For our debut financial counsellor profile, we spoke to April Hughes from Centacare Catholic Country SA about what motivates her in her work. Video here.
What made you want to become a financial counselor?
I think it was just that drive that everybody has the right to be heard and has a right to have a voice. I was previously working at a bank… and I just saw through doing some of that work that there could be extra things that I could be doing to help in that space.
What’s the most rewarding part of your work?
Watching a client’s confidence grow. You can see physical changes when they’re coming in at the start of service, where they might be quite nervous, feeling shame, and you can literally see their bodies relax while you’re going through the process. I mean, there’s also the things that they tell you, but you can see that physical shift and that change that’s happening for them as well.
Can you share a specific moment or an outcome for a client that reminded you why this work really matters?
One client comes to mind that I have been working with recently. They lost their home and their belongings in a house fire. They previously were keeping on top of everything financially, but with the stress of having to replace all of their belongings and keep on top of the cost-of-living pressures and the health issues that they also had… the results that we had at the end, seeing that change for them and hearing how much it actually impacted them – not just having things in their house, but them telling me that it actually feels like home again.
What kinds of issues are you most commonly helping people with right now?
We’re seeing a lot of people present to go into voluntary bankruptcy. A lot of it is because of your buy now, pay later, [and] payday loan products. The amount that they’re in debt with those just keeps building up, and it comes to a point where it’s not manageable for them to be paying it anymore. So, bankruptcy is an option that they’re actually looking at.
Was there anything else that you wanted to add?
What we do is so important. We don’t always get to see the end results, but just the little things that you can do with clients and the tools that you give them to empower them, even if it’s just to know where to go to get help or how to ask for help, it can make huge difference in people’s life, and I think that’s just really valuable.
Big thanks to April for being our first interviewee! If you would like to share your story with the sector, please let us know at [email protected]