Celebrating Citizens Advice and District

Remembering our past, Looking forward to the future.

The service aims of national Citizens Advice

We help people find a way forward - everything we do shares this aim. If you came to us with a problem, we’d help you get back on track, while recognising where others might also be facing similar experiences

Advice and Research and education campaigns How we work

We’d work with you to Where systemic When you come to us find a way forward, barrier with private or with a problem, you’re taking into account all public policy and likely to be helped by the ways your practice stops us one of our trained problem might be resolving your volunteers, using both affecting your life, and problem, we’d look at our local knowledge, finding the best next other clients’ supported by our

steps for you. experience. national network.

We’d also consider if we could develop your We use our national We also create benefit skills to prevent a data to understand the to society through the similar scenario impact of policy and way we deliver our arising again. regulation, and services. campaign locally and We provide integrated nationally for changes This is in addition to the advice to solve to solve collective impact our principal individuals’ problems problems. So one way activities have on either directly through or another, we’re clients’ lives, and covers: our local Citizens Advice helping everyone - not  the benefit of working with network and consumer just those we support service, or via our self- directly. volunteers help website.  our support for local communities  the power of our national network.

It’s also what makes our service unique.

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Contents

1. Chair’s report page 3 2. Chief Executive Officer’s report page 4 3. Advice Service Manager’s report page 5 4. Statistics and outcomes pages 6 - 7 Client case studies pages 8 - 9

5. Research and campaigns page 10 6. Training page 11 7. Volunteers and staff page 12 8. Working in partnership page 13 9. Funders and supporters page 14 10. Moving forward page 15 11. Services and contact details page 16

Thank you to everyone who contributed and to Rosalie Boyles who volunteered her time to design and produce this year’s report.

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1. Chair’s report - Robert Pringle

This final annual report for Selby CAB gives me the opportunity to thank all paid staff and volunteers for their hard work over the past year which allowed us to deliver core services from our Selby Office, and it is to their great credit that over 2,600 clients were dealt with during the year. During the year we also continued to deliver successful projects to satisfy the requirements of our various funders.

I would like to recognise the immense contribution made by Melanie Davis, our Strategic Manager, who retired at the end of the financial year, having successfully guided Selby CAB into a merger with Hambleton and CAB. I would also like to express my gratitude to Carl Les and Carol Shreeve who made merging with Hambleton and Richmondshire such an easy and efficient process - their positive and welcoming approach made all the difference. I am very proud to have been Chair in the final year and helped in the merger process.

By merging and becoming part of a larger organisation we have protected continued service delivery in Selby and stand better able to fight for funding in these difficult financial times. Four trustees from the Selby Trustee Board have joined the Board of the new merged organisation and we will continue to represent the interests of Selby to the best of our abilities in the future. I am confident that we can now face the many challenges to come from a position of strength.

I would like to end by paying tribute to all the present and past volunteers (including trustees) and paid staff who over the many years of our existence have served the people of Selby and district and changed so many people’s lives for the better.

2,631 47 clients seen with volunteers with 6,898 an economic value of issues £157,078

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2. Chief Executive Officer’s report - Carol Shreeve

As the statistics and stories in this report show 2015-2016 was a very successful year for Selby and District Citizens Advice Bureau. Under the Guidance of Melanie Davis, CEO and the equally dedicated board of trustee’s the bureau maintained excellent service standards while coping with raising demand, financial cuts and floods in the local area.

Even though services, staff and volunteers found themselves under pressure they still managed to extend services to areas where they were needed and to make sure that the stories of the vulnerable were heard. The year ended in a happy successful merger of the bureau which has helped secure its future and growth into the future.

The role that Melanie Davis played in guiding the bureau through this change and always making sure the community was at the heart of the service plans was vital. I know that all of us who remain at the Selby service wish to say many thanks to Melanie and that we would love to see her back soon. The work done in this year has laid the foundations for the success we have seen now with increased funding, increased service provision and a larger service moving forward.

Lastly I would personally like to say a massive thank you to all the volunteers who have made the outcomes we see in this report possible. Whether you volunteer on reception, on the trustee board or give advice, truly, you are the heroes of your community.

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3. Advice Service Manager’s report - Lucy Ballantyne

From a service delivery perspective, 2015 -16 was a year of incredible ups and downs with a tremendous amount to be celebrated in the face of significant challenges.

Our team of volunteers never fail to amaze me with their extraordinary commitment to helping our community, and I hope that there is never a doubt as to how much this is appreciated. What really struck me this year is that the strength of our team is built upon this and the equal commitment of our paid staff. Surely it is incredibly rare for people to deal with redundancy and then continue to carry on their job in a voluntary capacity? That is exactly what Jackie Fielding and Jayne Crowther-Green did for several months this year to protect our specialist debt and welfare benefits service. For this, I can’t thank them enough.

With reduced funding we focused on efficiency this year, and despite having a smaller team we achieved some great service delivery improvements across all advice channels:

 We gradually lowered the number of people turned away from our drop-in sessions to almost nil, which we are maintaining.  We reduced the number of appointment no-shows to fewer than 5% by improving contact with our clients prior to their appointment.  We introduced email advice, bringing us into the twenty-first century! All emails are responded to in full within 48 hours.  We continued to be one of the top performing local offices in our Adviceline group covering North , , Hull and East Riding, despite being one of the smallest offices.

We are embracing the digital age and have enjoyed being a ‘super tester’ for Citizens Advice as they roll out new online content and develop new technology to support the service. We are part of the national pilot for web chat, bringing a whole new dimension to our service, and our new website is due to go live in August.

Other highlights of the year include:  Being identified as one of the top ten performing Big Energy Saving Network advice agencies across the UK, thanks to Jane Ferguson’s hard work  Introducing a new Personal Budgeting Support service for UC claimants  Responding to the floods at Christmas by securing funding that has allowed the re-introduction of our Outreach Service in .

A significant amount of time in 2015-16 was invested in our successful bid to the Big Lottery Reaching Communities fund. I am very much looking forward to the coming year and the significant benefits that the new funding will bring to our amazing team and to the service we can provide for our community. I would like to thank every member of our team for their continued hard work and commitment.

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4. Statistics and outcomes

Key Statistics Financial Outcomes

Clients 2,631 Income Gain £941,223

Advice Issue Codes 6,898 Debts Written Off £799,611

Client Contacts 4,777 Repayments Scheduled £76,676

Enquiries 2,611

Top 6 Advice Categories

Benefits & tax credits 22% 31% Debt

Employment 5%

Other 8% Housing

12% 22% all other

Contacts by Channel

Face to Face

Adviceline Phone 47% 22% 23% 6%1%

Telephone

Letter/Mail

Email/Web 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

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Gender of Clients Disability

Female Disabled or LTH Male condition 33% 44% 56% Not disabled/no health problems 67%

Ethnicity of Clients

1% 1% 0% 1% Asian or Asian British

Black or Black British

Mixed

Other 97% White

Age Range of Clients

300 243 240 250 229 200 199 193 201 200 180 161 150 116 100 68 63 50 16 26 15 0 2 1 0 0

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Client case studies

We helped James and his family avoid eviction from their home

James is permanently sick and struggles to keep up with the paperwork associated with claiming disability benefits. He had missed a deadline to respond to a letter about his Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and the benefit had been stopped as a consequence. Because of this, his claim for Housing Benefit was automatically suspended as well, but James was unaware that this is what had happened.

James came to us with a letter telling him that he was over £1000 behind with his rent and that an Order for Possession had been granted for his rented property. James had thought that his rent was being covered in full by Housing Benefit. He was extremely worried that his family would be evicted from their home and had no idea how he could afford to pay the rent arrears off to avoid this.

We gave advice to James on how to get his benefit claims put back into payment. We discovered that there had been a shortfall between James’ Housing Benefit and rent since the ‘bedroom tax’ was introduced and that this, along with the stoppage of his Housing Benefit claim, has caused the rent arrears to build up. We gave James advice on his rights regarding threatened homelessness and what he could do to avoid being issued with a warrant of eviction.

We made a referral to a Housing Specialist who helped James to get the possession order suspended and an agreement in place for him to repay the debt at an affordable rate.

Our advice ensured that James has an income and a home for his family and we will continue to support him to budget and pay off the debt.

We helped Peter save £448 a year

Peter is in his mid-eighties and lives with his wife and grown up disabled daughter. Peter attended our annual energy saving event at Selby Town Hall where we gave him information about saving money on energy and arranged for him to bring his energy bills for a supplier switching appointment at Selby CAB. Peter wanted to try and save money on his energy bills but was worried about the whole process. He was not confident in using comparison websites and is unable to use the telephone very well because of a hearing impairment.

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We looked at comparison websites with Peter and found that his current supplier was offering the cheapest tariff. Peter asked us to make the necessary phone call and check that he would still be able to receive paper bills. We phoned the supplier who confirmed that Peter could save £448 per year by switching to their lowest tariff.

Peter was very happy with this outcome and was amazed that he hadn’t needed to switch supplier, just change tariffs, to save so much money. He told us that he could not have done this without our support.

We made sure Robert, Emma and their unborn child were warm and fed

Robert and Emma have recently moved in together and are expecting their first child. They previously claimed benefits as two single people which needed to be changed to a joint claim, but the process to administer this was taking longer than it should have. Robert and Emma came to us in a money crisis as they were living in a cold home with no food and had debts, including rent arrears, building up. Their biggest worry was that they would lose their home.

We gave Robert and Emma advice about their benefits and made sure these were put into payment in a way that would immediately help them reduce their rent arrears. We gave them information about more suitable and affordable housing options and referred them to a support organisation to help them achieve a new tenancy.

In the short term we were able to ensure that Emma and her unborn baby were warm by providing them with blankets and a hot water bottle using a small charitable fund provided by the Two Ridings Community Foundation. We helped them to apply for an emergency fuel top up through the Local Assistance Fund to restore their gas and electricity supply, and we issued them with an emergency food parcel voucher for the local Selby Foodbank so that they could eat.

Robert and Emma are both now in work and living in their new home awaiting the arrival of their baby. In times of extreme hard-ship the support we are able to provide helps lift people out of crisis.

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5. Research and campaigns

Our Research and Campaigns team ensure our involvement in campaigns on a local, regional and national level. Volunteers in all roles are encouraged to join the team. A representative attends the Citizens Advice North Yorkshire and York (CANYY) Research and Campaigns Cluster Group meetings as we come together to have a bigger voice.

Some of our activities include completing evidence forms (BEFs), submitting Local Action Report Forms (LARFs), completing surveys and highlighting Research and Campaigns issues through social media.

Some campaigns from the last year that we have taken part in:

 Scams Awareness - encouraging everyone to be more vigilant regarding scams; “Don’t be rushed, don’t be hushed”

 Safe and settled: renter’s rights - challenging unfair fees and changes, lack of transparency, poor practice, problems with disrepair, poor or even dangerous housing, and also threatening behaviour from agents or landlords.

 Fair pay for pre pay - highlights the difficulties faced by those who pay for gas and electricity through pre pay meters.

Big Energy Saving Week

Our most significant activity in 2015-16 was during Big Energy Saving Week. We held an event at Selby Town Hall attended by British Gas, Npower, Utility Warehouse and U- Switch. Three of our advisers were offering energy advice.

We gave out free canvas bags full of energy saving tips, an energy saving lightbulb, an energy meter key, a pen and an energy bar - all these items were donated. We offered free refreshments, paid for with vouchers from local supermarkets and offered face painting and a colouring competition for children as the event was held during the Autumn half term school holiday. We made the most of it being Monday market day and had a stall on the market offering information and signposting people up to the Town Hall for the main event. During the day we spoke to over 150 people, giving full energy advice to 35 of them at that point and we booked appointments for others to follow up at their convenience.

We also had information kiosks set up in Selby, Sherburn and Tadcaster libraries during the week. We promoted our activities on social media and in the Selby Times and we invited our MP, , to attend the parliamentary launch of Big Energy Saving Week at the House of Commons.

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6. Training - Jane Ferguson

2015-16 has been our most challenging year yet for recruiting and training volunteers, due to the very limited number of hours that have been specifically funded.

We’ve had to make the very most of our limited resources and although we haven’t been in a position to venture out and actively recruit through talks and events, we have been able to keep recruiting and follow up with every potential new volunteer. Most of our recruits have made an initial approach through the Citizens Advice website and the Do-it.org website.

Of 33 people who expressed an interest in volunteering, 9 actually applied and were recruited in a number of different roles including admin support, reception, gateway assessors and advisers and while 4 of these new recruits are still with us, a further 4 have left us to take up paid employment.

In the past year we have been very fortunate to have had two volunteer specialist welfare benefit advisers, two specialist volunteer debt advisers and one volunteer employment specialist adviser in addition to our small team of generalist advisers.

Much of our training this year has been around advice skills and delivering through new email and web chat channels, as well as the inevitable training required to deal with enquiries about Universal Credit as it was introduced in Selby and across our County. Recruitment is on-going and as the new ‘Advice Matters’ Big Lottery funded project includes dedicated hours for recruitment and training, there is huge potential to make a significant impact on the size of our team and with numbers already rising, the outlook is very positive.

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7. Volunteers and Staff

Volunteers Trustee Board Robert Pringle Chair Claire Chambers Glenda Needham Vice Chair Karen McAvoy Mark Hoggard Treasurer Sarah Jackson Neal Porter David Buckle Council Rep Diane Martin Chris Pearson North Yorkshire County Council Rep Joanne Brown

Reception/Administrators Anne Bottomley, Jenny Cohen, Edna Cooper, Peter Crabtree, Andrea Culkin, Ann Grinham, Christine Harvey, Mary Jackson, Konrad Sikora, Farrell Tang and Jill Whisker

Debt Welfare Benefits Ken Dent and Libby Thompson Jackie Fielding and Jayne Crowther-Green

Research and Campaigns Caroline Hadlington and James Love-Koh

Generalist Advisers Carol Budd, Ros Campbell, Anne Cox, Alison Davey, John Leadbeater, Alpha Love-Koh, Vinathe Sharma and Lisa Standley

Gateway face-to-face/telephone Olivia Barnes, Gabrielle Brindley, Lesley Clegg, Emily Ferguson, Jane Gibson-Keys, Lyndsay Housman, Rachel Jackson, Ricky Kimachia, Sarah Matthews, Wanda Stables and Neil Thompson.

Paid Staff Chief Executive Officer Debt and Welfare Benefits Melanie Davis Jackie Fielding Advice Services Manager Debt and Welfare Benefits Lucy Ballantyne Jayne Crowther-Green Advice Session Supervisor Outreach worker Doreen Watson Kent Dent Training Finance Officer Jane Ferguson Gillian Cohen Project Co-ordinator Project Administrator Katy Frost Kate Rozanska Cleaner Una Atkinson

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8. Working in partnership

Citizens Advice Selby District was funded by the Big Lottery as part of the Advice Services Transition Fund, from November 2013 to October 2015

The aim of the Advice Services Transition Fund (ASTF) was to develop ways for advice organisations to collaborate effectively with each other to improve service outcomes for customers, ensuring local advice services are resilient and well-equipped to meet future needs. Five staff were employed through our project, enabling us to provide specialist welfare benefits advice, consultancy and training. We offered financial literacy advice and a charitable grants service. We also established ‘Selby Advice’, a network of agencies and organisations from within the voluntary and community sector who work together to improve advice and information services for people in Selby District.

The Selby Advice network aims to increase the knowledge of volunteers and staff working in member organisations, allowing people to be quickly directed to the best source of help for their particular needs. The network provides the opportunity to share resources and training, saving network members time and money.

Selby Advice has a website www.selbyadvice.org.uk for the public and our member organisations making it easy to find out where you can turn for any topic of advice in Selby District.

We had 22 charitable and voluntary sector members by the end of the project which has since risen to 26 and is set to continue to increase with agencies meeting quarterly to share information and training opportunities.

The relationship we have with our Selby Advice partners and the excellent website we share is now firmly established and brings great opportunities for working together in the future.

Selby Advice members include:

Citizens Advice Hambleton, Richmondshire and Selby & District; IDAS; Selby District Council; Selby District AVS; Brighter Futures Selby; Carers Count Selby District; Chapter 3; Chevin Housing Association; Dementia Forward Selby; Freeman Brown Solicitors; Horton Housing; Keyhouse; Kings Church Selby; Mencap Selby; MP for Selby and Ainsty; North Yorkshire Advocacy; North Yorkshire Horizons; Relate Selby; Richmond Fellowship; Selby District Vision; Stepping Stone; The MY NHS Complaints Advocacy Service; The Salvation Army Selby; WLCT; Yorkshire Mesmac.

Please contact [email protected] if you are interested in joining!

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9. Funders and supporters

We would like to sincerely thank our funders and supporters for making it possible for us to continue to deliver our free service across Selby District.

Main funders North Yorkshire County Council Selby District Council Selby Town Council The Big Lottery NYCC Stronger Communities Citizens Advice DECC Rural Action Yorkshire Santander Foundation

Donations OxFizz Two Ridings Community Foundation Rt Rev Dr John Thompson, the Bishop of Selby

Town Councils Sherburn-in-Elmet, Tadcaster

Parish Councils Barlby & Osgodby, Brayton, Camblesforth, Cawood, Eggborough, North Duffield, Riccall, Ulleskelf, Whitley

Thank you also to our clients for their kind donations.

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10. Moving forward

As this is the last formal report of Selby and District Citizens Advice Bureau in its previous form it seems appropriate for us to look at what are plans are going forward and where we hope to be in the coming years.

In the past six months we have already achieved an enormous amount.

 Selby and District has been awarded Reaching Communities funding to extend service delivery, particularly focused on specialist advice.

 Selby District Council have given us funding to help Selby advice develop and move forward.

 The new organisation has achieved an outstanding organisational audit result and has been awarded Green for its quality of advice, meaning it is the highest standard that can be achieved.

 We have held a trustee board development day, integrated the boards and entered into partnerships with a wide range of organsations going forward to expand and maintain services and to secure funding.

So what do we expect to see over the next 12 months?

We hope to play an important role in providing services through the European Social Funding, and that our we hope that are research and campaigns work, for example, around hate crime continues to develop and grow. We are looking to integrate our new channels of delivery into our service provision and to expand the ways in which we can help our communities. In addition, we are exploring the use of technology with volunteers, staff and trustee board members, to communicate, explore, support and train across all our offices in new, flexible and exciting ways. We also are developing our partnerships both in each district and across North Yorkshire as a whole.

If you have any suggestions and ideas on how we can move forward, please join in our discussions and help us be as good as we can be.

Carol Shreeve Chief Executive Officer Citizens Advice Hambleton, Richmondshire, and Selby & District [email protected]

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11. Services and contact details

Rear of 4 Park Street SELBY North Yorkshire YO8 4PW citizensadvicehrs.org.uk [email protected]

Adviceline 03444 111 444 10.00 am - 4.00 pm Monday to Friday

Admin line: 01757 701 320

About our advice service

We operate a Gateway Assessment system. As a client you will be given an initial ten- minute interview and then may be offered a follow up appointment or referral depending on the nature of your enquiry.

Follow-up appointments take place Monday to Friday throughout the day.

Advice session times

Day Time Further information Monday 09.30 - 12.30 Gateway Drop-in Session Tuesday 13.30 - 16.00 Gateway Drop-in Session Wednesday 09.30 - 12.30 Gateway Drop-in Session Friday 09.30 - 12.30 Gateway Drop-in Session

Access details

 Wheelchair accessible  Wheelchair toilet access

Social media

@Hamb/RichCAB

www.facebook.com/CitizensAdviceHambRichSelbyandDistrict/

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