Financial Counselling Service

In reply to Ms STINSON (Badcoe) (6 June 2019).

The Hon. R. SANDERSON (Adelaide—Minister for Child Protection): I have been advised:

The Department for Child Protection (DCP) has directly negotiated with the Department of Human Services (DHS) to invest in that department's existing statewide financial counselling program from 2019-20. This program was subject to a previous DHS tender process.

The State Procurement Board approved DCP's procurement approach on the basis that no further market intelligence would be obtained through a tender, when the main providers of financial counselling in South Australia underwent an extensive tendering process in December 2016.

DCP also sought input from the peak body for financial counselling in South Australia, the South Australian Financial Counsellors Association (SAFCA), which was supportive of this approach due to the unnecessary strain that a tender would place on service providers.

This was considered to be the most appropriate and cost-effective method of delivering financial counselling services in South Australia, as it reduces significant duplication of services across the non-government sector.