Request for Proposal: Financial literacy education providers

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Request for Proposal:

Financial
li
teracy
e
ducation
p
roviders

8

April

2013



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Contents

The Commission’s role in financial
literacy education

................................
...........................

4

Assessment and selection criteria

................................
................................
........................

4

Core principles of engagement

4

Focus

4

Criteria

5

Application process for new financial literacy education providers

................................
.......

5

Process for becoming a listed provider

5

1.

About the organisation

................................
................................
................................
.

6

1.1

Organisation name and key details

6

1.2

Contact details

6

1.3

Organisation profile

6

1.4

Organisation services

7

1.5

Reach of services

7

1.6

Involvement in financial literacy

7

1.7

Organisation quality assurance

7

1.8

Financial literacy education programme(s) on offer

8

1.9

Details of your financial literacy education programme(s)

8

1.10

Target audience

9

1.11

Areas of expertise

10

2. Managing your credibility and reputation

................................
................................
.......

11

2.1

Your credibility as a financial literacy education provider

11

2.2

Managing your reputation

11

2.3

Code of Conduct

11

2.4

Comp
laints

11

2.5

Complaints process

12

2.6

Conflicts of interest

12

2.7

Requirements of the Privacy Act

12

2.8

Any other relevant information

12

3.

Education facilitators/teachers/tutors

................................
................................
........

13

3.1

Organisation personnel: facilitators and educators

13

3.2

Training and competence

13

3.3

Professional development

13

3.4

Ongoing training and development

14

3.5

Skills and experience

14

3.6

Qualifications and expertise

14

4.

Educational resources used to deliver financial education

................................
...........

15

4.1

Accessible material

15

4.2

Material suitable for the New Zealand environment

15


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4.3

Accurate and up
-
to
-
date material

15

4.4

Evaluation and peer review of material

15

5. Delivery of financial education

................................
................................
......................

16

5.1

Modification of material to suit the audience

16

5.2

Teaching approaches
and facilitation techniques

16

5.3

Generic programme facilitation

16

5.4

Effective teaching practices

16

6.

Quality assurance systems

................................
................................
..........................

18

6.1

Capturing leaner feedback

18

6.2

Monitoring and evaluation

18

6.3

Evaluation and assessment measurements

18

7.

Endorsements and references

................................
................................
.....................

19

7.1

Organisation’s reputation

19

7.2

Educators’ effectiveness

19

8.

Alignment with financial literacy education effective practices

................................
....

20

8.1

Best practice in financial education

20

8.2

Alignment with the National Strategy for Financial Literacy

20

8.3

Alignment with the financial literacy competency framework for adults

20

9.

Terms of engagement/letter of agreement

................................
................................
.

21

9.1

P
roposed key terms of engagement

21

9.2

Sharing of information

21

Additional information

................................
................................
................................
......

22



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The Commission’s role in financial literacy education

The Commission for Financial Literacy and Retirement Income plays a key role in facilitating
access to financial literacy education b
y identifying quality financial literacy education providers
and sharing good practice financial education models.

The Commission’s
review

of financial literacy education providers falls within our
National
Strategy responsibilities
.

Assessment
and

selection criteria

In March 2013 t
he Commission for Financial Literacy and Retirement Income
confirmed a new set
of

criteria and
a

selection process for financial literacy education providers listed on the
Commission’
s

website.

T
he
assessment
criteria
are

closely aligned with the
National Strategy for Financial
Literacy

and
well recognised standards for delivering financial education programmes, with a focus on making
sure providers’ education programme outcomes are aligned with the
financial literacy
competency framework for adults
.

Core principles of engagement

The
core principles of
engagement

for finan
cial education

provided by the finance sector state
that programmes should be aligned to the National Strategy for Financial Literacy and follow a
recognised teaching/learning framework.

The core principles are designed to
ensure th
e

information and facili
tation is:



A
ccessible



I
mpartial and not product specific



A
ccurate



L
earner
-
centric



E
valuated
.

Focus

The focus is on encouraging financial education providers to use:



Trained
personnel



G
ood practice delivery approaches



Q
uality and accessible learner
-
focused
resources



A

credible monitoring and evaluation process.

The Commission believes that by adopting these criteria the quality and effectiveness of financial
education in this country will increase.

The intention is
to list on

the Commission’s website those e
ducation providers who offer financial
literacy education programmes (that meet the above criteria) direct to the adult public or via
employers and the workplace.


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Criteria

To be listed on the Commission’s website as a financial literacy education provide
r:



The provider must offer a programme in financial literacy with set learning outcomes aligned
with the financial literacy competency framework for adults and a demonstrated way of
measuring effectiveness, performance and achievement.



The financial
literacy education programme must be a structured sustainable approach to
develop learner competency in personal financial management.



The programme must be currently available to the adult population (either directly to the
public or in the workplace).



Th
ere must be evidence of participant feedback that suggests the desired outcomes and
competency have been achieved.

Application process for new financial literacy education providers

W
e want organisations who are offering educationally sound financial educa
tion programmes to
be able to apply to us, at any time, and for us to be able to consider that application within an
agreed process. Providers who believe they can meet the Commission’s criteria are welcome to
submit an application at any time.

Process fo
r becoming a listed provider

If you wish to be considered and listed as a
financial literacy education provider
on the
Commission’s website you need to make a formal application to the Commission.

If you have any further questions regarding the selection
process and criteria
,

please email
office@cflri.org.nz
.


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REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL


Financial Literacy Education Provider

Response


This form should be used by organisations applying to be listed on the Commission for Financial
Literacy and Retirement Income’s website as a Financial Literacy Education Provider offering a
structured financial literacy education programme to the adult pu
blic.

IMPORTANT
:
Please provide a detailed response to all of the questions in this form
.

Please
a
ttach
any

additional
or supporting
information.

1.

About the o
rganisation

1.1

Organisation
n
ame
and

k
ey
d
etails


Organisation (full legal) name:

???

Details
of directors (if applicable)
and/or key management:

???

When organisation was founded:

???

1.2

Contact details


Physical and postal address

???

Contact phone numbers

???

Email address

???

Website

???

1.3

Organisation
p
rofile


Which sector do you
belong to?



Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITP)



Private Training Establishments (PTE)



Universities



Industry Training Organisations (ITO)



Not for profit/Community



Wānanga



Government Training Organisations (GTO)



Financial Services providers


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

Financial advisers



Individual/sole operator



Other (please state)


1.4

Organisation services

The p
rimary focus of your business or organisation
.

???

The scope of services and products offered by your organisation
.

???

1.5

Reach of services

Does your
organisation operate in more than one location?
–

if so, where are your other offices?

List the locations (City/town) of your offices.

???

What is your organisational reach in terms of services provided
–

what towns/cities/regions are
you able to offer fin
ancial literacy education services in?

List the regions (and/or towns/cities) that you are able to offer your services in.

???

1.6

Involvement in financial literacy

Please provide a statement that explains what your interest is in financial literacy educat
ion
programmes.

This should include examples that demonstrate: Your interest in helping NZers to increase their
financial knowledge and capabilities so that they are able to make informed financial decisions
throughout their lives.

???

1.7

Organisation qua
lity assurance

Is your organisation registered with NZQA? (if relevant)
?

???

I
s your financial literacy education programme NZQA accredited?

???

If n
either

of the above are relevant
-

please provide details of what other external organisation or
profession
al body you belong to, to provide oversight and quality control of your services.

We are particularly interested in how you ensure your financial literacy education programme
and course content is aligned with financial literacy pedagogy.

???


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1.8

F
inanci
al literacy education programme(s)
on offer

What financial literacy education programme(s) do you offer?

Please provide a course outline including the purpose, objectives and desired outcomes of the
course/programme(s) on offer
.

Course/Programme name

???

Purpose

???

Objectives

???

Desired outcomes

???

1.9

Details of your financial literacy education programme(s)

Please provide details of your financial literacy education programme(s) on offer including the
following
.

Seminar/course 1

Seminar/course title/n
ame

???

Duration of course
–

how many sessions,
how long each session is for and over
what period of time.

???

Contact time versus non contact time?
W
hat components are face
-
to
-
face

(group sessions or one
-
on
-
one)

or
online
/self
-
study:

???

Frequency
-

how often the course is
held
:


Course/class size
:


Target audience(s) each course is
designed for or targeted at
:


Entry level requirements for participants
(if any)?

–

if relevant.


Is a fee charged? If so, how much?


Number of participants who have

attended the course over the last
2

years
:




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Seminar/course 2

Seminar/course title/name

???

Duration of course
–

how many sessions,
how long each session is for and over
what period of time.

???

Contact time versus non contact time?
W
hat components are

face
-
to
-
face

(group sessions or one
-
on
-
one)

or
online
/self
-
study:

???

Frequency
-

how often the course is
held
:


Course/class size
:


Target audience(s) each course is
designed for or targeted at
:


Entry level requirements for participants
(if any)?

–

if relevant.


Is a fee charged? If so, how much?


Number of participants who have
attended the course over the last
2

years
:


1.10

Target audience

Do you have a particular target audience that you have historically focused on or would prefer to
focus
on?

???

Please provide details of your current or preferred target audience(s) and an explanation of why
you have chosen to focus on this/these audience(s).

Examples of target audience groups are shown below. Please add and delete from the list as
applicab
le

and provide details
.



Workplace
–

corporate
/SMEs/industry/local government/public service



Community groups



Unemployed



Low literacy/numeracy



Retired/nearing retirement



Ethnic groups (please specify)



Tertiary s
tudents



Individuals interested in
self
-
improvement


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

Special interest groups
–

specify



Industry training



Other
–

ple
ase specify


???

1.1
1

Areas of
e
xpertise

Does your organisation have specific areas of expertise in financial literacy education? For
example:

-

Budget advice (including goal

setting, saving & debt management)

-

Numeracy skills

-

Financial matters (e.g. investments, insurances)

-

Other

???



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2.
Managing your credibility and reputation

NOTE
:

T
he Commission is an independent and impartial provider of financial information. It is

vital to the credibility of the Commission’s brand and reputation that we protect this, as such we
are keen to ensure the credibility and reputation of any financial literacy education providers who
we might list on the Commission’s website.

2.1

Yo
ur
cred
ibility as a financial literacy education provider

Criterion:
A
n overarching statement to explain your organisation’s credibility as a financial
literacy education provider.

???

2.2

Managing your reputation

Criterion:
We seek confirmation that all
organisations and their facilitators and educators are
reputable and will operate and conduct themselves in a manner that is legal, ethical, and not
deceiv
ing

-

presenting information accurately and factually so that it is not mislead
ing
.

Evidence
sh
ould i
nclude
:



A
n overarching statement to explain how you manage your
organisation’s
credibility and
reputation.



An explanation of what expectations you place on your facilitators and educators

in order to
meet these requirements
.

???

2.3

Code of Conduct

Criteri
on:
The provider has
a
code of conduct/practice and an established process for monitoring
compliance and dealing with any breaches
.

Evidence sh
ould include

d
etails of your code of conduct and the procedures for monitoring
compliance as well as dealing with

any breaches
.

???

2.4

Complaints

Criterion:
De
tails of any complaints made about you or your organisation (and/or your
employees, other facilitators or educators, advisers, distributors etc) relating to:



the way in which you have delivered or facilitated
financial education progra
mmes, seminars
or workshops?




any other financial education material you have prepared and distributed?

Evidence sh
ould include
:



d
etails of the number of complaints received over the period of the last 2 years and the type
and nat
ure of those complaints.



e
xamples of how you have dealt with and resolved any complaints.



???


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2.5

Complaints
p
rocess

Criterion:
The provider has a process in place to deal with programme attendees’ complaints.

Evidence sh
ould include

d
etails of your compl
aints procedures.

???

2.6

Conflicts of interest

Criterion:
Details of a
ny
conflicts of interest that you are aware of. That is; any
actual current or
perceived potential conflicts of interest with

being named as a financial literacy education
provider on
the Commission website?

???

Please provide d
etails of any conflict(s) of interest

(f
or example

any special relationship with the
Commission that may provide you with an advantage (either real or perceived) against other
provider
s
)
.

???

Please provide d
etails of how you would look to a
ddress or manage and minimise any

conflict of
interest.

???

2.7

Requirements of the Privacy Act

Criterion:
Confirmation
that requirements of
the Privacy Act
have been met
.

Please provide confirmation

of compliance with the
Privacy Act over the last
2

years.

Please provide d
etails of the process for ensuring compliance with the Privacy Act.

???

2.8

Any other relevant information

Is there anything else that you think the Commission should be aware of, and would reasonably
want

to know, when considering your application?

???


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3.

E
ducation
facilitators/
teachers/tutors

Note
-

Organisations need to provide a complete list of the facilitators
/educators

from their
organisation where more than one individual is likely to be invo
lved
in the education programme
.


If putting forward a list of facilitators
/educators

to deliver
your financial literacy education
programmes,
please provide the following information for each facilitator/educator.

3.1

Organisation
p
ersonnel
:

facilitators and

educators

Please provide details of the n
umber of facilitators or educators in the business / organisation
–
who offer financial literacy education.

???

Please use the table below to provide a
list (of names) of those involved in delivering financial
educ
ation or facilitating
cours
es

or
seminars
:



specifying what each does and



d
etail
ing

the relationship of these educators/facilitators to the business/ organisation

(employee/ contractor etc)
.


Name

What they do

Relationship














3.2

Training and

competence

Criteri
on
:
Those delivering financial education programmes or courses have been appropriately
trained and are considered competent.

Evidence
should include d
etails of training undertaken
–

in both subject matter and in
teaching
practice/facilitation techniques.

???

3.3

Professional
d
evelopment

Criteri
on
:

Those involved in delivering the financial education programmes have attended some
professional development programmes/training to update their skills/knowledge in the past 2
ye
ars (for example content knowledge or programme delivery skills)
.

Evidence s
hould
include d
etails of the recent professional developmen
t undertaken by your
educators/
facilitators with comment on the relevance of the professional development
undertaken.

???


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3.4

Ongoing training and development

Criteri
on
:
Providers have a robust process to ensure the ongoing tr
aining and development of
facilitators/
educators
.

Evidence
should
include

d
etails of your framework / process for ensuring continued learning and
pro
fessional development.

???

3.5

Skills and experience

Criteri
on
:
Those educators/facilitators delivering financial education programmes have sufficient
and relevant skills and experience to deliver the programmes.

E
vidence should include e
xamples that demon
strate:



Each
educators/
facilitator’s ability and experience with a range of audiences (various socio
-
economic backgrounds, ethnic groups, education levels, age
-
groups)



Each
educator/
facilitator’s ability and experience with
financial education material.


Educator/Facilitator

Skills

Experience




















3.6

Qualifications and expertise

Crit
e
ri
on
:

Those educators/facilitators delivering programmes have sufficient and relevant
qualifications and expertise to deliver the programmes.

Evidence
sh
ould include d
etails of all relevant qualifications and expertise.


Educator/Facilitator

Qualifications

Expertise





















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4.

Educational resources used to deliver financial education

We would be interested in seeing examples of any relevant material used for and in your financial
literacy education programme(s) that you
may be
willing to share.

4.1

Accessible material

Criterion:
The financial education material is accessible to and c
an be un
derstood by the target
audience
(s) e.g. accessible to different groups with different backgrounds, education levels such
as; ethnic groups or people with low literacy & numeracy skills or of a specific age group such as;
the elderly.

What we mean

by accessible is:



The content, format and language are easy to understand by the intended audience



The format and language of the content engages and motivates learners.

Evidence should include
:



Details of how you ensure the material presented is accessib
le, approachable and
understandable to your audience(s).



If appropriate, please provide examples.

???

4.2

Material suitable for the New Zealand environment

Criterion:

If the education material had been developed overseas it has been adapted for the
New
Zealand environment.


Evidence should include

d
etails of where the material was originally developed and how
it has
been adapted for introduction in NZ.

If appropriate, please provide examples.

???

Please provide a comment on how your education material
and objectives of your programme are
aligned to the Commission’s Fina
ncial Literacy C
ompetency Framework (for adults) which is
available on
the Commission’s
website
:

http://www.cflri.org.nz/financial
-
literacy/about
-
financial
-
literacy/financial
-
literacy
-
competency
-
framework

???

4.3

Accurate and up
-
to
-
date material

Criterion:

The educatio
n material is up to date and
accurate
.

Evidence
should include

d
etails of processes to ensure information currency and accuracy
.

???

4.4

Evaluation and peer review of material

Criterion:

The education material has been evaluated or peer reviewed and that evidence of
evaluation/review is available
.

Evidence
should include d
etails of your peer review/evaluation process and its outcomes
.

???


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5. Delivery of financial education

5.1

Modification of material to suit the audience

Criterion:

The provider/educator has the capability/experience to modify lea
rning material to
suit differing target audiences. For example: pacifica, women, low financial literacy or the elderly.

Evidence
should include d
etails of your process for modifying your education material to ensure
all information provided is in the conte
xt of learner needs.

If appropriate you may like to provide an example.

???

5.2

T
eaching approaches
and facilitation techniques

Criterion:
The provider /educator uses appropriate teaching approaches
and facilitation
techniques

to suit the target audience(s
) and that reflect effective adult learning principles.

Evidence
should include
d
etails of your process for adapting your teaching approach(es) for
different audiences (e.g. size of group, age, type
–

workplace/community etc).

If appropriate you may like
to provide an example.

???

5.3

Generic programme facilitation

Criterion:

The programme facilitation is generic, impartial and not product specific. It is
independent, unbiased, without prejudice, does not contain any sales ‘pitch’ for services or
products

and does not promote branded products
.

Evidence should include
:




Details of any commercial financial products your organisation and/or educators are
associated with (if any) and the nature of the association.



Confirmation that programmes are facilitated
without containing any sales pitch.



Details of how any conflict(s) of interest around any commercial financial products are dealt
with.

???

5.4

Effective teaching practices

Criterion:

The provider understands and follows what is considered to be effective financial
literacy education teaching practices.


The provider’s facilitation of financial education
programmes are aligned with the Commission’s National Strategy for
F
inancial

L
it
eracy principles
of engagement.

Please refer
t
o the Commission’s website:


http://www.cflri.org.nz/sites/default/files/docs/FL
-
NS
-
Core
-
princ
iples
-
of
-
engagement
-
Oct
-
2012.pdf




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Evidence
should include
:



Details of your approach to financial literacy education.



A statement that explains what you view as best or most appropriate financial education
practices
–

in terms of the delivery of the

financial education programmes
.



An explanation of h
ow you see your facilitation being aligned with the Comm
ission’s National
Strategy for F
inancial
L
iteracy principles of engagement.

???


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6.

Quality assurance systems

6.1

Capturing leaner feedback

Criterion
:
The provider has an established process in place to capture learner feedback.

Delivery
includes the opportunity for learners to provide feedback on the course content/education
material and the delivery/facilitation.

Evidence should include

d
etails of your process(es) to capture learner feedback on your:



teaching /delivery practices.



education material and content.

If appropriate please provide a

copy of your learner feedback tool.

???

6.2

Monitoring and evaluation

Criterion:

Monitoring and e
valuation outcomes inform teaching practice and delivery (and
materials).


The provider has established processes in place to monitor and assess learner feedback
–

to
measure the effectiveness of both the education material and course content and the
teach
ing/delivery practices.

Evidence
should include

a
n explanation of the process(es) you have in place to ensure that all
learner/participant feedback is utilised to both monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the
programme education material and the teac
hing practices.

???

Have these processes been developed specifically for the financial literacy field?

???

6.3

Evaluation and assessment measurements

Criterion:

The provider has developed robust evaluation and assessment measurements
–

to
clearly establish

comprehension / accomplishment levels to establish if the programme achieved
what was expected.

Evidence should include

d
etails of the assessment process(es) and the tools /mechanisms used to
measure success.

???


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7.

Endorsements and
r
eferences

Note
-

References are required to endorse your organisational reputation and if you are putting
forward a list of educators/facilitators to deliver your financial literacy education programmes
–

please provide the following information for each educator or facili
tator
.

7.1

Organisation’s reputation

Criterion:
The provider (at at organisational level) has a good reputation for providing effective
financial literacy programmes
–

both in terms of the overall programme, the material presented
and the programme facilit
ation, and this is evidenced by participant feedback or references
.

Evidence
should include

d
etails of participant feedback from individuals that have attended a
financial literacy education programme in the last 12 months.

???

If relevant and possible, pl
ease provide references from any organisations (e.g. employers) whose
staff have attended a programme or who you have worked with to deliver financial literacy
education programmes in the workplace in the last 12 months.

???

7.2

Educators’ effectiveness

Criterion:
The provider’s educators/facilitators have a good reputation for effective financial
literacy education facilitation, and this is evidenced by participant feedback or references.

Note:
Where your organisation has more than one facilitator
–

plea
se ensure there is either
individual feedback or an organisation reference for each facilitator.

Evidence
should include

d
etails of participant feedback from individuals that have attended a
financial literacy education programme in the last 12 months.

???


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8.

A
lignment with financial literacy education effective practices

8.1

Best practice in financial education

Criterion:
The provider has an interest in effective practices for delivering financial education
programmes.

Please provide a statement that expla
ins what you view as best practice financial education
practices
–

both in terms of the delivery of the programme and the development of course
material.

???

8.2

Alignment with the
National Strategy
f
or Financial Literacy

Criterion:
The provider’s financia
l literacy education programme is aligned with the core
principles of the
National Strategy for Financial Literacy
.

Please provide a statement that explains how you see your organisation’s development,
management and delivery of financial literacy educatio
n programmes aligning with the
N
ational
Strategy for
Financial Literacy
.

???

8.3

Alignment with the
financial literacy competency framework for adults

Criterion:

The provider’s financial literacy education programme(s) expected outcomes are
aligned with th
e Commission’s financial literacy competency framework for adults.

Please provide an explanation of:



the expected knowledge and action or behavioural outcomes of your financial education
programme(s).



how you see these being aligned with the Commission’s f
inancial literacy competency
framework for adults.

???


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9.

Terms of engagement/letter of agreement

The Commission
has

a

standard

letter of agreement to be signed by all Financial Literacy
Education Providers who, having met the Commission’s criteria, are to be listed on the
Commission’s website. This letter of agreement detail
s

the relationship between the Commission
and providers

and include
s

key terms of engagement (or core principles) that providers
are

required to agree to. The following provides an overview of some of the key terms of engagement
that are includ
ed
.

9.1

P
roposed key terms of engagement

Please confirm that you
are comfortable with the following proposed key terms of engagement
(or core principles) that form part of the letter of agreement.



You will be required to ensure your education material and facilitation is aligned with the
core principles of the National
Strategy for Financial Literacy and with the Commission’s
financial literacy competency framework for adults.



You will be required to make sure that you do not do anything to harm or prejudice the
Commission (or Sorted) brand.



You would be expected to a
dvise the Commission of any actual or perceived potential
conflicts of interest in terms of your relationship with the Commission.



The intention is that the agreement to be listed as a financial literacy education provider
could be terminated at any time

by the Commission or the other party.


Please provide d
etails of any concerns or questions you have regarding the
above
proposed
terms and obligations.

???

Note
–

a draft letter of agreement will be provided to candidates and you then will be asked to
c
onfirm that you can and will comply with all of the terms and obligations.


9.2

Sharing of information

The Commission is also interested in discussing with providers what information could most
usefully be shared on an ongoing basis to encourage visibility

of the effectiveness of the
education programmes on offer.

Please provide any comment or feedback.

???


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Additional
i
nformation

Please list any additional or supporting information attached or included with this response and
state which question it supports
.

An example is shown below.

This proposal includes the following supporting information.

Question

Supporting information

1.7

F
inancial literacy education
programme(s)
on offer

??? course outlines