Residents help in fight against debt

Posted by MHP on June 15, 2010 | No Comments |  Print this article |  Send to a friend

Residents from across London have celebrated their graduation as trained Money Advisers – in a new initiative designed to help communities tackle indebtedness.

More than 20 residents underwent training as part of a partnership of three housing associations to address high levels of indebtedness and financial exclusion within communities. The ceremony took place on Wednesday 9 June at the National Housing Federation office in Central London, and was chaired by Bernie Morgan, Chief Executive of Community Development Finance Association (CDFA). The residents received their certificates from DWP Strategic financial inclusion champion Yasin Ahmed

The partnership, between Community Money CIC, AffinitySutton, Hyde Housing and Metropolitan Housing Trust London, provided the training to the residents as a way of helping strengthen the communities they work in.

Twenty-three individuals completed training to enable them to provide generalist debt advice to fellow residents. Running for four months the advisers have been trained and accredited to Advice UK standards, and also received training in basic counselling skills.

The programme provides a two-fold benefit to communities, in that it supplies local residents with much needed additional debt advice options, whilst also increasing employability potential for the trained advisers.  The partnership aims to continue providing the programme and to expand the coverage to reach other communities across London.

Nada Mondin, a graduate of the programme said: “I feel so much more confident and proud to know I can use my knowledge to offer advice to people within the community and to friends and family. It has also given me personal confidence to manage my financial situation”

She added: “I would recommend the course to others and feel it’s of great benefit to the people within the community that need such a service.”

Bernie Morgan, Chief Executive of Community Development Finance Association, says of the programme: “The need for such programmes is profound and has a far reaching impact in addressing financial exclusion.”

She added: “It’s a delight to not only see such practice in action, but for it to be done involving such partnership of housing associations; a demonstration that the service is needed and can be provided.”

Puck Markham, founding director, from Community Money, says of the programme: ‘This programme helps communities help themselves. It offers volunteers a real avenue to improve their personal finance skills whilst increasing their professional skills; something this partnership is proud to have been able to have facilitated.’

He added: “Programmes like this are important as they give organisations a simple, proven, cost-effective solution to community investment, employability and income arrears objectives – the latter is the case when community-based advice is integrated in income arrears procedures.”