- Free financial literacy training offered to Ward 60 residents, addressing a lack of basic money management knowledge.
- Isabelle Brettenny initiates Aspire Intervention Solutions, aims to give back to the community with support from Ward Councillor Mark Kleinschmidt and local businesses.
- Training sessions, initially for ages 18 to 25, later opened to all residents
Financial literacy, no matter the amount of money you make or earn, is an important skill.
But with many lacking the basic knowledge of how to manage money, a free training initiative was offered to Ward 60 residents.
Isabelle Brettenny, recently started Aspire Intervention Solutions, offering a range of workshops to corporates and organisations across the country.
A resident of Ward 60, Brettenny wanted to give back to the community and approached ward councillor Mark Kleinschmidt, who partially funded the initiative from ward allocation funding.
The balance was funded by local businesses and individuals, providing participants with lunch and all the stationery required for the training sessions.
Two sessions were held, one in January and the other in mid-February at the Range Road Hall.
Initially, the training was opened to persons aged 18 to 25 but later opened to anyone in the area.
“I had started this training and skills development training after working for other training companies and I felt that I wanted to give back to the community,” she says.
“There are many people who are unemployed. I spoke with councillor Kleinschmidt and he was very supportive of what I wanted to do.
“He arranged for us to get the hall and then I approached the companies that I work with and do training for additional materials.”
Lentec Training Academy NPC also assisted in the training, printing all the manuals required. They are also keen on taking this training initiative to areas across the metro. “It is my passion to see people grow,” she says.
Financial literacy is something people struggle with at all levels.
“This is something I even picked up on in the training I do with businesses.
“What people are doing is resigning so that they can get their pension and then they can only live on it for a limited time. The only reason they would do this is because they are not managing their personal finances correctly,” she says.
Brettenny believes this level of financial management needs to be introduced at an elementary level, starting at schools.
“It is never too late to learn financial skills, no matter where you are in your career or life.”
Brettenny would like to bring the training back to the area but also wants to take the initiative forward, by introducing entrepreneurship-focused training in the metro, with Lentec Training.
“This will be for anyone who wants to start a business and needs a refresher on entrepreneurial skills, but it is aimed at the youth,” says Nigel Adams of Lentec Training.
It is envisioned to offer this training through the course of this year and has ongoing CSI engagement with the community.
