Supporting people from Surviving to Thriving
At ICAN, we understand that financial wellbeing is about much more than money. Financial challenges can be connected to many areas of life, from housing and health to family, employment, identity and connection to community.
That’s why our Financial Counselling and Financial Capability teams work together through an integrated financial wellbeing practice that puts the person at the centre.
Our approach supports people along a financial wellbeing journey from Surviving → Stabilising → Building → Thriving.
Financial Counselling
When people are experiencing financial hardship or crisis, Financial Counselling provides free, confidential and independent advice and support.
Our qualified financial counsellors work alongside service users to understand their circumstances, identify priorities and explore practical options. This can include support with debt, bills and essential expenses, financial hardship, banking and credit issues, negotiations with creditors, consumer rights and referrals to other services.
The immediate priority is often helping someone move from Surviving to Stabilising—reducing financial pressure, addressing urgent problems and creating the space to think about what comes next.
Financial Capability
As immediate pressures begin to stabilise, Financial Capability helps people build the knowledge, skills, confidence and resources to work towards their longer-term goals.
Our Financial Capability Workers provide practical, strengths-based support around budgeting, saving, financial goals, understanding financial products and services, building financial knowledge and making informed financial decisions.
Rather than telling people what they should do, Thrive works alongside people to identify their own goals and build on their existing strengths—supporting the journey from Stabilising to Building and ultimately Thriving.
One integrated approach to financial wellbeing
Financial Counselling and Capability are designed to complement each other. Together, they enable ICAN to respond to immediate financial hardship while also supporting longer-term empowerment and wellbeing.
ICAN’s approach recognises that progress in one part of life can strengthen another. Our Wellbeing Wheel considers six interconnected domains:
Money — building greater financial stability, capability and control.
Connections — strengthening relationships, family, community and support networks.
Sense of Self (Identity) — building confidence, self-determination and a positive sense of identity.
Skills, Knowledge and Employment — developing capabilities, education and pathways to meaningful employment and economic participation.
Health — recognising the relationship between financial circumstances and physical, social and emotional wellbeing.
Basic Needs — supporting greater stability around essentials such as food, housing, utilities, transport and other everyday needs.
By understanding the whole person, not simply the financial problem in front of them, our teams can identify strengths, needs, goals and opportunities across these areas.
The result is a financial wellbeing practice that goes beyond resolving a crisis. It creates pathways for people to build greater capability, confidence and control over their lives and move towards a position where they can thrive.