ANZ’s partnership with BSL
We recognise ANZ’s continuing commitment to partner with BSL and support economic participation in Australia.
Since 2003, ANZ has been BSL’s largest corporate partner. ANZ's support spans BSL’s financial education and wellbeing programs, employment programs, a research fellowship and three pilot projects that will enable us to test, refine and evaluate innovative solutions to create systemic change for people experiencing disadvantage.
ANZ and Saver Plus: helping people build long-lasting savings habits
Saver Plus, our matched savings and financial education program, developed in partnership with ANZ, assists individuals and families on lower incomes to build assets and improve financial well-being. In this 2021 financial year, the program has been delivered with partners The Smith Family, Berry Street, Ballarat Group Training and Bethany Community Support.
This financial year over 3,600 Australians joined the program. Despite economic hardships, the program assisted many participants to build a savings habit during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kiara, a single mother of two, lost her part-time teacher’s aide job last year when the school she worked at shut down due to COVID-19. She had enrolled in the Saver Plus program in February 2020:
The fact that I knew that I had savings, meant I didn’t have to stress about losing work. In the past, I struggled when the start of the school year arrived, because every year the kids grow, they need new uniforms or laptops. I didn’t want them to be the kid that has nothing.
After completing the Saver Plus program in November 2020, Kiara says it is the first time that she has not been stressed about paying for her children’s back-to-school costs.
The ANZ Tony Nicholson Research Fellowship: Enabling vital research to underpin BSL programs and services
In 2018, ANZ and BSL founded the ANZ Tony Nicholson Research Fellowship, named after the former BSL Executive Director and reflecting the importance of the long-standing partnership between our organisations.
Two fellowships have been undertaken so far. Dr Emily Porter is the current ANZ Tony Nicholson Fellow. This fellowship supports the Financial Lives in Uncertain Times study, which uses the ANZ Roy Morgan Financial Wellbeing Indicator to explore patterns of financial wellbeing across vulnerable groups. To facilitate this research, ANZ has provided access to the Roy Morgan Single Source survey data.
This research enables us to understand how financial wellbeing is influenced by the long-term structural drivers of inequality and insecurity. This is important as individual exposure to risk has increased as work has become less secure and the social safety net has been weakened. The foundation report, All in it together? Financial wellbeing before COVID-19 provided a benchmark for subsequent reports exploring the impact of the COVID-19 crisis. Findings from the research were discussed, in conjunction with research from ANZ, as part of the Thriving Communities Partnership webinar series.
The second report in the series. Shocks and safety nets: financial wellbeing during the COVID-19 crisis , was launched in May 2021. BSL hosted a well-attended webinar with an expert panel reflecting on the research findings, in light of the most recent federal budget. We also met with the Department of Social Services senior staff and plan to meet regularly to discuss research findings.
The fellowship has also supported Dr Emily Porter to undertake research on energy poverty in collaboration with our Climate Change and Energy team.