Financial exclusion
The Friends Provident Foundation is an independent grant-making charity working to create the conditions throughout the UK for improved access to appropriate financial services for those who are currently excluded, particularly those on low incomes or otherwise vulnerable to financial exclusion.
Their objectives can be summarised as:
- Better Intelligence – building an evidence base for better policy and practice
- Fostering Innovation – supporting the development of new approaches
- Building effective Infrastructure – the foundation for better delivery
- Exercising Influence – using our learning to shape the debate
In pursuit of these objectives, the following projects exemplify work carried out during 2008:
- East End Fair Finance - funded the development of a model to enable community development financial institutions and others to disclose information concerning loans granted.
- Rocket Science UK Ltd - conducted research into the extent to which financial inclusion and capability work is being undertaken and effectively supported at a regional level.
- University Court of Glasgow Caledonian University, Scottish Poverty Information Unit – an Action Research Review of Financial Inclusion and Debt research, policy and practice. It involved a range of stakeholders working on financial exclusion policy and practice and used knowledge exchange techniques to identify useful knowledge and ways of improving information sharing.
- Institute for Public Policy Research - an analysis of patterns and presumptions on consumer spending and over-indebtedness, using a range of qualitative and quantitative methods.
- Daycare Trust – scoped the development of a Childcare Bond Scheme – a new financial instrument to smooth the transition of low income parents into work.
- Royal College of Psychiatrists in partnership with the Money Advice Trust – funded research to improve the financial inclusion of people with mental health and debt problems and to develop an evaluation and intervention programme.
- Thrive - training of volunteers to bridge the gap between households on low-income and sustainable financial products.
- National Housing Federation – funded a business planning process for the delivery of financial services by housing associations.
- Bristol Debt Advice Centre – influenced organisations using exclusionary practices, such as punitive pricing models, to comply with their own stated policies when dealing with low income or otherwise vulnerable consumers.
Trustees are currently reviewing the focus and scope of the Financial Inclusion programme as it nears the end of its initial phase. New giving priorities will be published on the Friends Provident Foundation website from 2 April 2009.
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