As we look ahead to Party Conference season, Emma Kosmin, our Policy and Public Affairs Manager reflects on the opportunity in front of us to put financial inclusion firmly on the agenda and the practical steps needed to deliver real impact for millions of people in the UK.
This year’s party conferences provide an important opportunity to share insights from our work, highlight areas of progress, and engage with policymakers and stakeholders on the next steps to improve financial inclusion in the UK.
We know the scale of the challenge is significant. More than 20 million people are living in financially vulnerable circumstances. Our recent research with WPI Economics showed that closing the gap in financial inclusion could deliver an additional £6.4bn each year to the UK economy.
The case for action is therefore both a social and an economic one: improving access to financial products and services strengthens household resilience and contributes to national growth.
At Fair4All Finance, our mission is to ensure the financial system works for everyone, particularly people who are underserved or locked out of access completely by mainstream provision. Our policy priorities focus on:
- making sure that everyone has access to a safe and affordable line of credit when they need it
- supporting people’s financial resilience by helping them build a savings buffer for a rainy day
- improving access to fair and affordable insurance, and cutting poverty premiums in the market
These priorities align closely with the Government’s commitment to develop a National Financial Inclusion Strategy, and conferences are a timely opportunity to contribute evidence and practical recommendations to inform its design.
We will be engaging across the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat conferences this year, bringing together key partners and stakeholders. Together with the Finance and Leasing Association (FLA), we are hosting a roundtable at each conference on access to safe and sustainable credit. These sessions will bring together parliamentarians, industry, and civil society to consider the current barriers and opportunities to expand provision responsibly.
In addition, at Labour Party Conference we are partnering with the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) to host a panel event with the new City Minister, Lucy Rigby MP. This will explore how financial inclusion policies can drive economic growth.
In addition, our CEO will be attending a number of panels and roundtables including ‘Access for All: Tackling Finance Exclusion in the UK’ with the Co-Operative Party, with Meg Hillier MP in attendance.
Throughout conference season we will be sharing our insights, listening to perspectives from across the political spectrum, and building consensus on the actions needed to achieve progress.
We recognise that these are complex issues with no single solution, but there is clear scope for government, regulators, financial services and civil society to work together on practical measures that will make a measurable difference. We look forward to engaging with colleagues at conference. Full details of our events can be found in conference guides, or please do get in touch with the team if you would like to join the conversation.
