The Australian Financial Counselling and Credit Reform Association (AFCCRA) is the peak body for financial counsellors in Australia.

Financial counsellors provide information to consumers in financial difficulty. A thorough assessment of an individual or family's situation is followed by identifying what can be done to address the financial problems, and the possibile advantages and disadvantages of those choices.  Financial Counsellors are based in community agencies and are funded largely by State or the Federal Governments.

Counsellors are required to act in the paramount interests of consumers, free of any conflict of interest and free of any commercial benefit. 

They provide a FREE, INDEPENDENT &CONFIDENTIAL service

 

 

 

 

 

 

A free financial counsellor in your state

The Afccra Constitution

Government funded financial counselling services are FREE and CONFIDENTIAL – they are different to fee for service debt counsellors.

If at any stage of your contact with a ‘financial counsellor’ or ‘debt counsellor’ they ask you to sign an agreement which includes paying any costs or fees, check this out carefully and get advice from a free Government funded financial counsellor.

There are a growing number of services advertising on television, radio and in local newspapers that they can help you solve your debt problems.

Many of them are costly and don’t set out the full range of choices you may have. They may focus on one solution such as a Part IX Debt Agreement.

These “solutions” often provide greater financial benefit to the company offering them, than they will to you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The AFCCRA Council and Representatives

Formed in the early 1980s, AFCCRA is a federation of fianncial counselling organisations with one member from each State and Territory. Each State and territory appoints a representative to AFCCRA Council. These positions are voluntary.

AFCCRA Council meets bi-monthly, largely by teleconference.

Current membership of Council is as follows:
Chair	Carmel Franklin	(ACT)
Deputy Chair	Gerry Phillips	(South Australia)
Secretary	Saska ten Dam	(Queensland)
Treasurer	Phil Powell	(Tasmania)
Council Members	Lynette Brailey	(NSW)
	Gerry Phillips	(South Australia)
	Serena Staines	(Northern Territory)
	Saskia ten Dam	(Queensland)
	Marianne Mayer	(Western Australia)
	TBA	Victoria
Current representatives are as follows:
Telstra Consumer Consultative Council		Marianne Mayer
Bankruptcy Reform Consultative Forum		Lyn Brailey
ACCC Consumer Consultative Council		TBA
ASIC Consumer Advisory Panel		TBA
Optus Consumer Liaison Forum		David Lawson
ACCAN Standing Committee on Consumer Affairs		David Lawson
ACCC Consumer Consultative Committee		Fiona Guthrie