Financial Empowerment- Successful Approaches WoodGreen Community Services Financial Empowerment- Successful Approaches Stephen Vanderherberg, Director Strategic Initiatives May 25th, 2018
Organizational Overview WoodGreen Community Services Organizational Overview WoodGreen Community Services (Toronto, ON) Multi-Service Agency (i.e housing, employment, newcomer, seniors, mental health, etc.) 75 programs, 700+ staff Financial Empowerment Income Tax Clinics (7500 returns in 2017) Counselling (1000+ clients) Financial Literacy
Financial Empowerment WoodGreen Community Services Financial Empowerment Target Low income individuals & families with barriers Address financial barriers; Increase financial skills and capacity Grow to 15,000 clients/yr by 2022 Journey 33% growth year over year since 2011 Tax Clinics to Counselling Experimentation & Innovation Approach Co-Design Partnerships Client-centric
Challenges to Financial Security WoodGreen Community Services Challenges to Financial Security Complexity of Personal Situations Documentation, debt, back-taxes, relationship breakdowns Ease of Access Navigating systems, appropriate financial products, personal confidence Low Financial Literacy Low literacy levels, cognitive barriers, negative association Need for affirming positive social interactions
Successful Approach 1: Volunteer Empowerment WoodGreen Community Services Successful Approach 1: Volunteer Empowerment 200+ volunteers, Pyramid model Co-location: Toronto Public Library, Social Housing, etc. $17 M in Benefits and Returns Positive Social Interactions
Successful Approach 2: Tax + Counselling Triaging complex situations WoodGreen Community Services Successful Approach 2: Tax + Counselling Triaging complex situations One-on-One Support – Tax advocacy, debt, documentation, benefits access, budgeting Social Work Approach, Action-oriented Supportive environment to navigate systems
WoodGreen Community Services Stephen Vanderherberg, Director, Strategic Initiatives www.woodgreen.org Svanderherberg@woodgreen.org