Financial wellness, gender equity and saving for your retirement. Listen to the podcast with Hayley James
Welcome to #262 weekly newsletter from The Purse.
The Purse Podcast interview: Hayley James
Who she is:
Hayley James is a Senior Research Fellow at Aston Business School’s Centre for Personal Financial Wellbeing. Her research explores how money shapes our lives—not just through figures, but through our emotions, family dynamics, and societal norms. She focuses on how gender, ageing, and life stages intersect with finance to create unique challenges and opportunities.
What she did:
On The Purse Podcast (#131), Hayley shared her approach to financial wellness by going beyond the traditional focus on income and savings. Her work highlights how financial systems, often fail to address the realities of women’s lives, such as career breaks for caregiving and the gender pay gap.
Hayley critiques the limitations of traditional financial education, advocating instead for tools and resources that allow individuals to learn and adapt as their financial situations evolve.
She also stressed the importance of community-based learning, where people can share experiences, gain insights, and collectively build financial confidence.
Hayley also addressed the flaws in retirement planning strategies that rely on the concept of the “future self,” which often excludes those in lower socio-economic groups who struggle to save today.
Key takeaway:
Hayley’s insights from The Purse Podcast highlight that financial systems and education must evolve to better serve real people. Her key recommendations include:
Designing gender-friendly financial systems that actively address caregiving responsibilities, income disparities, and societal expectations.
Encouraging community-based learning, where individuals can share experiences and co-develop financial skills in a supportive, collaborative way.
Providing accessible and clear information on critical topics, such as parental leave and retirement planning, to empower women and families.
Moving beyond static financial education by creating tools that empower people to learn as their needs change, fostering long-term financial resilience.
Hayley’s approach underscores that financial wellness is about more than numbers—it’s about understanding the context, emotions, and community support that influence financial decisions. Her work calls for systemic and cultural change to create financial systems that empower everyone, particularly women and those in lower-income groups.
Please enjoy! Search on Apple Podcasts and Spotify+
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