Salvation Army recognised as industry changemaker at 2018 SIMNA Awards

The Salvation Army has won the Changemaker Award at the 2018 SIMNA Awards for its work measuring the social impact of its Moneycare financial counselling and capability service.

Organised annually by the Social Impact Measurement Network Australia (SIMNA), the SIMNA Awards recognises the best, most innovative and most collaborative social outcomes measurement initiatives in Australia.

The Moneycare Outcomes Measurement Project journeyed with community members using the service and asked questions about their financial resilience situation in a holistic way, both before they began with Moneycare, and afterwards.

It provided direct feedback that enabled Moneycare caseworkers understand community members' context better and to work with them to develop an informed case plan that is effective and relevant to each community member’s situation.

The project’s findings will be used to inform Moneycare service delivery and advocate for policies that promotes financial and social inclusion for people experiencing disadvantage.

CEO of Financial Counselling Australia, Fiona Guthrie, says The Salvation Army’s report will help improve the way financial counselling is delivered across the sector .

“Financial counsellors know that financial counselling works - because we see it at first hand and our clients tell us. But we've always had a big gap in ongoing and effective outcomes measurement,” Ms Gurthrie says

“The Salvation Army approach is incredibly important because it is based on such a sound methodology, using client and counsellor assessment that is rigorous and tested, which will help improve the way we deliver services.”

Research Manager at The Salvation Army, Johana Susanto, says: “We see this moment as a good foundation for establishing The Salvation Army's reputation in the measurement sector and to verify the impact that we’re making in the community.

“We look forward to working with the wider Salvation Army team to develop and advocate for a measurement system that is feasible, meaningful and useful to the people and the community that we serve.”