to teach maths outside the classroom. It's going above and beyond the curriculum.

It's so engaging for the kids. Parents are often saying that it's something they wish that they were taught when they were in school, so the workshops are brilliant.

What an amazing morning. The children have been fantastic, the energy's been great. I get goosebumps when I do this because I can see myself in that chair looking up at an adult talking about a career path. It seems so distant.

We've had a fantastic day here at Trinity Academy in Edinburgh.

We've been helping the pupils to be more confident with their money and teaching them a little bit more about how to stay safe from scams and online frauds.

It was really good and I think to help me understand more about my money as well.

Delivering financial education in schools

Our Quality Marked financial education resources are interactive tools designed to be some of the UK’s most exciting, engaging and informative ways of helping children and young people understand money and financial management.

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Financial education outdoors

In 2025, working in partnership with schools and local communities, we piloted an exciting new outdoor financial education volunteering initiative. With the support of our colleagues, we took Year 5 pupils from schools into outdoor spaces and delivered two of our core financial education modules in a fresh, hands‑on way.

Following its success, we’re delighted to be expanding the programme. This year, 12 new schools will take part, with pupils aged 9–11 attending a financial education workshop specifically designed for an outdoor learning environment.

This initiative combines immersive outdoor learning with financial education, helping us explore different learning approaches and better understand their impact. It supports diverse learning needs, encourages a connection with nature, and helps lay the foundations for lifelong financial literacy.

Access more financial education resources

Hi, I'm Adam, I'm here from Lloyds Bank Academy and I'm in Leeds where I'll be delivering a session to care leavers on money management.

So why do you come along?

What my job role entails is going out, meeting people from all walks of life.

I do a lot of work with different people in different communities and helping them with things like digital skills, financial skills, employability skills.

Lloyds Bank Academy have been supporting care leavers who are being recruited into jobs within Lloyds Banking Group. We think it's really important to provide financial education to our care experience colleagues to help improve social mobility and give them a brighter financial future.

I've brought a young individual I work with as as I'm a support worker to come and learn more about money and finance.
One of the important things for care leavers and that Lloyds Bank Academy training gives them is some really great role models.
Some time to sit down and understand and learn about financial education from people that know what they're talking about. So the Lloyds Bank Academy is something we're extremely proud of.

As well as Lloyds being in the position to be able to offer enduring and sustainable careers. We're also through the academies, able to provide those essential financial education skills which are going to be absolutely critical for the future. I think it's very valuable for all young people to learn about money and the more you know about money the safer you are and for the future.

These are young individuals who certainly need support with different areas of their life and I think it's great the Lloyds Bank can come in and help with financial skills.

Building financial literacy

Through the Lloyds Bank Academy we support people across the UK to build the financial skills, knowledge and confidence they ned to manage their money and plan for the future.

Our work focuses on practical, real life financial education. Helping people understand everyday topics such as budgeting, saving, debt, staying safe online, and preparing for key life moments.

We prioritise supporting customers and communities who may face barriers to financial confidence. This includes delivering financial skills lessons in UK prisons to support people approaching release, helping them build a basic understanding of money management. As well as supporting care experienced young people starting their careers at Lloyds Banking Group to establish strong financial foundations.

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Transforming financial education for long‑term savings expandable section

Scottish Widows is transforming the customer experience through digitising financial education and engagement, allowing customers to access tailored digital learning, interactive tools and gamified experiences. We are empowering customers with the tools to make informed decisions in order to build financial resilience, while strengthening our customer base.

Be Money Well

Scottish Widows is equipping people with the financial and digital skills to manage money well and plan for their future through our ‘Be Money Well’ initiative. We offer a range of digital and social media tools to help customers access tailored information and guidance.

In 2023, we had more than 500,000 people access our financial education tools in Scotland. This includes a combination of interactive tools that help financial learning and increase financial confidence.

Pension Mirror

The Pension Mirror gives customers more tools and tips from leading personal finance experts, winning several awards. The digital tool collects customers’ financial information and compares it to financial profiles of other people like them. Pension Mirror suggests personalised guidance and learning resources to support users in making informed decisions.

We’ve now integrated this tool into our pension digital servicing capabilities, giving customers a seamless experience for their pension engagement and deeper understanding of their pension.

Pension Hub

This year we expanded the dedicated space available within our Pension Hub. This supports customers with simple guides that explain what someone’s retirement could look like, and how they can improve their financial resilience.

We’ve also created a range of interactive content, including a ‘State Pension Forecast calculator’, encouraging customers to review their whole financial situation. Through our digital tools, customers have widened their understanding of their pensions and their retirement plans.

Scottish Widows Women and Retirement Report 2025

The Scottish Widows Women and Retirement Report looks at the unique challenges women face as they plan for retirement. Despite 20 years of progress in reducing the gender pensions gap, there is still work to do.

Read the report

Financial planning tools

We've developed a range of tech and tools across our apps, enabling our customers to take control of their financial futures from their pocket.

Keeping customers safe from fraud

Helping customers keep their money safe is a top priority at Lloyds Banking Group. We invest tens of millions of pounds every year in the latest technology to protect our customers from fraud.

Fighting the fraudsters

Video | 6 mins | 2024

Charlie meets Nik Adams, Deputy Commissioner of the City of London Police, and colleagues from Lloyds Banking Group’s fraud contact centre in Belfast, to discuss fighting fraud and keeping customers cyber-safe.

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