FINANCIAL COUNSELLORS
Target client group
- Clients experiencing financial difficulty
Delivery
- Predominantly to individuals and families
- Community education
Role
- Provide information, support and advocacy to help clients overcome financial difficulty Identify marketplace problems, which require a broader response (systemic advocacy)
Examples
- Assesses client’s financial situation, including income and entitlements; whether debts are correct and legally owed
- Explore options and consequences with the client to address financial difficulty eg debt negotiations, waivers, bankruptcy
- Assistance in completing more complex documentation eg statement of affairs, letters to creditors
- Provide on-going support to the clients
FINANCIAL CAPABILITY WORKERS
Target client group
- People who want to improve financial literacy skills
- People recovering from financial difficulty
Delivery
- Individual support/mentoring
- Group education sessions
- Provide information, financial literacy skills and coaching to help clients make better financial decisions and build financial resilience
Examples
- Delivery of financial literacy education and ongoing support
- Ongoing budgeting support to individuals
- Ongoing support around saving
- Generic information about using basic bank accounts and the banking system
- Give people the skills to access government services, utility or telco hardship programs
- Information about consumer rights
- Referral to financial counselling or other community services
Boundaries: no go areas
- Dealing with debts from banks or similar providers
- Provide advice about bankruptcy or debt recovery
- Provide advice about superannuation or insurance products
- Provide advice about a specific deposit product with a financial institution
