Global Money Week Award Winners 2025

The 2024-2025 Our Money, Our Future programme saw over 80 schools and centres across the country submit an incredible range of initiatives, reflecting creativity, student leadership, and commitment to financial literacy. Initiatives ranged from classroom workshops and enterprise activities to tech-driven solutions and sustainability-linked campaigns.

Each year, as part of Global Money Week, the Our Money, Our Future programme celebrates outstanding initiatives that bring financial literacy to life in schools and Youthreach centres. Here’s a look at some of the award-winning projects from the 2024-2025 cycle, showcasing innovative ideas, community engagement, and powerful student leadership. The prize winners highlighted below are just a small selection of the wonderful, innovative projects that took place nationwide.

These projects highlight the power of student voice, creativity, and collaboration. They also serve as inspiration for new applicants looking to make a lasting impact through Our Money, Our Future.

Best Financial Management Resource

Scoil Aireagail, Co. Kilkenny

The students at Scoil Aireagail created “Smart Money for Smart Teens,” a financial education book covering savings, current accounts, taxation, and more. Their initiative fostered intergenerational learning by sharing budgeting tips and co-hosting a workshop on affordable, healthy meals. The project gained recognition through local radio interviews and created a lasting resource for future students.

Best Peer-to-Peer Learning Initiative

St Anne’s Secondary School, Co Tipperary

Students designed and delivered “This or That? Making Financial Decisions,” a series of interactive workshops during the school’s Financial Literacy Week. 5th year students led engaging sessions for younger year groups using World Café-style discussions and fun decision-making games focused on considering the impact of their choices, helping their peers explore key financial topics like saving, fraud awareness, and budgeting. The experience also strengthened leadership and communication skills for the senior students.

Best Sustainable Financial Literacy Project

Hospital Youthreach, Co Limerick

Hospital Youthreach launched “The Greenhouse Crop,” an entrepreneurial farm-to-table project. They invested in a polytunnel and built a sustainable business model, producing vegetables for use in the school kitchen. The students conducted research, developed a business plan and budget, and created infographics to share their learning with their peers. The initiative integrated financial education with sustainability and career preparation across multiple subjects including Maths, IT, Wellbeing, English and Woodwork.

Best Financial Management Tool

Coláiste Bríde, Enniscorthy

Money Smart Services, an app developed by 2nd year Coláiste Bríde students, provides information and guidance on topics such as online shopping safety, ATM use, consumer rights, and sustainable spending. After researching, developing, and piloting the app within schools, the students extended its outreach to local primary schools and were even invited to share it in a series of sessions with adults with intellectual disabilities, ensuring broad community benefit and reinforcing digital financial literacy skills.

Best Financial Literacy Game

Greystones Community School

This team of students developed “The Winning Wallet,” an original board game that combines money management, business strategy, and wellbeing. Players choose character cards with defined jobs, family situations, and expenses, and must navigate financial choices to build wealth and happiness points. The team created prototypes, tested with peers, and refined the game through multiple trials, before producing a polished version with laser-cut pieces and printed material. Plans are underway to use the game with local primary schools and expand its used in Transition Year and across different classes within the school.

Best Whole School Engagement

Griffeen Community College, Dublin

Griffeen Community College brought financial literacy to life across all year groups through a vibrant Global Money Week Programme. Activities included a 1st year fraud awareness workshop, student designed piggy banks, 2nd year video analysis tasks around financial themes, a TY business quiz (also held as Gaeilge), and a 6th year business-themed escape room challenge. A series of student competitions – ranging from poster creation to budgeting challenges and video-making – culminated in a school wide prize: a trip to Emerald Park to learn more about the business behind the theme park. Teachers were not off the hook in Griffeen Community College; they participated in daily staff room riddles and quizzes. This initiative showcased how a coordinated, school-wide effort can make financial literacy fun and engaging.