You, or your clients may have come across Quids In! Magazine which is a free financial inclusion magazine reaching more than 300,000 UK households every year. Quids In! is published by The Social Publishing Project which is a social enterprise founded by Jeff Mitchell and Steve Faragher. It utilises professional publishing standards to make an impact on the most disadvantaged people, change public policy and influence the wider community.
Jeff Mitchell writes:
“You may have seen us at the Wessex Financial Capability Forum talking about the findings of the Quids in! reader survey and I wanted you to know that the Social Publishing Project yesterday published its manifesto on behalf of people on low incomes, called Dying for Change.
“You may remember from my presentation that Quids in! magazine undertook a major reader survey and found some startling results, especially on the impact of money worries on their health, their mistrust of banking institutions, and a cultural mismatch between policy formation (like ‘digital by default’) and the reality of life for many people on low incomes. All these, have informed the manifesto.
“More recently, I have been blogging for the needs of people on low incomes or those struggling to manage their money to be higher up the political agenda. Many of them are talked about by politicians – a lot – but they are rarely listened to. As a result, we decided someone needed to represent them. You can find my blog about it here.
“The manifesto is entirely apolitical and does not have any party allegiance, we’re just using our independent position to represent the needs of people who sometimes struggle to manage their money. There are five key points and we have supported each with statistical evidence and examples of what could be done to address them. Many actions don’t require a major financial investment, just a different approach and a linking up of resources that are already on the ground. What our readers said they need is:
- The financial means to improve their health and wellbeing
- A strategic, health-based response to illness where money worries are the root cause
- Reassurance that financial services will protect them and enable them to manage better
- Access and support to online facilities that will help them stretch and manage their money
- More appropriate engagement with low income users by advice agencies, landlords, authorities and the finance sector
“As an non-publicly funded social enterprise, I think we’ve been able to say a few things many organisations cannot. The blog has space for people to comment and we’d really welcome your and your network members’ feedback.
“I hope you like what we’ve come up with. If you do, please follow and share on Twitter (@SocialPubProj) and join the Quids In Professional Network.”