| is a financial literacy and matched savings program aimed at helping low-income families to improve their financial knowledge, develop a long-term savings habit, and save for their children’s education. As part of the program, financial education workshops and personal financial coaching is provided to participants to help them improve their money management skills. ANZ rewards the efforts of participants by matching every dollar saved up to a total amount of $2,000. Participants agree to direct their savings towards their children’s education and learning needs, such as the purchase of personal computers. |
| The program was developed by ANZ and the Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) and is delivered through partnerships with BSL, Berry Street Victoria, The Benevolent Society and The Smith Family. |
| Through Saver Plus we have assisted more than 700 low-income families, and provided funds to match more than $800,000 saved by participants. |
An RMIT University evaluation of the Saver Plus pilot revealed that:
- 92% of participants achieved their savings goal.
- The majority of participants used their matched savings to purchase computers or IT related accessories for their children. Other purchased products included school uniforms, books and education experiences such as school camps.
- At the conclusion of the pilot program, 99% of participants said they were planning to keep saving in the future, with 57% planning to save the same amount as they did in the program and 26% hoping to save more.
- Most significant is the finding that three months after the program’s completion 84% of participants were still saving regularly, and 34% were saving more than they had previously.
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| is Australia’s first comprehensive adult financial literacy program. It helps people, particularly low-income earners and those facing financial hardship, to develop the knowledge, skills and confidence to increase their personal financial wellbeing. Its development was funded by ANZ, and guided by stakeholders such as the Australian Financial Counselling and Credit Reform Association and Australian Securities and Investments Commission. |
| Financial counsellors and community educators are a trusted source of information for low-income Australians and ANZ is working with these groups to deliver MoneyMinded. Our goal is to reach 100,000 people over five years. |
More than 400 facilitators have been trained to deliver the program and 3,500 people attended MoneyMinded workshops this year.
RMIT University completed an evaluation of MoneyMinded to determine the relevance of the program’s content and structure for facilitators and participants. This found that the program helps build money management skills through the involvement of financial counsellors and community educators who are highly effective in engaging and working with lower income Australians. |
| Since the evaluation, we have returned to our stakeholders to review and refine the program to ensure it is relevant and remains up to date. ANZ and nominees from the Australian Financial Counselling and Credit Reform Association, representing every State and Territory, are overseeing this review and the updated version of MoneyMinded will be available in late 2005. |
| ANZ’s ongoing commitment to MoneyMinded will include funding of facilitator training for financial counsellors and community organisations throughout Australia to deliver MoneyMinded to their clients. For example, ANZ and Victoria University have formed a partnership where the program will be the centrepiece of efforts to improve the financial literacy of refugees, the young, disabled and unemployed living within the communities served by Victoria University. The work will commence in 2006 and will improve the capacity of community organisations to deliver financial literacy programs for these groups. |
| MoneyMinded has also been trialled for use as curriculum for secondary students in selected schools and the Victorian State Government has funded Berry Street Victoria to translate and deliver MoneyMinded to the Iraqi community in Shepparton as part of its social policy action plan, A Fairer Victoria. |
| ANZ will also provide financial support for the annual conferences for each of the State financial counselling associations over the next two years. |
