Being in the red is the new black

Are you a woman aged 15 - 25 years?
Like to participate in a focus group about credit, debt and money?
Participants will receive FREE movie tickets!

WIRE - Women’s Information is conducting research to find out how to communicate better with young women about money.

In the focus group we will explore your knowledge, attitudes and relationship with money and how you learn about it. We will ask for your ideas about how to engage young women in thinking about managing their money.

You just need to be between 15 and 25 years old. You don’t have to have any knowledge about financial matters. We are looking for young women from all sections of the community.

Contact project officer Romina Aizpurúa to discuss your participation. If you have a group that is interested we can arrange to come to you at a date and time that’s convenient. Refreshments will be provided.

Contact Romina Aizpurúa:
phone: 9921 0871
email: project1@wire.org.au

Download a flyer here (pdf 853 Kb)

This research is funded by a grant from Consumer Affairs Victoria.

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Women's Financial Literacy

In 2007 WIRE, with funding from the Helen Macpherson Smith Trust, and the research expertise of URCOT, an independent, not-for-profit, action research centre affiliated with RMIT University, completed a study into the financial literacy of Victorian women.

Download a copy of the Women’s Financial Literacy Research Report here (pdf 2.6 Mb)

'A woman's guide to surviving the money jungle'

Another output of this project was a colourful foldout resource written in plain English and designed to acknowledge women's fear while inspiring them to take action and providing them with links to helpful resources. It reminds women that it is never too early and never too late to take steps towards securing their own financial futures.

View the guide here (pdf 766Kb)

To obtain free copies of the guide call 1300 134 130 or visit the Women's Information Centre on the ground floor of the Queen Victoria Women's Centre, 210 Lonsdale Street Melbourne.

Key findings

We found that women in Victoria, even highly-educated, well-paid women, feel overwhelmed, clueless and fearful about managing their finances.

• 55% of women said they had a high level of interest in financial matters

• 25% felt well informed and knowledgeable about finance

• 11% felt able to easily read and understand financial information

• 16% said they regularly sought out financial information and advice

Many women said that faced with what they saw as a minefield of information and options they didn't properly understand they were frozen into inaction.

They also told us they felt there was a lack of trusted, gender-sensitive information and advice available to women.

The report recommends that financial products, services and educational programs need to be designed taking gender into account. Specifically, women need to be provided with an outlet for those emotions and experiences that act as barriers to them learning and acting on financial information.

Financial information also needs to be written in plain English and in a way that women can relate to.

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