Cafs (Child & Family Services, Ballarat) will assist the community with increased access to free and confidential support when experiencing financial hardship, where rental or mortgage stress are factors.
Minister for Consumer Affairs Nick Staikos has announced Cafs’ successful bid for funding under the Victorian Government’s Financial Counselling Funding Round 2024/25.
The Fund is a $15 million initiative by the State Government aimed at supporting Victorians facing housing-related financial challenges due to cost-of-living pressures, rising rents, and natural disasters.
With rising cost-of-living and rental stress, early intervention is more vital than ever. Cafs Financial Counselling services reduce crisis escalation, improve financial stability, and protect tenancy rights, especially in regional and vulnerable communities.
The grant will enable Cafs to build on Cafs’ progress with an innovative ‘Financial Wellness Hub’ (Hub) for people living within Central Highlands and beyond, aiming building financial capability, literacy and self-advocacy with a therapeutic lens into the work, through innovative digital services and programs expansion and embedded mental health specialists within the Financial Counselling team.
“As Victorian families continue to face cost of living pressures our financial counselling services are there to help people to get their financial situation back on track.”
Nick Staikos, Minister for Consumer Affairs, The Victoria State Government
The Hub will also increase accessibility to support for neighbouring areas through its online capabilities, including Central Goldfields, Northern Grampians, Southern Grampians, Yarriambiack, Horsham, Hindmarsh, West Wimmera, and Glenelg comprising of a further 90,000 people.
Over the past 12 months Cafs’ Financial Counselling services have supported 1170 people in the community, waived approximately $500,000 in debt, accessed $200,000 in hardship grants and has positively reinstated more than 75% of tenancies at risk to housing insecurity.
The community service agency, which has supported the local community for 160 years, is also working collaboratively with schools and education groups to co-create content in response to the community’s current needs, including raising awareness of the hazards of buy-now-pay-later schemes, online scams, rental and consumer rights.
“Funding for financial counselling at CAFS will have real benefits supporting people experiencing financial difficulties – providing professional financial support when they need it most.”
Juliana Addison, Member for Wendouree, The Victoria State Government
“Cost of living is an issue increasingly impacting so many within our community. We know that early intervention is the key to assisting people to overcome financial hardship. The Hub will allow us to create easy to use, non-intimidating channels of communication to reach people within our community experiencing financial hardship due to rental or mortgage stress.”
Wendy Sturgess, CEO, Cafs
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