Nearly half of Britons think investing in the stock market is the way to achieve financial security, new research shows.

That's despite the FTSE 100 recently hitting a seven-year low.

About 42 per cent of people said they thought putting money into shares was an important part of long-term saving, while 57 per cent said a stock market investment was key to planning for retirement, according to the Alliance & Leicester.

People aged over 50 were most likely to see shares as an important part of retirement saving, with 74 per cent saying they would invest in the stock market to boost their pension.

But recent stock market volatility appears to have put people off the idea of investing in shares as a way to get rich quickly, with just six per cent saying they would put cash into the market as a way of making a life-changing amount of money.

About 14 per cent of people thought investments would be a good way to save for a house, rising to 28 per cent of people in their 20s, who are likely to be taking their first step on to the property ladder.

Only eight per cent of those questioned said they would consider a stock market investment as a way of paying for school fees or university, while just six per cent would use it to save money for home improvements and four per cent see it as a way of financing the trip of a lifetime.

People in Wales were most likely to view an investment as a way of making money quickly, with 14 per cent saying they would put money into shares for this reason, followed by 13 per cent of people in London.

Two thirds of people in the South-West considered a stock market investment to be central to retirement planning, compared with only 45 per cent of those in the East Midlands, while 13 per cent of people in Yorkshire would invest to fund the holiday of a lifetime.