When should family support workers refer families to a financial counsellor?
Family support workers refer families to specialist workers in a range of areas, and should consider referral to a financial counsellor for families with complex needs who require more detailed assistance than the family support worker is able to give. This could include:
- People whose financial commitments exceed their ability to pay
- People who are worried about their level of debt
- People who are being harassed by creditors
- People facing court action to recover debts who can’t access legal representation
- Situations where you feel something unfair may have occurred.
It is important to get independent financial counselling or legal advice before filing for bankruptcy or consolidating debts. For example, some commercial debt consolidation solutions will cost consumers much more than they need to pay.
Change in family patterns of money management can raise complex issues and emotions. For example it may mean tackling challenging children’s pester power, highlighting differences between partners about spending, and dealing with the fears raised by the threat of legal action. Family support workers’ skills in developing rapport, promoting communication, planning and highlighting small changes will all be relevant to these challenges. It’s important also to recognise when more specialised help is needed.
It may not be necessary to refer families to a financial counsellor if they only need some assistance with budgeting or negotiation with a co-operative creditor. However, sometimes referral to a financial counsellor can free up the family support worker to focus on other issues with the family, providing the family feels comfortable accepting the referral. It may help to highlight the financial counsellor’s training and experience, as they may be able to do things more quickly and confidently than a family worker can.
