1. Improving Financial Confidence
Learning from the final programme evaluation
Jenny Williams, Ecorys

2. An outline of the IFC programme ……
Big Lottery Fund £31.7m strategic investment
Primarily targeting social housing tenants
Testing different approaches to engaging social housing residents in financial inclusion activities
Demonstrating and disseminating impact of activities to social housing landlords and financial sector organisations
37 projects delivering range of activities for 3 to 5 years
Led by social landlords and voluntary sector organisations, with buy in from local authorities

3. Context and target groups
Dramatic changes to the operating context:
Welfare reforms
(Staggered) introduction of Universal Credit
Housing benefit payments direct to individuals
Resulted in:
Higher level of beneficiary need; programme shifted from prevention and awareness raising to crisis support and intensive provision.
Revisiting targets and broadening of the target group

4. What works? Referral and engagement
Building the brand locally takes time
Sales approach
Physical presence – shopfronts
Open door policy
Trust and language
Broadening of target groups improved programme reach and inclusivity
Community engagement and partnership working – importance of trusted relationships
Social media helped raise awareness 4

5. Challenges: Referral and engagement
Importance of building strong partnerships; educating partners about what financial capability means and how it can benefit their own organisations and service users.
Unforeseen tensions between IFC services and housing providers impacting on partner engagement and referrals. 5

6. Referral and engagement: Future planning
Investing in sales/ marketing staff
Securing engagement and support staff that can maintain a community presence
Raising the profile of your offer by using shopfront premises in busy areas
Using social media such as Facebook and Twitter to raise awareness and share information
Offering incentives to engage with your initial offer
Operating an open door policy
Building trust with beneficiaries (jargon-free language, focuses on every-day tasks such as paying bills and cooking 6

7. 7

8. Effective delivery models
Adapting content to user need and in response to welfare reform
Approaches that promote beneficiary health and wellbeing
Encouraging beneficiaries to develop online skills, in the context of Universal Credit
Integrating IFC into tenancy support
Combination of group and one-to-one support
Outreach support (including home visits)
Peer mentoring and volunteers
.   8

9. Examples of Sessions
Moneywise project (Haringey) – workshop delivery in secondary schools, with format and frequency tailored to individual schools’ needs, and ages of young people (12-19). Activities include quizzes; using the Moneywise app and learning to cook on a budget.
Wiser Wonga project (Plymouth) – delivery of sessions to a small group of young people supported through an independent living course by The Foyer organisation (incl. transition from care).
Sandwell Financial Services Hub (West Midlands) - ‘passport your property’ sessions piloted and incorporated into pre tenancy meetings. Key topics include general budgeting and managing bills; signposting to affordable furniture scheme. Sessions have been well received. 9

10. Examples of innovative partnership working
Bristol Cashpointers developed Community Award projects - supporting other organisations and community groups to deliver IFC, such as theatre groups.
Hull & East Riding’s Quids project ran a successful Home Visits Pilot in partnership with the council’s WarmZone team.
Sandwell Financial Services Hub funded SWEDA, a business support organisation, to deliver the ‘Money Project – Waste or Save?’ 10

11. Demonstrating programme impact: evidence of change in beneficiary outcomes
Of those respondents that had been followed up, 84% saw a positive change in their MyFC score.
The average MyFC score for all respondents who were followed up increased from 0.05 at the baseline to 0.35 after IFC.  The range runs from +1 (excellent level of financial confidence) to -1 (very poor level of financial confidence).
Among those followed-up, the number of tenants in rent arrears or behind with a loan fell between the baseline and the follow-up.
Among those followed-up, 14% of tenants had home contents insurance, compared to just 8% at the baseline.
The use of high-cost credit also fell slightly, from 11% at the baseline to 9% after IFC.  

12. Longer Term Change
Base size: 911 12

13. Wider beneficiary outcomes Increased income Reduced stress Gained work
Increased confidence to deal independently with finances 13

14. Sustainability: mainstreaming activity
Challenging given the operating cuts, but activity was being continued by a variety of organisations who recognised the business case, for example:
Housing providers incorporating IFC support for beneficiaries into their core offer (Circle)
Citizens’ Advice, particularly through volunteering activities (Knowsley, Liverpool, Tameside) 14

15. Programme legacy: social value
13 Group estimated that the added social value of Middlesbrough’s Know Your Money, Keep The Change IFC project was £2.2 million in
Places for People estimated that Bristol’s Pennywise IFC project generated a social value more than £4.5 million from the £1 million grant it received from Big Lottery Fund.
Cotman Housing Association estimated that the social value of Norwich’s Money Wise, Home Safe was around £400,000 for 15

16. Programme legacy: informing future programmes and wider reach
IFC work is being taken forward through a range of programmes…
Building Better Opportunities (Big Lottery Fund)
Help through Crisis (Big Lottery Fund)
What Works Fund (Money Advice Service)
MyBnK training scheme (private sector investment)
…and achieving wider reach, by:
Informing policy debates (Hyde Homes- Money House)
Continued local community activities (Pennywise – Blue Mondays events with 200 local providers) 16

17. Thank you. Further information: Jenny.Williams@ecorys.com