Financial education program Saver Plus – an initiative of The Smith Family – celebrated its 20th anniversary at the Camira-Springfield Community Centre in early December.
On Tuesday, December 5, representatives of The Smith Family and Saver Plus, program partner ANZ Bank, and Westside Community Care marked the significant milestone recognising the program’s positive impact within the community.
Westside Community Care’s home base at the local community centre was chosen to host the event as several members are past participants of the program.
Saver Plus encourages participants to reach a monthly savings target, and by the end of the program will match the amount saved.
Since its inception, close to 60,000 participants in Australia have collectively saved over $28 million, with ANZ contributing over $23 million.
Manager of Orion Springfield Central ANZ branch Landily Kao was present at the event, and spoke about his financial journey as a refugee.
Oxley MP Milton Dick, a fierce advocate for financial education and particularly combating predatory lenders, was also in attendance.
He called Saver Plus’s two-decade-long support for the community a “great success.”
“Keep up the important work you do helping locals to take control of their financial future,” Mr Dick said.
The Department of Social Services partly contributes funds, thus supporting the federal government’s goals of improved financial literacy and greater financial security.
Long-running support
The Smith Family, a national charitable organisation, has a strong presence in the Ipswich region.
Saver Plus was established by the Brotherhood of St. Laurence (BSL) and ANZ jointly in 2003, and has been supported by The Smith Family and Berry Street since 2005.
It is Australia’s longest-running financial education program.
Learning For Life, another The Smith Family initiative, is a sponsorship program that helps students experiencing disadvantage.
It supports over 900 scholarship students in 20 partner schools across Ipswich by encouraging ongoing participation in education – offering financial assistance for core education-related expenses and making available learning support and mentoring programs.
The Smith Family is a children’s education charity that helps young Australians experiencing disadvantage to create better futures for themselves. For more information, visit thesmithfamily.com.au.
For more information about Saver Plus, visit www.bsl.org.au/services/saving-and-managing-money/saver-plus.
See also: New chapter for Westpac and St.George at Orion
