A Bendigo family financial services provider has seen a 20 to 30 per cent increase in people accessing their services as cost of living pressures continue to bite.
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Bendigo Family and Financial Services has had to place around 60 people struggling to survive the economic conditions on a wait list to access their services
"We've got an increase of clients presenting at the moment that are struggling with putting food on the table, paying bills, house payments, rental payments," general manager Jenny Elvey said.
Long wait to see financial counsellor
To counter the volume of people needing to access services, Ms Elvey said the not-for-profit had to introduce a waiting list with around 60 people on it.
"We have to triage and make sure we prioritise how we see people," she said.
"If someone is about to lose an asset, they will move to the top of the list, but it's heartbreaking to have to have people waiting for help."
Ms Elvey said some clients were waiting around five or six weeks before being seen by a financial counsellor.
Boost to welfare payments
It comes as around 7000 Bendigo welfare recipients are set to receive a boost to their payments as changes announced in the federal government's May budget come into effect from September 20.
Single JobSeeker recipients aged 55-59, who are on payment for nine or more continuous months, will see the largest increase with an extra $92.10 paid, while those below 55 will receive $56.10 more.
Parenting Payment Single recipients will receive a base payment rate of $942.40, reflecting a $20.30 increase.
While Ms Elvey welcomed the changes, she urged the government to "continue helping" people on government payments "so we don't see people slipping through the cracks".
"We know we're still going to see clients that are struggling because of all these other increases, but these changes will give them a little bit of breathing space," she said.
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