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FAQs for service providers and counsellors
Contacts
Who should service providers contact in DAFF about rural financial counselling?
Contact the Office of Rural Financial Counselling
Fax: 02 6272 4414
Email: RFCS
Website: www.rfcs.gov.au
- New South Wales and Western Australia - Maryann Weston 02 6272 4726
- Queensland and South Australia - Bill Nibbs 02 6272 3116
- Victoria and Tasmania - Alexis Nguyen 02 6272 4587
- ARC database helpdesk - 02 6272 3549
Grants applications and funding
How does the grants application process work?
RFCS Program grants provide funding to state and regional level organisations to deliver rural financial counselling services throughout Australia to primary producers, fishers and small rural businesses suffering financial hardship. The service providers help clients manage the challenges of industry change and adjustment and to become self-reliant.
Organisations are encouraged to apply if they have:
- strong ties to the rural community
- sound corporate credentials, and
- the ability to provide rural financial counselling services.
Applications for grant funding for the period 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2011 closed on 26 October 2007, and the successful applicants were announced on 3 June 2008.
Successful applicants for 2008–11 are:
- Tasmania:
Rural Financial Counselling Service (RFCS) Tasmania
- South Australia:
RFCS South Australia
- Victoria:
RFCS Victoria – Wimmera South West
RFCS Victoria – Gippsland
RFCS Victoria – North Central
RFCS Victoria – Goulburn Murray Hume
RFCS Victoria – Murray Mallee (an amalgamation of the former RFCS Victoria – Sunraysia and RFCS Victoria – Mallee)
- Queensland:
RFCS Queensland – Central Southern Region
RFCS Queensland – South Western Region
- New South Wales:
RFCS NSW – Bourke
RFCS NSW – Central West (now incorporating the former RFCS NSW – Wentworth Balranald service area)
RFCS NSW – Southern Region
RFCS NSW – Northern Region
- Western Australia: RFCS Western Australia (from 1 July 2008, operated by North East Farming Futures)
Contact details for all service providers and rural financial counsellors.
Who provides the funding?
The Australian Government and state governments provide funding to state and regional level organisations.
Do communities have to provide matching funding?
There is no mandatory requirement for community funding but service providers may accept additional funding from their communities.
Rural financial counsellors
Who selects and recruits rural financial counsellors?
Service providers select rural financial counsellors with the assistance of a member of the Australian Government or the state government on the service provider's selection committee. If a service provider is regionally based, volunteer local reference committees can help with the selection of counsellors by providing local knowledge and expertise.
What qualifications must rural financial counsellors have?
The national selection documentation for rural financial counsellors includes the expected remuneration package, duty statement, job description and the qualifications and experience counsellors must have.
Who conducts counsellors’ performance reviews?
The rural financial counsellor’s employer (the rural financial counselling service provider) conducts regular performance reviews.
Case management
Rural financial counsellors use a case management approach to help vulnerable farmers take greater control of their financial future and to progress clients to a defined outcome. Counsellors use the Australian Rural Counselling (ARC) database to monitor clients’ progress.
Funding conditions
What skills or qualifications should members of the board of directors have?
The chairman should have strong leadership skills, previous experience as the chairman of a board, advanced strategic planning skills and strong corporate governance experience. The vice chairman should have similar expertise.
As a group, the board’s skills and expertise should include a rural background, corporate governance experience or knowledge, demonstrated skills in business management; accounting or financial expertise; legal qualifications or experience; and a social welfare or community development background. At least one board member should have skills and experience in human resource management.
Board and management committee members are expected to keep their corporate governance skills up to date by attending an Australian Institute of Company Directors two-day course or a similar course.
How often do service providers have to report?
Service providers must provide quarterly reports that include an expenditure report, a statement of certification and a tax invoice. These reports must be provided before funding instalments will be made.
In addition, grantees must provide an annual report at the end of each financial year. This annual report must include audited general purpose financial statements in accordance with Australian accounting standards (appropriate to the type of organisation delivering the service). The annual report must also include a schedule that compares actual expenditure against budgeted categories with material variations explained.
Are the service providers audited?
Yes. The Australian Government and the state government undertake regular performance audits of the service providers to monitor funding agreement compliance.
How often do counsellors have to provide ARC statistics?
Rural financial counsellors must provide monthly statistics generated from the Australian Rural Counselling (ARC) database. The report is due by the seventh day of the following month.
To operate the ARC software, rural financial counsellors need computer software and hardware of a minimum capacity, as well as up-to-date data protection software.
Who sees the statistics the service providers produce?
The deed of grant requires that all service providers allow DAFF to share objective data with other rural financial counselling services to allow benchmarking and self-assessment across Australia. DAFF also produces an annual report that includes key statistics on the program’s performance and outcomes and highlights some best-practice examples of service provision. No information identifiable to individual clients is received or distributed by DAFF.