For decades, much has been written about financial hardship in Aotearoa New Zealand. The media is punctuated with stories about the increased use of foodbanks, the struggle many New Zealanders have finding affordable housing and the effects of the rising cost of living on an increasing number of Kiwis. At the forefront of battling the challenge of poverty are local budgeting and financial mentoring services who work alongside whānau experiencing a tough time to help them understand their personal finances and how they can improve their financial situation.
Building Financial Capacity (BFC) is a Ministry of Social Development (MSD) initiative delivered primarily through budgeting services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. BFC includes a variety of funded services and takes a strengths-based approach to empower people and whānau to gain control of their money, set goals and achieve long-term, sustainable change to their financial wellbeing.
This report focuses on BFC clients that use Money Mentors, Visionwest’s financial mentoring service. The aim of this report is to gain a better understanding of the needs of Visionwest’s current BFC clients and understand the impact that engaging with Money Mentors has on their financial and overall wellbeing.
This report contains data from two sources, Client Voices, the client management tool used by Money Mentors and other BFC providers across Aotearoa New Zealand, and the Money Mentors survey which was conducted amongst Money Mentors BFC clients by the Visionwest Money Mentors team.
