Testimonials

Abbot's Hill School

“Ed has been providing our Year 9 girls with Financial Education during our enrichment week for many years now. The sessions are informative, engaging and extremely relevant and by using small groups, the girls get individual attention. Thank you, Wizeup.”

Angela Smith - Head of PSHCEE & Enrichment Co-ordinator

Amersham School

Ed's workshop was extremely well received by our Sixth Formers. Professional and interactive with excellent pace and content. We hope to work again with WizeUp in the future. Highly recommended.

Anthony Mitchell -

Learning Leader PSHCE. Careers Lead

Anglo-European School

I am a geography teacher responsible for all of the Enterprise education at school, and like most teachers with extra responsibilities, have little time in which to deliver this. From the moment I contacted WizeUp I felt totally at ease, Ed listened to my requirements and immediately responded with a variety of options and suggestions to suit. Wizeup products and services can be an extremely useful off the shelf option but what makes them stand out is their flexibility, willingness and ability to accommodate individual school’s requirements.

When I initially spoke to Ed 3 years ago about WizeUp participating in a new Enterprise education day about the world of work for our year 11 students, he not only agreed to help facilitate the day, but offered to deliver whatever type of workshop we wanted – that’s flexibility!

The overall aim of WOW is to better equip our students to be more competitive and influential in the increasingly global world of work. More specifically, it is to give our students an insight into the skills and attitudes required for the world of work and to give them the opportunity to practise, develop and demonstrate these in a familiar environment BUT with unknown professionals. All students attend in business dress and participate in a number of employability skills workshops as well as a mock interview with an external professional who gives invaluable personal verbal and written feedback to each student. WizeUp supports us all day in delivering not only an interviewing skills workshop but then a financial skills workshop.

Delivering a day such as this to a whole year group of 210 students is no mean feat and Ed Flack / WizeUp is key to not only informing and inspiring our students but enabling myself as the organiser to focus on the inevitable “on the day” small issues rather than worrying about what is happening in the classroom!

Fiona Bell - Enterprise Education Co-ordinator

Ashfield School

Firstly Mel – can I say another massive thanks for your session yesterday.

I thought the way you delivered a potentially ‘tricky’ topic was great – the kahoot at the start certainly got them engaged and then the real life examples worked very well.

Then I thought them actually trying to work out the tax reductions on the sheet highlighted tax really well. I sat with a few students at the back and went through it with them and when it clicked they were genuinely impressed with themselves. Plus then you had those nice students at the end come and see you to check their answers. Great work 😊

Please could we book in another session, this time on ‘first impressions and interview technique’?

Sam Stretton - Assistant Head of Post 16

Beechen Cliff School

"We were delighted that Ed agreed to come into school to speak to our sixth form students. He catered brilliantly for the wide spectrum of post-18 options, ranging from student finance for our university applicants through to budgeting to tax codes for our students going into the world of work. Ed is a brilliant speaker and really captivated the students with his relatable tone and humour. We will definitely be using WizeUp again!"
Kim Mather

Coordinator UCAS and Future Horizons Lead

Berkhamsted School

Beechen Cliff School

“My experience of dealing with WizeUp was exemplary. From an initial enquiry to the delivery of the session to the students the levels of communication were excellent and Ed was very accommodating about putting together a session in response the specific topics requested by our students. The talk on the day was interactive and highly informative and I am sure that the students will make use of the wide-range of information and support that Wizeup offer as a follow-up to the talk. I shall definitely be asking Ed back to speak to the students next year.”

Mary-Clare Startin, Deputy Head, Sixth Form

“Another terrific talk by Ed to our Sixth Form. No-one was left in any doubt about the value of budgeting when off to university or out in the real world. The examples were spot on the for age group and the students knew they were learning something important. Ed has the ability to make difficult topics seem like plain common sense.”

Laura Redman – Head of PSHE – Berkhamsted School.

Birchwood High School

Ed is very professional and engaging, delivering sessions that are relevant and up to date. The students responded well.

Judith Crimes - CEIAG Leader

Bishop Stopford

Once again – thank you for an excellent day. As you will see from the feedback attached, the students found all that you did useful. What you were able to provide has proved to be of real help for our students and will give them the foundations that they need to move forward into adult life. I really look forward to working with you again next year.

Patsy Wilson - Head of PHSE

It was well planned and all of my concerns I had about student finance were answered by the end.

Student

Good insight into grants/scholarships etc. that I was not aware of.

Student

Introduced me to how to deal with landlords and the costs of financing university.

Student

Gave all the key information I need to know and in a very well presented manner that was easy to understand.

Student

Bromford's School

Ed's passion for improving young people's financial literacy was clear through his engaging presentations, making it relevant to our students. His use of examples and experience helped to break down ideas that students otherwise might not have been able to grasp.

Tim Marshall - KS5 IAG Co-ordinator

Bromsgrove School

"Ed is a regular at Bromsgrove School and presents current information and guidance on all financial matters that students should consider when they leave school. He is equally comfortable delivering to whole year groups as he is to smaller seminar sessions where students get the opportunity to take part in practical activities to drive forward key messages to keep students on track financially. Ed delivers his presentations professionally and has a wonderful ease with the varying questions that students ask."

Ms E. L. Densem

Head of UVIth

Brunt's Academy

If customers can’t find it, it doesn’t exist. Clearly list and describe the services you offer. Also, be sure to showcase a premium service.Anne-Marie was exceptional. Highly professional, she delivered clearly with good pace, appropriate to the age group

Thank you so much for making this happen.

Lisa Ashley - Head of 6th Form

Chalfont Community College

We did a review of the workshops and your specific workshop scored 96% - which was for students who found the session extremely informative and engaging. That is an incredibly good score!!

We also asked about impact. Not all students got to the bottom of the form to provide us with this information but those who did again scored it highly.

W are really pleased that the day had an impact on the students.

Thank you again for your support with this.

Mrs. Christine Sanders

Leader for Employability

Claire's Court School

Chalfont Community College

"Many thanks to the WizeUp team for the informative workshops given to our Year 12 students during their Activity Week. You answered their questions in a language they could understand and I am confident they and their parents will make use of the after service you offer. We will be inviting you back next year!"

Stephanie Rogers, Head of Year 12

Dr. Challoner's Grammar School

"Today was fantastic and students from both year groups have been extremely positive about the talks and you as a speaker. A number commented that they thought the way you presented things was great and you made something complex easy to understand. The Y13s that I spoke to thought that the timing was really good and that they wouldn't really have listened had it been done much earlier in the process. It's really exciting to keep this going for future years and if we're able to be even more creative with how we deliver things to the students in future that could be even better!"

Mr D Colquhoun

Assistant Headteacher

Director of Sixth Form

Dear Mr Flack,

Thanks so much for your quick response and help with my application. I also just wanted to say thank you for our lecture on Thursday, I know a lot of people knew nothing about student loans and you made it very clear and easier to understand.

Thanks again,

Mia - Year 13 Student

Dorothy Goodman

“It is so important for children to be taught about money, finance and budgeting. Our pupils were engaged in all of the activities throughout the day and took so much from what they experienced. .”

Emma Draycott - Senior Teacher

Essex C.C.C.

Thank you for providing some valuable education to our academy players & was certainly great to see how engaged they were with the two session you provided. We would be delighted to welcome you back over maybe 4 sessions that start from the end of this year going into 2023. I have spoken to our academy director, Barry Hyam who was very thankful to you Ed & Saffron Building Society for funding this project.

At their age, I wish I had the opportunity to learn some of the subject area’s you covered, as I certainly didn’t get that from my time at school.

Look forward to speaking to you soon,

Greg Larkin - Senior Partnership Lead

Frances Bardsley Academy

I just wanted to tell you that I think these sessions are a GREAT idea.

I did a session last year on – How to build a healthy credit score – and it was very popular with the 6th formers.

I am aware that the British Curriculum does not cover finance and so many young people leave school ill equipped to handle finance responsibly.

These sessions should hopefully mean that less young girls will be in a complete and utter financial mess and in need of IVAs which ruin their credit score, shortly after leaving school.

Poliiner Chukwuma - Head of Business Studies

Guildford High School

"Thank you for coming to speak to the girls yesterday. The feedback from both girls and staff has been really positive. Apparently the girls were doing their budgets in the common room later on yesterday and comments such as 'It's really depressing: I spend £300 and only have £100 coming in each month' and 'I spend so much money in Starbucks' were heard to be made! I will reiterate the use of the website to them."

Katie Banks - Assistant Head of Sixth Form

Hayesfield Mixed 6th Form

"Our students were very appreciative of all of the information about finance that you provided them. Always good to have an expert delivering the important content rather than just me."

David Rutt - Deputy Head"

Thank you so much for being here. Already I am hearing wonderful feedback from your talks from both students and staff. I’m so glad you were able to make it and hope to be in touch soon about future events."

Pollyanna Langford-Lacny - Careers Lead for Sixth Form

Hazelwick School

“The talk I attended was on budgeting and student finance. I found the talk very helpful as I had not yet applied for student finance because I was unsure of what loans I could apply for and what the different loans covered. The Powerpoint presentation was clear and engaging and the speaker’s interaction with the group was positive because all questions asked were answered clearly and effectively. It was an overall enjoyable experience and I learned useful information that will help me budget, not only during my time at university but, throughout my adulthood too.”

Sophie – Year 13

“The talk on student finance was interesting and engaging. It helped to make the process seem less daunting and gave a step by step look at the application process simplifying and explaining each point to us. It gave me a better understanding of what I am going to get from the loan and put me at ease regarding the re-payment process. In addition the budgeting talk helped me to know the best way to spend my money in a smart way at university."

Jake – Year 13

“I found the talk really useful - the anecdotes used were beneficial. It was also reassuring learning about how university fees aren't as patronising as they are made out to be. Seeing how we could ration our money next year whilst still enjoying the university experience has really put me at ease and made me even more excited for September.”

Jai – Year 13

“As a school we were really impressed by the quality of the provision provided by Wizeup. Both the quality of the content and the presenter lead to a really engaged group of students who all came away having learnt something useful and feeling more comfortable about their financial future. We will definitely be using them in the future and just wish we had come across them sooner.”

Matthew Whitley – Assistant Head of Sixth Form.

Helena Romanes School

Holmer Green Senior School

"The CV skills workshop is excellent. The presenter was able to fully engage and inform our year 12 students for one full hour which is not always easy with this age-group of young adults.

Students themselves declared this session one of the best and most useful enrichment sessions they have experienced.

I would fully recommend this workshop for all A level students."

Mrs Donna Wright Head of Sixth Form

Hinckley Academy

Holmer Green Senior School

“Ed’s workshops are now a regular feature of our Year 9 curriculum. His varied resources and informative style educates and engages students on a range of Personal Finance topics.”

Rachel Marshall, Head of PSE and Careers.

Holmer Green Senior School

“I thought it was extremely useful as it gave me a much clearer understanding of many aspects of student finance. I found it surprisingly interesting, considering the amount of information that was covered. I thought it provided some very useful Life Skills that, I am confident, will prove to be important in the future. Glad to have had it.”

Sixth Form Student

“Ed’s expertise in the subject and knowledge about the current intricacies of Student Finance is invaluable to our students. They really respect and appreciate a specialist coming in to talk to them, and he is able to engage our students with his charismatic presentation style. We have received very positive feedback from all our parents and students, and look forward to him visiting us again next year.”

Rachel Golding, Head of Sixth Form

John Cleveland Sixth Form Centre

"I’m writing at last to thank you properly for your input to our Conference this year. As I said, you really are the backbone of what we put on, both for students on Monday and Tuesday - and now for parents on Monday evening - and we are always delighted when we hear that you are able to come again and that HRBS are continuing their invaluable sponsorship.

The student feedback was as positive as ever from all of your sessions, with the overwhelming majority feeding back that it was ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ for them in terms of usefulness, interest and clarity. Typical examples of their comments:

‘The speaker was energetic and approachable’

‘Very interesting’

‘Valuable and very useful information’

‘A very knowledgeable man’

On Tuesday the group were particularly appreciative of your input on CVs, but many also commented on the information about tax and banking. You provide the information that no-one else quite manages to tell them and that so often they don’t even know which questions to ask about."

Janet Paterson - Head of 6th Form

Joyce Frankland Academy

Ed's talk has given me a better insight into different finance options, and has allowed me to proactively think more about money.

Jasmine - Sixth Form Student

The talk gave me a broader idea of what my financial options are when I go to uni and has definitely provided me with some food for thought.

Call - Sixth Form Student

Ed gave us a really great talk about student finances , I now understand so much more.

Bailey - Sixth Form Student

Ed extended my knowledge of budgeting, helping me to understand ways to manage my income and spending.

Seraphina - Sixth Form Student

Ed is a speaker who tailors his material to his audience's needs: everything he says is useful.

Mr. Dan Langley - Head of Sixth Form

Ed was totally enthusiastic and passionate about ensuring that our next generation are more financially aware. Thank you to our sponsor, Saffron Building Society, too.

Mrs Ali Baxter - Deputy Head of Sixth Form

King James' Academy

Joyce Frankland Academy

The feedback from pupils and staff was very positive. Andy was excellent and if the questions they have asked subsequently are anything to go by, their awareness of a range of financial issues has been raised considerably.
King James' Academy - Royston

Langley Grammar

Leicestershire C.C.C.

"Thank you so much for your sessions today, the students said they learnt a tremendous amount.

I will get more detailed feedback for you and send it on though.

You were a pleasure to have, you set up easily, managed the students well and had a really good rapport with them.

You were a pleasure to deal with!"

Helena Makowski - Head of Sixth Form

Leicestershire C.C.C.

Melton Vale 6th Form College

Leicestershire C.C.C.

We had a great session last night with Ed. The session went down really well and Ed delivered it with great fun.

Alastair Maiden - Head of Academy

“I never thought finances could be so interesting!” said Dylan Church, LCCC Academy Scholar. “I’m starting uni this year and want to get a part time job so learning about student finance, income tax and national insurance was really useful. Ed from WizeUp also touched on pensions and how important they are for professional cricketers and any other career – that really got me thinking! Thank you so much to the Melton Building Society for making this session happen, I’m looking forward to the next one already!”

Dylan Church, LCCC Academy Scholar.

Leventhorpe School

Melton Vale 6th Form College

Thank you so much for coming into school to be part of our careers day. There was a real buzz about the school and the students found the day, useful, interesting and enjoyed it.

At the end of the day I asked the students to complete an evaluation form about their day. I had a brief look at a few of the comments the students wrote which I will quote to you “I learnt general life skills – employment, saving and investing” and “I learnt good life skills to help me be wise with my money” and “a job interview, how to give a good first impression”

Thank you again for investing your time in our students. I will be in touch to see how we can work together again with financial and employability workshops.

Kind regards

Gill Blair-Park (Mrs)

Futures Advisor

Melton Vale 6th Form College

"MV16 hosted Ed Flack from WizeUp Consultants in July 2018 where our Year12 students, planning to start university in 2019, benefitted from his experienced advice. Throughout the day, Ed delivered 6 workshops for our students introducing them to all they needed to know financially for when they embark on their university career. The interactive sessions were both enjoyable and informative and we will definitely be inviting him back to repeat the process in future years. These sessions come with my highest recommendation for sixth form students."

Natasha Roberts - Assistant Head

Millwall F.C.

North Notts College

Millwall F.C.

“I have known Ed for a number of years having got him in to work with our young players at two of the clubs I have worked for. He is extremely knowledgeable in his field and professional in the delivery of all of his sessions which are always very productive and engaging.”

Paul Tighe - Head of Education & Player Welfare

Moreton Hall

North Notts College

Millwall F.C.

Dear Ed,

A huge thank you for the workshop on Saturday. It covered the topics we had discussed comprehensively and clearly. I thought your slides were particularly good at pairing down the information to the essentials. I know that the last interactive session on pensions and tax was well received by the girls.

I have really enjoyed working with you. I will be using your website with the students going forward.

I hope we can work together in the future.

All Best Wishes,

Sarah Pritchard - Lower 6th Co-ordinator

North Notts College

Wizeup did a really impressive job making the topic of finace accessible to our learners. The presenter did a great job adapting to the situation to keep the learners engaged and I genuinely believe the students who attended the sessions have a good baseline for making financial decisions in their near future.

Jacob Blake - Learner Events Co-ordinator

Oasis Academy, Isle of Sheppey

Ed provided a fantastic, informative yet simple delivery for our students on the financial world. This was nicely paced and activities engaged the audience. They particularly enjoyed the Kahoot, which was a great interactive way to assess their learning from the seminar. There was certainly a ‘buzz’ after Ed’s talk and prompted questions and an inquisitiveness in the students. Would definitely have Ed back and recommend the seminars to other Sixth Forms!

Anna Sargeant - Head of Sixth Form

Our Lady's Abingdon

Oasis Academy, Isle of Sheppey

Wize Up Financial Education worked with both our sixth form pupils and parents on financial management and student finance. The talks were led by Ed Flack, who provided a wealth of knowledge and expertise along with humour, to make the sessions enjoyable and engaging. The feedback we have received has been overwhelmingly positive. His talks not only inform the decision-making process about the cost of higher education but can also help parents and families save money by offering valuable insight into bursaries and grants. We look forward to working with Wize Up Financial Education again in the future.

John Branney - Assistant Head, Academic

Portland Place School

"The speaker we had last week was very charismatic and gave us a lot of useful advice on the future which I intend to use in great effect. He was very open and inspiring."

James and Rio - Year 11 students

"It helped me prepare and relax for my future interviews, it was also enjoyable and fun to interact with him."

Tabitha. - Year 11 student

"It felt like last week was great, it gave me a confidence boost because now I know how to perform well in an interview."

Dot - Year 11 student

"Really helpful and made me more prepared for my future. I really hope he comes again as I thought he was really kind and useful."

Dolly - Year 11 student

"WizeUp delivered an excellent session to our Year 11 student to prepare for their college interviews. Our speaker had the students’ full attention from the beginning thanks to his friendly approach. Ed’s talk gave students a deep insight into the world of interviewing and he used personal experiences in order to captivate our students. It was so much better than having someone go through a series of simple instructions. Overall, he has made the students feel very comfortable when facing an interview. The role play type of activities were a great tool to engage students and provide immediate feedback. I would definitely recommend them."

Miss Charlotte Magniez -

Head of PHSCE

Project Search

Thank you so much for delivering the session yesterday, the interns really enjoyed the activities and they are not always easy to please! It was great that your session tied in so well with our desire to get them into paid work, and hearing from you the benefits of working I hope will be inspirational.

I look forward to working with you again next year, if you would like to give me some dates I can book this in as soon as you like.

Catherine Stargatt
Lecturer in Foundation Learning (Project SEARCH) Inclusion

Dear Lee and Ed,

Thank you for taking the time to come out and see us. I understand that you were extremely busy, so I thank you for coming out to see us. I had a lot of fun yesterday learning about the different accounts and services that we could go into, as well as the different aspects of earning an income. You made us feel very welcome and helped us out whenever one of us struggled with an answer. Also thank you for the section about “First Impressions” – I am sure that I will find it invaluable when I go for my interview.

Thank you for the lesson in working to get paid and then buy from your shop. I also enjoyed the trip to the Bath Building Society and learning more about the company.

I look forward to seeing you at Graduation in June if you can make it there.

Jordan - Intern

Dear Lee and Ed

Thank you for giving your time up -to Bath to teach looking after the money.

I really enjoyed the shopping task and folding the leaflets.

I really enjoyed the Bath Building Society and talking about the pass book.

You are friendly and helpful and made us feel welcome.

Holly - Intern

Dear Lee and Ed

i really enjoyed your visit yesterday. I enjoyed meeting you both. You made us feel welcome. Thank you for giving your time to us and giving us an interesting day. Thank you for teaching us about keeping money safe and first impressions. That will really help me when I go for my interview. I really enjoyed going to the Building Society. The staff were really helpful and polite. It was really kind to give us our goody bags.
Max - Intern

Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School

Queen Elizabeth's School - Wimborne

WizeUp have been visiting QEGS Sixth Form for over ten years. Ed never fails to engage our students and provides invaluable advice and information on budgeting, student finance and first impressions. The information provided to both students and parents enables them to understand the complex area of student finance and I am yet to find a question on this that Ed can not answer. His sessions form part of the enrichment programme for Sixth Formers and we really value his input, his sessions are tailor made to our students, who largely move on to university, and his presentations succeed in getting all involved. Long may he continue to provide this service!

Vicki Smith - Head of Sixth Form

I thought it was helpful in getting our heads around how student loans actually work and expelling some of the well perceived myths surrounding them. Very glad the school arranged the session as they are life skills that need to be taught!

James Lennon - 6th form student

I found the talk really helpful, and it answered a lot of questions I had about student finance. I learnt about various opportunities for funding that I wasn’t previously aware of, such as bursaries.

Grace Allen - 6th form student

I thought it was interesting and the speaker was really good at relaying the information to us. I have come away much more informed on what my options are if I was to go to university in terms of finance.

Nathan Walker - 6th form student

I thought it was informative and genuinely like helped me get the whole thing about uni loans.

Ben Walker- 6th form student

Queen Elizabeth's School - Wimborne

“Thank you so much for your time yesterday. The content was incredibly insightful and your knowledge and expertise really helped the students gain a greater understating. I learnt a lot too!

I have now had the opportunity to share your pdf resources with students and their parents/carers. They have been very well received and feedback has been positive.

Thank you again for your time. We would certainly welcome the opportunity to book again next year.

Chris Buller - Head of Sixth Form”

Ralph Allen School

" The workshop which Ed prepared and delivered was really well received by our year 12 students. Ed is a confident and very knowledgeable speaker who answered their questions with good humour and kept the workshops running at a good pace. It was helpful to have an input into the planning of the lesson. We will happily work with Ed again and encourage our students to look at resources on the WizeUp website. The students gave the lesson very positive feedback - always the end goal"

Ms J Haggett - Assistant Headteacher/Head of Sixth Form

Reading School

Ralph Allen School

"Ed Flack is always the first booking we make every year for our Sixth Form PSHE programme. He is a highly entertaining speaker who provides our students and parents with vital financial information about budgeting and the essential advice they need to know about the cost of university. Wize Up’s information is second to none and we only wish we had space for them to visit us more often."

Alun Lloyd - Head of 6th Form

Reepham High School

"A great, enthusiastic and engaging presentation from Ed to our Year 12 students about budgeting, and general finances this year. Yet again students found the sessions to be enjoyable and informative. Particularly those heading off to university felt far more knowledgeable about student finance, flat sharing and budgeting after the sessions. It is great to work with Ed again, who is so enthusiastic about ensuing our students are more financially aware."Chris Durban College & Admin Manager

Robert Smyth Academy

"The on line sessions provided by Ed Flack on financial literacy during December 2021 (4 hours in total) were superb. They provided a great deal of relevant and accessible information in a format that the year 12 and 13 students engaged in. The coverage of topics from investments and savings, tax and student finance and even including things to consider when flat sharing were relevant and invaluable to preparing students for the future financial events. Every year 12 and 13 student in attendance on these days had access and heard these messages and this information.The contribution from Market Harborough building society by sponsoring this educational provision was invaluable and has undoubtedly helped to prepare these young adults well." Rachael Wilson - Head of Year 12/Psychology

St. Gregory's School, Bath

"Students, and staff, found the sessions incredibly informative. The sessions were bespoke to the cohort so they had ownership over what they looked at. Ed was an excellent presenter, enthusing them and making some tricky concepts much more accessible. We will definitely be looking for opportunities to work with WizeUp in the future.”Lucy Butler - Director of Sixth Form

St. Mark's School, Bath

"Thank you so much for coming today and all the work you put in! Both staff and students have been saying they've had a wonderful day. There was a really positive environment walking around and it was great to see how involved our students were- even some who are not usually interested in sitting in a classroom! We couldn't have done it without you so thank you.Please do stay in contact about any opportunities you have running in the future.We hope to see you again!"

Helena Bartlett - Teaching Assistant

St. Mary's School, Gerrards Cross

Ed and Andy's talks to our Sixth Form on student finance were extremely well received by both the students and parents at St Mary's, Gerrard's Cross. The girls felt that they were now armed with information to help them make practical, not just academic, choices about the further education that they pursue. The information about credit cards and the debt accrued with minimum payments was well timed in their lives, and was a sobering realisation for many.

Alex Francisco - Assistant Head of 6th Form

Somervale School

Lee was able to provide appropriate and accurate information to students, engaging them with real life scenarios, which are always particularly effective.

I have a number of colleagues who have a similar role to me in other institutions across BANES. As a consequence, the expertise that Lee was able to provide far exceeds the information we are able to provide as teachers!

Sian Davis

Associate Assistant Headteacher
Head of Years 10-11 and Careers Lead

Ullswater Community College

“School leavers today face complex financial issues, especially when they leave home for university or begin employment. Ed’s knowledge and enthusiasm gives them an opportunity to get prepared for life after Sixth Form. We are very grateful to Penrith Building Society whose financial support allows the yearly event to occur. The students were enthusiastic to have the opportunity to quiz an expert and gain practical knowledge that will help them for life.”

Sessions were tailored to meet Year 12’s varied aspirations whether that be: University, employment, apprenticeship or a gap year. Workshops focused on the financial implications of studying for a degree, what to look out for when opening a student bank account and knowledge about financial aspects of renting property or sharing a flat. Other sessions covered taxation, credit ratings as well as pay day loans and practical tips on how to start saving and investing for the future.

Rob Jackson Head of Sixth Form

“Mr Flack has an impressive wealth of knowledge on the financial issues that we as teenagers face. I learnt a lot about how to deal with financial problems and about the dangers and benefits of having a credit card at my age. I think I am now more aware of the consequences of debt and the ways to prevent falling into financial difficulties. As students' we are really grateful to Penrith Building Society for sponsoring this informative day at UCC.”

Tilly Bird - Ullswater Sixth Form Student

Ursuline Academy - Ilford

I missed you leaving on Thursday as I was teaching and didn't get a chance to say thank you for the workshop. Our students really enjoyed it and are looking forward to the next session . Thought you might like to see the feedback they gave following the talk for the school newsletter as it was so positive.

Ruman Basi - Head of Year 12

The workshop was very informative. Thank you for this lesson! It has really helped me to expand my knowledge in finance helping me to prepare for the future, I cannot wait for the next session Fatima (Yr 12)

The talk was informative, and Ed had an engaging and good approach for young people. We found out lots about student finance and how to start up our own business. For example, on Instagram. He was interactive and got us all involved.

Ciara (Yr13).

It was very informative and we got to learn about lots of things that no one really teaches you about. I learned about financial stability and how to take care of myself in the future.

Rejaina, Year 12

The Year 13 workshop was really good. Ed went through how debit and credit cards work which gave us insight into things like credit and debit, standing orders and credit scores. He explained how to build them and what influences the score. We learned how to calculate APRs and interest on loans and credit cards. Ed showed us the do’s and don’ts of credit cards which I like learning about because I know that if I had gone to Uni next year I might have got into trouble as I didn’t understand it until now. –

Hinal, Year 13

Walton Post 16 Centre

“WizeUp have offered invaluable advice to students at Walton Post 16. The information about Student Finance, savings and taxation was particularly informative and enabled students to gain a detailed understanding of these and the importance of understanding finance on a personal level. Ed in particular is very personable, engaging and pitches the information at the right level for the students. Financial advice is the number one request we get from our Post 16 students and WizeUp offer the best advice and support for this. Walton highly recommend Wizeup for anyone looking to offer young people support with their finances.”

Fran Gilbert - Deputy Post 16 Leader

Welland Park Academy

Ed delivered two lessons to Year 11 in Feb based around interview technique, apprenticeships and financial skills. Around 150 students attended these virtual lessons and these were very well received. Students and staff were very positive when I spoke to them about the lessons, particularly the interview technique aspect. It was also perfect timing that it was apprenticeships week and Ed gave a detailed explanation of what this career route entails.After half term, we welcomed Ed back for two sessions with around 180 students in Year 10. Students really enjoyed the session covering the history of money and it prompted significant discussion with form tutors after the session. The overview of student finance was also well received as this is something that students have asked about previously.Welland Park Academy is really appreciative of the sessions offered by Ed and the financial support that offered by Market Harborough Building Society. It really improved the Citizenship course, especially during lockdown. Students were really engaged and thoroughly enjoyed both delivery and content; we hope to continue this next year.

Sam Askham - KS4 Citizenship Leader

"Please pass on my thanks to Ed for a brilliant lesson; this is exactly what our students needed!"- Year 11 Form Tutor

Wesminster City School

Thank you so much for your session, the feedback was all fantastic. Student said that they liked how interactive it was, that they learnt new ways of saving money and that it was overall an extremely useful session. Many of them chose it as their highlight of the day.

Thanks again and I'll be in touch very soon about some more upcoming dates.

Joy Tilsley - Head of PSHCE