Why start with numbers?
Approximately half of adults in the UK have the numeracy skills expected of a primary school child.
This startling finding is from a government-commissioned survey of adult skills*, which revealed far lower numeracy levels than literacy levels – yet very few people are aware of this.
There is a lot more work that can be done to communicate numbers in a better way. It is not surprising that many of us are baffled by communications from financial services firms, utilities providers and from public sector organisations.
At Plain Numbers, we exist to change that.
Working in partnership
We work with a wide range of Partner organisations to enable them to communicate their products and services more clearly to customers. We teach them how to apply the Plain Numbers Approach and provide unlimited ongoing support to them as they implement these changes to their communications.
Numeracy as a customer vulnerability
A Financial Conduct Authority paper** showed that poor numeracy affected more adults than any other customer vulnerability.
Organisations have worked to support customers affected by many of the other vulnerabilities that the paper identified, but poor numeracy has remained hidden.
Working with Plain Numbers empowers you to support these forgotten customers.
*Skills for Life Survey, 2012
**Occasional Paper 8 2015
What is numeracy?
Numeracy isn’t about mathematics; it’s about the practical number skills you need for everyday life. It’s about understanding financial statements, interpreting data and making informed decisions – skills that everyone needs to get by.
‘I don’t do numbers’
Many adults have a strong negative emotional response to numbers, often related to a poor experience of maths at school.
According to the Maths Anxiety Trust, one in five adults suffer from maths anxiety. If this doesn’t affect you personally, it’s likely to affect people you know. You can be sure that it does affect your customers or potential customers.
Are you confident that you are doing all you can to support them to make informed decisions based upon your communications?