Poor maths skills cost Britain £2.4bn a year, says study

Britain's lack of mathematical skills is costing the taxpayer up to £2.4bn a year, according to a report by a group of financial consultants. The study, by the KPMG Foundation, estimates around seven million adults in the UK have at best the maths ability of a nine-year-old.

As a result, their earning potential is lower and they are more likely to be unemployed. Numeracy difficulties are linked to costly special educational needs provision, truancy, exclusion from school, health risks (they are more likely to suffer from depression) and an increased risk of involvement with the criminal justice system. Legal costs alone cost the taxpayer £164.8m a year in court appearances and jail terms. People with very low numeracy skills are two to three times more likely to live in a household where both partners do not have jobs.

"The research suggests that numeracy difficulties play a distinctive role in restricting opportunities throughout life. Competent numeracy would thus appear not only important in relation to employability and the economy but also as a protective factor in maintaining social cohesion," the report says.

Women are more likely to admit to difficulties with maths than men – the report concedes this could be because they are more honest – with 18 per cent of those with poor numeracy skills classified as suffering from depression compared to 11 per cent of men. The over 55s are likely to be the best placed to tackle maths questions, with 25 to 34-year-olds the least confident.

The report, published by the education charity, the Every Child A Chance Trust, argues that a concentrated effort to identify strugglers by the age of seven could achieve savings to the tax bill of the order of £1.6bn and urges businesses to contribute towards a drive to improve maths provision. Without it, the cost in lost tax revenue is estimated at £774m a year, unemployment benefits £393m, special education needs provision £234m and the social costs of teenage substance abuse and pregnancies £99m a year.

Barclays Bank has become the first company to back the maths drive – pledging £1.2m to send employees into at least 150 schools to help teach maths.

Sir Peter Williams, chancellor of the University of Leicester and author of a government report into maths in primary schools, said: "It may be costly to provide early intervention to tackle numeracy difficulties but such investment will pay for itself many times over."