A free 30 to 45 minute lesson where students set the UK Budget with real 2026/27 figures and see the trade-offs for borrowing, growth and real households.

Students use Population Decides, a free, non-partisan browser game that works on phones, tablets and Chromebooks with no accounts. They choose tax rates and departmental spending and see the effect on borrowing, growth and seven example households, from a nurse to a pensioner couple to a family on Universal Credit.

The two-page PDF includes:

• learning objectives on taxation, spending and the deficit
• a five-minute starter
• Activity 1: the Quick Budget (six questions), done individually
• Activity 2: pairs try to meet a target, such as giving the NHS £10bn more without extra borrowing
• discussion questions on trade-offs, who gains and who loses, and borrowing
• an extension comparing students’ choices with the real Budget on 28 October 2026
• a record sheet

Suits KS4 and KS5 Economics, Politics and Citizenship. Game link: