Help your people recognise financial distress to respond with confidence
Money worries are not always obvious. Financial pressure can show up through changes in behaviour, concentration, confidence, attendance or performance and the people around someone may sense something is wrong without knowing what to do next.
Financial Wellbeing First Aider® training gives trusted people in your organisation the confidence and practical skills to recognise financial pressure, start supportive conversations and help colleagues access appropriate support.
Someone experiencing financial difficulty may still be coming to work and appearing to cope. But financial problems can deteriorate quickly.
An earlier conversation and access to appropriate support may help prevent difficulties escalating, potentially making the difference between someone continuing to cope and reaching a point where their financial situation, wellbeing or ability to work is significantly affected.
Financial Wellbeing First Aiders help create an earlier route to support.
What is a Financial Wellbeing First Aider?
A Financial Wellbeing First Aider is a trusted person within the organisation who can:
Recognise when someone may be experiencing financial pressure.
Start an appropriate and supportive conversation.
Listen without judgement.
Respond within clear boundaries.
Signpost to appropriate support and guidance.
This approach reflects wider good practice.
The CIPD recommends improving managers' confidence and ability to address financial issues and specifically highlights training and supporting people managers and Mental Health First Aiders to provide or signpost people towards financial guidance.
What participants learn
The CPD-certified programme helps participants understand:
Financial wellbeing, financial distress and how money pressures can affect people
Signs that someone may be struggling financially
How emotions and behaviour can influence money decisions
How to have psychologically safe conversations about money
How to listen and respond without judgement
The boundaries of the Financial Wellbeing First Aider role
How and where to signpost people for timely, practical appropriate help
Why equip people to have these conversations?
Managers, HR colleagues, wellbeing champions and Mental Health First Aiders may already encounter people experiencing financial pressure.
The question is whether they feel equipped to respond.
CIPD guidance identifies an important role for managers in spotting financial distress and signposting people towards support, while maintaining appropriate boundaries rather than trying to give financial advice themselves.
This is the gap Financial Wellbeing First Aider training is designed to help address.
Who can become a Financial Wellbeing First Aider?
FWBFAs can come from across an organisation, including:
HR & People teams
Wellbeing champions
Mental Health First Aiders
Managers
Employee representatives
Payroll & Reward teams
Other trusted colleagues
The important thing is not their job title.
It is that people know there is someone they can approach.
Strengthen the support you already provide
Many organisations already provide employee assistance programmes, benefits, pensions, financial tools, wellbeing support or external guidance. But employees experiencing financial pressure do not always know where to turn — or feel comfortable asking.
Financial Wellbeing First Aiders provide a human connection between employees and the support available to them, helping people understand where they can turn and making it easier to take the next step. The programme complements existing Mental Health First Aid, HR, wellbeing and employee support.
Build financial wellbeing capability inside your organisation
Give trusted people the confidence to recognise financial pressure earlier, have appropriate conversations and help colleagues reach the support they need.
The training was incredibly valuable and well-structured. It provided practical insights and tools that I can apply immediately in my role. I especially appreciated the clear explanations and real-life examples, which made the content easy to understand and engaging. I feel much more confident in my knowledge and ability to support others as a result.
