10 November 2022

Findex Community Fund (FCF) is entering a new horizon in its journey to creating equal access to health, education and entrepreneurship. In FY23, we celebrate 5 years of donating and expect to have donated $3 million to charities that are creating real impact in our communities across Australia and New Zealand. A significant milestone for us this year, is the introduction of two additional partner charities: headspace in Australia and Hato Hone St John in New Zealand

For headspace, our partner donation will go towards the work and study online community. We understand the rising concerns for the wellbeing of the mental health of young Australians and are proud to extend the support. As a Hato Hone St John Community Supporter, our donation will help support more Rangatahi access to attend the Hato Hone St John Youth Wellbeing Camp and the Leadership Development course for young people (Poipoia Te Pitomata), which contributes to harnessing their potential in first aid skills, leadership, wellbeing, and self-confidence.

While FCF was in its infancy, we set out to partner with charities for a three-year term in three focus areas of health, education, and entrepreneurship. To ensure that our Partner Charity relationships and donations have a significant impact, we undertook a review ahead of FY23. During this process we considered feedback from our internal FCF Champions, a group of 60 staff members who are active ambassadors and philanthropic enthusiasts, as well as reviewing over 400 charities that we have supported through the Community Donating Program.

What we found through this review process is that our existing partner charities are well aligned to our focus areas and their impact is significant for our people.

Rather than changing our existing Partner Charities, we included additional charities to expand our impact, so we are pleased to introduce both headspace and Hato Hone St John as Partner Charities.

Since the launch of the Findex Community Fund we’ve supported the following charities:

Both headspace, and Hato Hone St John hold a unique place in our Partner Charity structure as they have programs that cover all three of our focus areas.

Through our Partner charity framework we donate to charities that align to our key considerations:

National reach: It’s important that our people (staff, clients and extended communities) resonate with the impact of our partner charities no matter where they are located.

Create an impact in both regional and metro locations: With 75% of our offices based in regional locations, the importance of bridging the gap of isolation for our regional communities is a priority. Our support also extends to isolation by circumstances felt in the areas of health, education and entrepreneurship experienced in our metro locations

Uniquely people driven: Through our Community Donating Program and Workplace Gift Matching program, our people can support charities that are important in our local communities. Our people can also extend their support by dedicating their volunteer hours to impact driven activities, such as:

• Participating in Work Readiness Programs for Beacon Foundation Program, supporting young people’s transition into the workforce

• Cooking for families who are staying at the Ronald McDonald House charities in Australia and New Zealand.

• Connecting with Country Families who are accessing health care at Royal Far West Manly facilities

• Delivering Young Money events to empower the young people in our communities with financial literacy

• Attending Outward Bound celebration events for the young people attending leadership courses; or

• Localised volunteering that suits their community needs.

With Findex offices widely dispersed across Australia and New Zealand, connecting and giving back to local communities is at the centre of our values. Through the Findex Community Fund we are committed to making an impact. To find out more about the work FCF are doing, please visit us on the website.