Annual Report 2018/19
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We are
Citizens Advice and we are here for
everyoneWe help people find a way forward
We can all face problems that seem complicated or intimidating. At Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire, we believe no one should have to face these problems without good quality, independent advice.
That is why we are here: to give people the knowledge and the confidence they need to find their way forward - whoever they are, and whatever their problem.
We give advice to thousands of people We are part of a network of independent charities that offers confidential advice online, over the phone, and in person, for free.
Last year, Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire helped 8,956 people with 36,923 issues, either face-to-face, telephone, web-chat or email.
When we say we are for everyone, we mean it. People rely on us because we are independent and totally impartial.
We are four services based at the very heart of our communities, in Hambleton, Richmondshire, Ryedale, and Selby & District.
We speak up for our clients No one else sees so many people with so many different kinds of problems, and that gives us a unique insight into the challenges people are facing today.
With the right evidence, we can show big organisations – from companies right up to the government – how they can make things better for people.
We see how problems can be linked. By helping people with the underlying cause of their problems and making sure they don’t get worse; we save the government and public services hundreds of millions of pounds every year.
We make a difference Page 2 of 40
Contents ______
Comments from the Chair 4 Chief Executive’s report 5 Treasurer’s report 6 Our value to society 7 Impact, key statistics, issues and client profiles 8 - 10 Client feedback and stories 11- 13 Local offices 14 - 15 Volunteer recruitment and training 16 Volunteers and our service 17 Our year in pictures 18 - 21 Projects Action Towards Inclusion 22 - 23 Advice Matters 24 Ex-Services Support North Yorkshire 25 Macmillan Specialist Palliative Care 26 - 27 Team (SPCT) Benefits Service Money and Pensions Service 28 - 29 Pension Wise 30 Rural Reach 31 Rural Advice Bus pilot 32 - 33 Warm & Well in North Yorkshire 34 - 35 Research and campaigns 36 Our funders and supporters 37 Volunteers and paid staff 38 - 39 Contact details 40
Statement of Internal Control The trustee board of Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire oversee the information security of all personal information of our clients, staff, funders and strategic partners that is processed.
Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire hold joint responsibility for client data, that is held in our case management system, with the national Citizens Advice Service.
An information assurance management team exists to ensure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of all personal and sensitive data is maintained to a level which is compliant with the requirements the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Protection Act 2018.
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Comments from the Chair ______
This year has been an exciting and successful one for our organisation. Although we like the communities we serve, have faced difficult and challenging times, we have faced up to them well, increasing the range of services we provide and our range of funders. We have grown our partnerships with other charities, statutory agencies and other vital services that help us help our clients.
We are indebted to numerous and varied sources - our funders, large and small, without whom we could not open our doors; our volunteers and staff, without whom it would not be worth opening our doors; our clients, for putting their trust and confidence in us by seeking our advice; organisations for listening to us when we raise an issue on a clients behalf.
This report shows the scale of the work that we do, and we are looking forward to increasing that help as our communities work with us to create services they need making the best use of resources that we can.
I must again thank my fellow board members who volunteer and carry much responsibility on their shoulders and congratulate all on the excellent audit result that our service was awarded this year.
Carl Les Chair of Trustee Board
52% 37% 11% people helped people helped people helped via face-to-face via Adviceline web chat or email
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Chief Executive’s report ______
My thanks as always go to our brilliant volunteers and staff who have worked tirelessly this year to provide an excellent service at the heart of our communities at this time of challenges and change.
For us, this year has been marked by partnerships and the work we have done with other groups and agencies in our areas to reach those who most need our help. I would like to say a special thanks to all those who helped us in setting up the Rural Advice Bus pilot in Richmondshire, and those who partner with us in the Selby Advice network, and through Warm and Well in North Yorkshire.
We have also seen the premises in Northallerton and Selby made fit for purpose and seen a real boost in the services we provide to the communities in those areas. I would especially like to say a big thank you to the partners we have worked with in Ryedale. They have helped us in beginning the transformation of our services and helping us grow our presence within the communities across Ryedale.
Although we currently work closely with over 200 partners over the whole of North Yorkshire, I would like to say a special thank you to the following who have given us extra support this year:
North Yorkshire County Council Hambleton District Council Richmondshire District Council Ryedale District council Selby District Council Community First North Yorkshire Age UK Two Ridings Community Fund Selby Town Council The National Lottery Community Fund NYCC Fire and Rescue Service
Carol Shreeve Chief Executive Officer
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Treasurer’s Report ______
Following the significant changes we saw within Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire last year, with a merger, office move, refurbishment and instigation of a new ‘advice bus’, this year has provided a welcome period of stability and consolidation on the financial side of the operation.
That isn’t to say that we don’t continue to face economic, political and social uncertainty, but against this, we have continued to demonstrate a level of financial resilience that has enabled Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire to provide much needed support across our community.
This report sets out the ongoing complexity of activities undertaken, and this reflects the breadth of knowledge required to provide support citizens across our region.
As always, we must recognise and show thanks for the support provided by our funders, who ultimately ensure the provision of high quality advice continues, but equally we should take this opportunity to pay tribute to the dedicated group of volunteers and staff who, under Carol’s leadership and guidance, provide such a valuable service.
The Financial Health Monitoring Reporting introduced a couple of years ago continues to provide ongoing assurance against all key measures of liquidity, operating expenditure and reserves which all operate within agreed tolerances – providing confidence in our ongoing ability to provide much needed advice services.
We must be ever mindful of the continuous need to adapt. Whilst use of telephony and digital channels will play an increasingly important role, this is balanced against the rural nature of our community and providing extended outreach services. I consider our ongoing financial strategy continues to be well placed to take account of these changing demands.
Mark Hoggard Treasurer
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Our value to society ______
Citizens Advice use an established Treasury approved model* to calculate the financial value of our advice and the positive outcomes it contributes to, for individuals and society.
In 2018/19, for every £1 invested in Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire we generated at least:
£3.81 in savings to government and public services (fiscal benefit) By helping stop problems occurring or escalating, we reduce pressure on public services like health, housing or out-of-work benefits. Total fiscal benefit £2,681,619
£23.13 in Wider economic and social benefits (public value) Solving problems improves lives - and this means better wellbeing, participation and productivity for the people we help. Total public value £16,340,258
£19.80 in value to the people we help (financial outcomes following advice) As part of advice, we can increase people’s income, through debts written-off, taking up benefits and solving consumer problems. Total financial outcomes £13,986,999
It’s impossible to put a value on everything we do, and so this is likely to be a conservative estimate.
*As set out in the unit cost database published by New Economy as part of the impact model used by national Citizens Advice http://neweconomymanchester.com/our-work/research-evaluation- cost-benefit-analysis/cost-benefit-analysis
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Impact and key statistics ______
Who we helped
8,956 people 36,923 issues helped face to face, by people sought our phone, email or web chat help with
Top 5 issues £5,964,634 Benefits and Tax Credits Total in Financial Gains Debt Income gain £3,265,297 Employment Re-imbursements £83,426 Financial Services Debts written off £2,574,218 Housing Repayments rescheduled £41,693
How we do this
19 locations 149 £493,891 where we provide free dedicated local staff estimated worth of donated and independent support and volunteers hours by our 105 volunteers
The difference this makes
4 in 5 90%
2 in 3 clients said advice improved of our clients reported clients had their their lives, including reducing satisfaction with our problem solved stress & improving finances overall service
All this benefits individuals and society
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Issues we helped with ______
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Client profiles
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Client feedback ______
“We are very pleased that we came to CAB. Very grateful for all your help, been put at ease and a lot of weight off our shoulders. Many thanks once again.”
“Very supportive and non-judgmental staff.“ “Very pleased with the service 90% Everybody very kind and helpful.“ of clients reported that “Everyone there was very helpful and put their overall experience me at ease.” of our service was positive or very positive. “Very useful information given as a starting point for me to do further research. “
“Very helpful and professional advisers. I couldn’t have coped with Universal Credit 88% switch without their help. I was mentally of clients reported drained, they made me feel supported both positively or very practically and emotionally.“ positively that we had helped them to find a “Bev Dixon has been so amazing helping me way forward. so supportive and not judged me in any way, absolutely amazing lady from Northallerton branch thank you so much.“ 91% “With the help and support of the staff in your Selby branch I had a weight lifted from of clients reported my shoulders and felt I could move forward positively or very in a positive way. Thank you to all.” positively that they would recommend “It was support and reassurance I needed. our service. The uncertainty of making my situation worse if I acted on it was taken away by the information and support I received.“
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Client stories ______
Story one We helped a client who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s to make a successful claim for Attendance Allowance. He and his wife were finding it difficult to manage on their pensions and had no savings.
We gave advice on applying for a Blue Badge and picked up that they should have had a severe mental impairment discount applied to their Council Tax. We successfully negotiated with the Council that this should be applied and backdated for six months, rather than just to the date Attendance Allowance was awarded, leading to a payment of £350.
As well as being around £3000 a year better off, we also helped arrange care needs assessments to get some support at home. We gave advice around switching utility suppliers and making their home more energy efficient as well as applying for the £140 Warm Home Discount and helping them sign up to the priority services register. Our advice protected and increased their income and connected them to a range of other services.
Story two Client is 81 and profoundly deaf. He had received a letter saying his interest only mortgage was being terminated and enforcement action was being threatened for the outstanding balance. His wife had been in tears for a week.
Our adviser communicated with the lender and liaised with their legal team who discovered the account was subject to an order which meant no end date to the term, so the client was able to continue living in his home knowing that the mortgage could be paid off when they choose to sell or after they have died.
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Client stories ______
Story three A client was in receipt of income support that had stopped due to a pay rise as this had taken the client’s income 61p over the income threshold. This meant that Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction also stopped.
The decision had been communicated to the local authority before the client was made aware. The client did not know that their benefits had stopped causing rent arrears of over £1500 to build up and it was a shock to discover that the Housing Association was considering possession action.
When we checked the benefit entitlement, we discovered that there were two disabled child premiums that hadn't been applied to the client’s benefit calculation. When we challenged this, full Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction were put back into place and the backdated award cleared the arrears stopping the possession action.
Story four Two clients approached us separately. Both had worked for the same employer for around 10 years and the business had suddenly closed, having gone into administration. Both people had been paid some money they were owed in wages, but neither had been paid the redundancy money they were due.
As the company had gone into administration, the process to follow to claim the money owed was complicated and neither of the clients were able to use the internet. With our advice and support, both clients were able to take their case to an Employment Tribunal and they were awarded their redundancy payments of £3,780 and £3,900, which they have since received from the Redundancy Payment Office.
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Local office reports ______
Hambleton
We have seen a great deal of change throughout the year in Hambleton but thanks to some amazing new and longer-term volunteers, we have coped really well. In all our offices GDPR, seen this time last year as something new and challenging has evolved into a more natural way of working.
The service has also ushered in the Debt Assessment Tool, which is a more intuitive method of dealing with debt clients and positioning them for full debt advice. The Adviceline Single Queue has certainly focused minds and made staff allocation a keenly debated topic at any meeting. Finally, the increasingly stringent application of QAA has seen changes to how we deliver advice and debates around quality verses quantity and has meant we will need more resources to meet demand in the future.
Overall, these changes have been successfully implemented which reflects well on the resilience and capability of our volunteers. As well as running a generalist face to face service, the Hambleton office also acts as a base for the mini call centre for our Adviceline project as well as housing many of our staffed projects, so it is frequently busy and full of life.
We also like the fact that other organisations deliver their services from our building, meaning clients and the public can get a range of help in one place, making life easier.
We look forward next year to extending our services in Hambleton through the Rural Reach Information and Advice Bus service. This will include the development of additional outreaches, linking into our main service based in Northallerton.
Richmondshire
The big focus in 2018/19 for the Richmond office was the Rural Advice Bus (RAB) pilot. RAB has visited various location in the Richmondshire area, come wind, rain, hail and snow! A mixture of paid staff and volunteers run the service. More information about the project can be found on pages 30 - 31 of Annual Report.
While RAB was out on its “jollies”, our volunteer assessors and advisers have done a fab job of dealing with the increase in clients we have had coming through our doors, often with complex issues, ably supported by our stalwart administrative staff. Hats off to you all for the efforts and stoicism that have put in, and in maintaining a sense of humour in an increasingly busy office.
This year we have also recruited two new members of staff from our volunteer ranks. Michael May and Judy Long have taken up roles as Advice Session Supervisors.
Despite the challenges over the year for volunteers and staff, we continue to thrive. Thank you to everyone, especially our volunteers - their flexibility, skills and dedication enable us to deliver our service to communities across Richmondshire.
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Local office reports ______
Ryedale
Following all the changes last year, in 2018/19 we introduced a new Advice Coordinator role into our Ryedale office.
Laura Docherty, who is also an Advice Session Supervisor in our Selby office, has developed a settled and consistent approach to advice and the new role has enabled us to improve our engagement with local communities in Ryedale through various network meetings including the Prevent and Equalities Forum and Housing Forum. Being visible and being able to contribute to consultations and local discussion gives our clients a voice, something we aim to build on in the coming year.
Our Ryedale office has the greatest ratio of voluntary to paid staff of all our offices, with nearly 90% of the current team being volunteers. We are immensely grateful to all our volunteers, but special thanks must go to those who have gone the extra mile this year and have given additional time to attend community meetings, deliver talks to Parish and Town Councils and host Big Energy Saving Week events at all the libraries in Ryedale.
In 2018/19 we said goodbye to some very longstanding team members in Ryedale, who contributed a great deal to the service over many years. It’s always sad when people leave, but we are excited to welcome new faces in the coming year and see the impact on the service we can offer here.
Thank you to everyone on our Ryedale team for your continued dedication and commitment during the past year.
Selby
During the past year our Selby team have settled into our new home on Ousegate. Despite the age of the building and the challenges this presents, the facilities are a great improvement and allow for a much more comfortable client experience, especially in our spacious waiting area. We are also easier to find!
The new office has been very busy all year and we have really appreciated the various projects that have enhanced the services we offer, in particular Lottery Funded ‘Advice Matters’ which achieved outstanding outcomes for clients in terms of income gain and debt relief this year and provided specialist support for our volunteers, enabling them to upskill and deliver more complex advice.
We have continued to have a strong presence in our local community, coordinating the Selby Advice network and attending events and network meetings including the Selby Equality Network, Selby Homelessness Forum and of course Selby Funday!
During a year when we have seen a rise in the complexity of issues people need help with and the demand this places on everyone in our advice team, both physically and emotionally, we thank you all for your time, commitment and continued willingness to help others in our community.
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Volunteer recruitment and training ______
As we have mentioned in previous reports, we have been looking to expand our range of volunteers as the traditional volunteer becomes more in demand. For example, we now make sure we are equally targeting people from all backgrounds and of all ages. In addition, for certain types of volunteering roles we can now take people on for shorter periods of time.
This has meant that training times have been shortened in order to maximise their effectiveness. Recently, we have suffered a double effect of summer holidays and some of our long-serving workforce moving on. We continue to recruit but are in competition from several other providers in the sector. However, we attract volunteers partly because of the rewarding work that we do and the real difference we make to people’s lives.
Our volunteers cover various roles within the core service but also some play an integral role in the delivery of some of our projects. If our volunteers were paid, this would be the equivalent of £493,891 in salaries. We thank every one of them for all their support, hard work and dedication to our service.
In 2018/19, we had a total of 105 volunteers including 11 members of our Trustee Board. The number of volunteers for each office (excluding Trustee Board members) were as follows:
Hambleton 28 Richmondshire 26 Ryedale 15 Selby - 25
Recruitment 2018/19 80 expressions of interest. 38 applications received. 28 volunteers recruited into roles including reception, admin support, Adviceline assessors, and generalist advisers.
During the year, six volunteers moved on into specialist advice areas including debt and welfare benefits and we were delighted that three volunteers moved into paid roles within CAMNY, delivering a variety of roles including Energy Advice and working on our Action Towards Inclusion project.
Five volunteers moved on into paid employment elsewhere and five left us to take up further education opportunities.
We were also sad to say goodbye to five long serving volunteers - Edna Cooper (Selby), Ann Goodburn, Tony Martin, Ann Wallwark (Richmondshire) and Kathy Marshall (Hambleton). A very big thank you to them all for their support and dedication to our organisation and we wish them well for the future.
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Volunteers and our service ______
Some feedback from our volunteers
It is fantastic that Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire not only benefits our clients, but also our volunteers we recruit from our communities.
Following is feedback from some of our new recruits during 2018/19:
“I had no experience of working in an office and now I feel more confident dealing with clients and staff.”
“Volunteering has definitely helped me when applying for employment as I can evidence how my skills have improved.”
“I’ve really enjoyed learning about what it’s like to work with others and helping people who’ve come in.”
John, Assessor - Hambleton office
I had little idea that parking outside the Richmond office one day and noticing a poster advertising vacancies for volunteers would end up being so incredibly rewarding.
As an Assessor, I am the initial contact with the service for many clients. Putting them at ease and very often being able to help them resolve a problem in the first visit is unbelievably satisfying.
Ongoing on-line training and constant support and encouragement from other volunteers and staff have given me the confidence to help people on a wide range of topics – most of which I had little or no experience and knowledge of. External courses have helped build the skills needed.
Overall, I have little doubt that volunteering has also been good for me personally and helped me to understand many of the challenges so many people face in their day-to-day lives.
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Our year in pictures ______
A snapshot of some of the many events and activities we took part in 2018/19.
Selby Fun Day Bark in the Park
Selby - Goodbye meal for Edna
Opening of new Selby office in Ousegate Guest Speaker - Nigel Adams MP
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Alzheimer’s Society Cupcake Day
Tour De Yorkshire
Nations Biggest House Warming Event
Middleham Racing Stables Open Day
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Brompton on Swale Hub
Muker Show
Volunteers Week Hambleton & Richmondshire
Volunteers Week Selby & Ryedale
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Celebration Day and launch of Rural Advice Bus Guest Speaker Keven Hollinrake MP
Winter Health Partnership Event
Thank you to all our volunteers and staff for their hard work and support running and attending events across North Yorkshire this year.
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Project: Action Towards Inclusion ______
Action Towards Inclusion Team Tracy Watts - Project Coordinator Alison Richardson - Keyworker Vinathe Sharma - Keyworker Laura Mallett - Keyworker
Over £7m of new funding was secured in March 2017 for the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding LEP area to allow a new partnership of 61 organisations to ‘connect’ with community members who are furthest away from work and training.
The three-year project is funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and the European Social Fund and is managed by Your Consortium. The work on the ground is undertaken by Key Workers and Specialist Intervention Partners through a range of organisations in the voluntary and community sector.
Participant Progress and Outcomes
Total Participants on programme by 31st March 2019 85 Into employment 14 Into training 12
Examples of other activities undertaken
Volunteering at various groups and organisations e.g. Age UK, Breathing Space, Wensleydale Railway, the Secret Garden.
Hambleton Community Action.
Market Stalls and Events: Making ceramics, hosting a scavenger hunt and potting plants to sell at the Secret Garden Market Stall in Northallerton as well as supporting a market stall at Northallerton Food Festival.
A trip to Helmsley Walled Garden as part of a Customer Services Training Course.
We are on track to reach our target of 105 beneficiaries by the project’s end date of September 2019, when all participants will have been supported to progress closer towards their end goals.
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The participant had served in the RAF as an Engineer for over 20years. They had been invalided out of the RAF 8 years ago with back and knee problems and had not worked since. They came to the project keen to look at training opportunities as well as wanting to sort of their outstanding debt issues.
The role of the Key Worker is to provide an initial assessment for all participants and work with them to put together an action plan of key activities that will support them to reach their goals and ultimately move closer towards engaging in training, job search and employment.
Initially the participant was unsure of what direction they wanted to go in and had already started volunteering locally. The project was able to put together a package of support including debt advice provided by Citizens Advice that enabled the participant to further explore their strengths and skill areas. This included a range of training including First Aid course, WE
Introductory Confidence Building course, level 2 Teaching Assistant Award provided by Activ8 training; as well as the key Worker providing ongoing support through regular meetings to continually re-assess with the participant what they were learning and finding out about what they would like to do in the future. This identified the participant’s leadership and group facilitation skills and having completed the Teaching Assistant course a further teaching qualification was identified as a clear progression route for this participant. With the support of the Key Worker – an application was submitted to Teesside University for a Foundation course and Teaching Degree.
The participant was entitled to Learning Credits from the RAF and with support from Help for Heroes; they secured funding for this training and took up their place in September 2018.
When asked what they had particularly enjoyed about the programme they said,
“The team-work, getting to know a lot of other people, learning a large and varied new skill set”.
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Project: Advice Matters ______
Advice Matters Team
Lucy Ballantyne - Project Coordinator Jayne Crowther Green - Welfare Benefits Caseworker Jackie Fielding - Welfare Benefits Caseworker Ken Dent - Debt Caseworker
Our National Lottery funded “Advice Matters” project entered the final year of three in 2018/19.
The project aims were to help people gain new skills and increase confidence; to protect and increase the income of people in hardship; to provide advice for those with overwhelming debt and to ensure local people could easily access advice.
Our project staff and volunteers achieved some outstanding results last year including securing over £2,227,500 of income gain through new benefit entitlement and appealing unfair award decisions. We also helped write off over £826,900 of unmanageable debt. 96% of the people we helped through the project reported that they are now less stressed and anxious.
The project helped us to continue to coordinate the Selby Advice network and ensured that we were able to upskill our volunteers, enabling them to deal with complex welfare benefits and debt issues. We are looking to apply for future funding from the National Lottery Community Fund as the project comes to an end, hoping to build upon our success and design a new project that further meets the needs of the local community.
Selby Advice
The Selby Advice network grew from 30-member organisations to 44 during last year.
We hosted quarterly network meetings with shared training opportunities including an overview of Universal Credit and a Debt Options workshop for network agency frontline workers. We also hosted speakers who shared information about their existing and new services, including IDAS, HomeStart and Selby District Foodbank.
The Selby Advice network ensures that there is excellent communication between advice and information organisations through our email group. We share best practice and keep each other updated on new services, funding opportunities, training and events. The website enables people in the local community to easily find services that meet their needs.
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Project: Ex Forces Support North Yorkshire ______
Ex Forces Support North Yorkshire Team
Tracy Watts - Project Coordinator Brian Woodley - Outreach worker - home visits
Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire is one of 14 partners that are supporting veterans across Yorkshire. The project is led by Community First Yorkshire and is funded by the Army Covenant Aged Veterans Fund, providing practical support and companionship to improve older veteran’s wellbeing, and services to assist individuals in their needs.
Ex-Forces Support North Yorkshire offer a wide range of advice, guidance and hands- on support to ex-forces within our region:
Healthy lifestyle advice and resources Support to keep warm, safe and maintain independence Opportunities to take part in new activities or revisit old hobbies and interests Befriending and home visit Financial support and grants Help and advice for carers and families Specialist advice and advocacy Ex-Gurkha outreach and community work Trips, events, and days out Volunteering
With one-year left to run on this project, we have seen 130 veterans and supported them with a whole range of issues.
An example of how we helped
The beneficiary had completed national service in the Army. They were feeling isolated and turned to the project for help.
“Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire were the main helpers and it resulted in an increase in my income as well as putting my mind at rest about my personal situation. I feel more settled now that I have got the answers I needed”
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Project: Macmillan Specialist Palliative Care
Team (SPCT) Benefits Service ______
Liz Foster - Project Coordinator and Adviser
This service was volunteer led this year with the adviser offering 2-3 days per week. The volunteer is ‘adopted by Macmillan’ and can therefore apply for Macmillan Grants for patients and access Macmillan training.
Liz Foster, Benefits Adviser, works primarily with the SPCT for Hambleton and Richmondshire. Health professionals from the team refer patients who have money worries, may be eligible for benefits or require other help e.g. sorting their affairs when diagnosed with a terminal illness. She also provides help for families following a bereavement.
Where there is capacity, Liz also takes referrals from National Citizens Advice and supports patients known to the service who self-refer. Advice is provided mostly through home visits, although help can be given by telephone or through appointments held in our offices in Hambleton or Richmondshire.
Key Statistics 2018/19
Number of clients seen: 91 51 of these clients met the ‘special rules’ criteria i.e. had a progressive disease and, because of that disease, health professionals would not be surprised if their patient were to die within 6 months.
In 2017/18, 168 clients were seen – the decline in 2018/19 is a direct result of the lack of funding for this service. The service was originally funded by Macmillan and was a paid post. Funding was then replaced by the HRW CCG up until December 2017.
Who refers clients to the service?
SPCT 71%; Citizens Advice 12%; Self referrals 14%; GP 1%; Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle 1%; Darlington Memorial Hospital 1%
Outcomes
Total Benefits Claimed: £405,601 or an average of £4,457 per client per year. 2018/19 (£658,208 was claimed in 2017-2018)
Macmillan Grants: A total of £6,470 was claimed in Macmillan Grants.
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Project: Macmillan Specialist Palliative Care
(SPCT) Benefits Service ______
Debts: although clients are usually referred to the debt team, £3,000 of debt were written off for clients in 2018/19.
Where appropriate, clients have been referred to other organisations including the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institute Fund, Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund, Warm and Well North in North Yorkshire, Specialist Debt Advisers, SSAFA, NESS, Farming Community Network, and Macmillan Financial Advisers
The Specialist Palliative Care Team
‘The benefits adviser makes a valuable addition to our service; finance is a huge worry for our patients and the amount of income she generates to help our patients both financially and emotionally is significant'
A patient
‘Liz spent countless hours going through my PIP appeal where nothing was too much for her, including visiting me at home to avoid me travelling. She made a positive difference to my life’
A 40-year old patient was referred by SPCT. He was diagnosed with cancer in 2015 and a DS1500 was applicable at that time but not in 2018.
His application for PIP dated March 2018 was unsuccessful - six points for DLA and 4 points for mobility and he wished to appeal against the decision. Following the mandatory reconsideration, the award was upheld. Client was advised that he should score 20 points for DLA and that the score for mobility was probably accurate. The adviser prepared the appeal papers on behalf of the client and attended the appeal hearing with him.
Client was awarded 19 points for DLA and award was backdated to the date of the claim. An outcome of £87.65 per week and a back payment of £4,733.10.
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Project: Money and Pension Service (MAPS) ______
Ex Forces Support North Yorkshire Team
Bev Dixon - Project Coordinator Julie Childs - Volunteer Debt Caseworker Grahame Tebbutt - Volunteer Debt Caseworker Adam Matthews - Web chat Charlotte Baker - Administrator Dave Hatton - Administrator
In 2018/19, we saw some changes to the Money Advice Service project. As of 1st April 2019, it was re-named the Money and Pension Service (MAPS). This is to take into account the proposed changes going forward to join services with Pension Wise and the Pension Advisory Service. It is envisaged a new service will be created that will still offer debt advice but will also look at options for the use of pensions when dealing with a clients’ debts.
Another change was the introduction of the new Debt Assessment tool in March 2019. The tool allows Gateway or Generalist advisers to complete an assessment with clients at the initial appointment. The assessor needs no previous debt knowledge. Information is gathered about the clients’ situation, debts and ability to deal with their finances. The tool then determines the best route for the client to receive debt advice. This can be a face-to-face appointment, a referral to the MAPS telephone advice service or signposting to online sources of advice.
Although a face-to-face appointment is the most suitable option for many of our clients, some require or need a telephone appointment.
This year continued to be busy for the debt team with many of our clients struggling to manage essential living costs resulting in a high proportion of debts for rent, council tax, fuel and water. Alongside dealing with debts, time is required to look at a clients’ budget sheet to determine if there are ways of increasing income and/or reducing non-essential spending. Clients are advised on claiming benefits, charitable trust applications and referrals to the Warm & Well project for help with better fuel deals.
There are various debt options for clients, and many choose to take the insolvency route – usually by means of a Debt Relief Order (DRO). Like bankruptcy, a DRO will stay on the clients’ credit reports for 6 years and although this can be a disadvantage for some clients, many see the DRO as a way of clearing their debts and giving them a fresh start after many years of trying to repay their debts.
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Project: Money and Pension Service (MAPS) ______
Earlier this year, to help clients facilitate a quicker service we became involved in a pilot project to refer clients direct for a Debt Relief Order to our specialist DRO team based in Durham. To access the new service clients need to be able to pay the DRO fee (£90) within 8 weeks. We have helped several clients to secure the fee by means of charitable funding. The pilot project ensures a quicker process for clients, especially if they have debts approaching the £20,000 limit or need to act quickly to clear their debts – threat of eviction, bailiff action, attachment of earnings. The DRO team have recently implemented an online system for accessing the client’s credit reports and this has enabled a much quicker service for the clients with DRO’s being processed and submitted within 14 days!
Referrals and Partnership Working
The debt team continues to work closely with third parties – Housing Associations, Councils, Mental Health Team, Children’s Services, to enable access to our service for some of the most vulnerable clients. Good working partnerships are essential to both our service and the clients.
Going Forward
The current project has funding until March 2020 and it is hoped this will continue into future years.
Main debt issues we helped with this year
Debt Relief Order Council tax arrears Credit, store & charge card debts Bankruptcy Other Unsecured personal loan debts Fuel debts Bank & building society overdrafts Rent arrears - housing associations Individual Voluntary Arrangement
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Project: Pension Wise ______
Pension Wise Team
Pauline Ohr - Project Coordinator and Guidance Specialist Michael Fletcher - Guidance Specialist Deborah Megone - Guidance Specialist Mark Seed - Guidance Specialist Robert Taylor - Guidance Specialist
Mid North Yorkshire is one of 38 local Citizens Advice who have been delivering the government’s Pension Wise service for the last four years. Launched in April 2015, Pension Wise was a new guidance service set up to help people understand their options under the pension freedoms.
We deliver face-to-face Pension Wise appointments to people aged 50 and over with a defined contribution pension in several locations across the whole of North Yorkshire.
Key statistics
78,894 people have booked a Pension Wise appointment with Citizens Advice in England and Wales in 2018/19.
People using the Pension Wise service are highly satisfied with the guidance they are receiving with satisfaction ratings remaining consistently high. For 2018/19, Citizens Advice achieved a satisfaction score of 98.7%.
As part of our delivery of Pension Wise, we have engaged with Tesco to deliver on site appointments to their staff at 245 locations across England and Wales. Tesco staff have booked 3,234 appointments with Pension Wise. The Mid North Yorkshire Team have delivered appointments at Tescos in York, Skipton, Northallerton, Scarborough, Catterick Garrison and are shortly due to go to Thirsk.
Our customers range from people who are just 50 years old up to people who have reached 75 and need to make some decisions about their pension pots.
The service is available to anyone over the age of 50 who has a Defined Contribution Pension Pot (sometimes known as “money purchase” pensions and can be either work based or personal pensions).
Booking a pension wise appointment is now much simpler than it was at the start as there is an online booking service which shows the user when and where appointments are available, and they can book an appointment in real time.
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Project: Rural Reach ______
Rural Reach Team Rachel Hunter - Project Coordinator Suzette Armstrong - Administrator Sue Adsett - Outreach Volunteer Martin Garside - Outreach volunteer Noreen Harrison - Outreach volunteer David McAsey - Outreach volunteer Phil Sample - Outreach volunteer Brian Woodley - Outreach volunteer
Funded by the National Lottery Community Fund, the Rural Reach project ran from August 2015 to September 2018.
The reoccurring theme of benefits and debt being the main issues people are requiring help with, but there are always cross overs to other areas of housing, relationship, and employment etc. The transfer from Disability Living Allowance to Personal Independence Payments and benefit appeals have kept the team busy and the home visits we offer booked up way in advance. Rural Reach Evaluation Report
With social isolation on the increase the outreaches setup through this project have been maintained beyond September 2018 and now form part of the Rural Reach Information and Advice Bus service, which secured three-year funding from the National Lottery Community Fund in April 2019.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the National Lottery for their guidance and support over the years, and the new funding will allow us to continue to support communities across Hambleton and Richmondshire. We would also like to thank Rachel Hunter and all the volunteers working on the project for their hard work and dedication in making the project a success.
The new service was borne out of the Rural Advice Bus pilot, more which you can read about on the next page.
If you would like a digital copy in PDF format of the Rural Reach Evaluation report email [email protected].
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Project: Rural Advice Bus (RAB) pilot ______
Simon Fisher - Project coordinator Sue Adsett - Outreach volunteer Suzette Armstrong - Administrator Martin Garside - Outreach volunteer Phil Saville - Bus Driver Noreen Harrison - Outreach volunteer Adam Matthews - Communications David McAsey - Outreach volunteer Phil Sample - Outreach volunteer
Based upon feedback from service users, parish and town councils, there was evidence of a need to provide access to services to more isolated areas where barriers like lack of transport, vulnerability, and mental health, were preventing people from accessing services at fixed locations to get the help they need.
We used this evidence along with the Evaluation Report from the Rural Reach project and applied for funding to purchase a van, kit it out, running costs and to recruit and support volunteers for the pilot. We were successful in securing funding from Richmondshire District Council, NYCC Stronger Communities and the National Lottery Awards for All fund.
RAB operated an initial six-month pilot providing support and information to communities, groups and individuals in Richmondshire.
Home visits were booked for vulnerable people and appointments made available at the office based in Richmond if someone needed more in-depth advice from our generalist or specialist advisers.
Additionally, People were signposted or referred to other organisations who were better able to help them. Page 32 of 40
Project: Rural Advice Bus (RAB) pilot ______
During the pilot RAB ran a fixed timetable for a ‘drop-in’ service. The timetable could be accessed online as well as widespread promotion of the service across our own social media channels and those of partners.
RAB also ran Pop-up’ information and awareness campaigns on market days, at village fetes and other suitable community events. Some examples of awareness campaigns were Big Energy Savings Week, Scams Awareness Month, and joining North Yorkshire Police and Trading Standards at the Fraud in the Marketplace event held in Richmond.
Fraud in the Marketplace, Richmond
Fully trained volunteers, supported by an Advice Session Supervisor, were on hand to provide the same level of service that you expect to receive if visiting drop-in sessions at our main offices or existing outreaches. The service, delivered by our proven outreach model, ran alongside the established outreaches in Richmondshire.
RAB is also a ‘community’ vehicle and is available to other organisations to join Citizens Advice on their regular route, or to utilise for their own events. During the pilot, other organisations joined us at several of our scheduled locations. They included the DWP Disability Employment Adviser, IDAS, Warm and Well in North Yorkshire. To facilitate their own events, RAB has also been used by AgeUK and Ex Forces Support North Yorkshire.
Thank you to all our funders and volunteers for their support and enthusiasm in getting RAB on the road and a very big shout out to Simon Farquhar who volunteered his time to turn an empty shell of a van into RAB.
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Project: Warm and Well in North Yorkshire ______
Warm & Well in North Yorkshire Team Laura Thomas - Project Coordinator Karolina Holewinska-Suchanek - Energy Adviser (Selby/Rye) Shirley Boyle - Single Point of Contact Chris Grant - Single Point of Contact
With continued funding from North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC) as part of their Winter Health Strategy, Warm & Well in North Yorkshire has continued to grow and develop; supporting households through the single point of contact, growing the partnership and attracting funding.
The aim of Warm & Well in North Yorkshire is to address the causes of cold homes for vulnerable people in North Yorkshire. This includes people living in fuel poverty, struggling to pay their bills, living in cold or damp homes or who have inadequate heating. The support is aimed at those on low incomes, benefits, families with small children, people with disabilities and long-term health conditions and vulnerable older people.
Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire is the lead partners coordinating the delivery of the Single Point of Contact (SPOC). The Warm & Well team talk to every client that is referred to the service and ensuring they get assistance from the correct local organisation for their needs.
We are working with 7 district councils of North Yorkshire, and an additional 20 partners from the public, private and voluntary sectors, across North Yorkshire to deliver practical solutions to the client’s cold related problems.
Highlights from the Warm & Well in North Yorkshire team in this period include:
Hosting the Winter Health Partnership Event on October 11th 2018 at the Pavilions Harrogate, rated very highly by majority of those who attended.
All Staff operating the SPOC gained level 3 City & Guild qualifications in Energy Efficiency.
Worked with the North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service to deliver training on how to identify cold households and refer into the service to fire crews across the county.
Autumn campaign delivered in September, key messages promoted using social media, infographics, and press release. This led to a noticeable increase in the number of individuals referencing social media as their reason for getting in touch.
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Project: Warm and Well in North Yorkshire ______
Over this period, the Warm & Well in North Yorkshire partnership has been extremely successful in securing funding for the county. Warm & Well in North Yorkshire played a key part in preparing the bids and securing the funding.
£450,000 from the Warm Homes Fund to install first time gas central heating in homes previously not connected to the gas.
£350,000 awarded from British Gas Energy Trust – due to the partnership nature of the bid this is being delivered by Community First Yorkshire.
In the period from 1 April 2018 – 31 March 2019 Warm & Well have received 325 referrals. November 2018 was the busiest month with 65 referrals and Hambleton was our busiest district, with 78 client’s resident in this area.
Most referrals were made via the website (49%), followed by telephone (41%), then 8% of referrals came via email and 2% of referrals came face-to-face via local Citizens Advice.
Rebecca, 63, lives alone in a property she owns in Scarborough. She has several long-term illnesses including Chronic Fatigue and Auditory Processing Disorder. Her income is from Employment Support Allowance and Personal Independence Payment.
The property has gas central heating however, this hasn’t worked since 2008. She doesn’t have enough money to repair or replace the boiler. As a result, Rebecca is keeping warm using a gas fire in the living room.
Rebecca is also feeling isolated and lonely due to her situation, often seeing no one for weeks at a time. This is having a big impact on her wellbeing. Rebecca had been working with a North Yorkshire County Council Living Well Coordinator. The Coordinator referred Rebecca into Warm & Well.
Following the gateway phone call, Rebecca was referred to White Rose Home Improvement Agency to apply for grants to repair or replace the boiler, and to Age UK Scarborough to be added to their befriending scheme.
“It’s been a massive help. I feel less worried and anxious. I can put my heating on again. It made a lot of difference. I feel safer and warmer.
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Research and campaigns ______
Citizens Advice Mid-North Yorkshire has a committed Research and Campaigns Team who are passionate about ensuring fairness for everyone and strive to improve the lives of people living in our local communities.
We take part in campaigns on a local, regional and national level, gathering evidence and organising events to support our aims.
We have made excellent use of our Rural Reach Information and Advice Bus service to promote our campaigns and have increasingly used our social media channels to reach a wider audience - publicizing key issues, raising awareness and encouraging participation.
We have taken part in statutory consultations and given a voice to those people who may not otherwise have had a say.
Highlights of 2018/19 include:
Fixing Universal Credit campaign.
Big Energy Saving Week – record number of events hosted.
Scams Awareness Month.
Mental Health Awareness Week.
Communication with local MPs around Universal Credit.
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Our funders and supporters ______
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the following organisations and individuals without whom, along with our volunteers, we would not be able to deliver our service.
Organisations Catterick The National Lottery Community Fund Colburn Community First North Yorkshire Dalton on Tees Your Consortium Easingwold Two Ridings Community Foundation Eggborough ACTS 435 Flaxton Middleham Open Day 2018 Gilling West St. Peters Church, Norton Hambleton Little House Charitable Trust Helmsley Leonard Chamberlain Trust Hemingbrough Warm and Well Partnership Hensall Selby Advice Partnership Hillam Hipswell Regional Council Husthwaite North Yorkshire County Council Ingelby Arncliffe NYCC Stronger Communities Kellington NYCC Living Well Kirk Smeaton District Councils Leyburn Hambleton District Council Lillings Ambo Richmondshire District Council Middleton, Newton & Sinnington Ryedale District Council Monk Fryston Selby District Council Newton le Willows North Duffield Parish and Town Councils Riccall Amotherby Richmond Barlby & Osgodby Scorton Barton Selby Bilsdale Midcable Sowerby Brafferton St Peters Norton Brayton Tadcaster Brompton on Swale Tanfield Brompton Tanfield Brough with St Giles Thirsk Burton Cum Walden Ulleskelf Burton Salmon Warthill Carlton Whitley Carperby Cum Thorelsby Whorlton Carthorpe Wintringham
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Volunteers ______
Trustee Board Members from 1st April 2018 - 31st March 2019 Carl Les - Chair Christine Brown Cllr. Lawrence Grose Robert Pringle - Vice-Chair Martin Collins Kevin McGready Mark Hoggard - Treasurer Melanie Davis Janet Sharp Cllr. Carolyn Goodrick Laura Tunney
IT Support/Health and Safety Research and Campaigns Andrew Cohen Dr Allen Warren
Macmillan SPCT Benefits Service Liz Foster
Debt Specialists Rural Advie Bus Julie Childs* Phil Saville - Bus Driver Grahame Tebbutt
Administrators Edna Cooper* Penny House Michael Marley Peter Crabtree Karen Howcroft Gilllian Rowland Mal Danks Barbara Janeczek- Denise Sigsworth Yuly Diaz Mikolajczyk Bruce Skinner Lavinia Dutton Malgorzata (Gosia) Susan Taylor Christine Harvey Kaczmarek
Advisers/Assessors Paul Adamson James Dixon David McAsey Sue Adsett Peter Farrall Ros Merritt Karen Banks Mandy Fitzgerald Kathy Marshall Marian Bateson Martin Garside Janet Mitchell Stephen Batie Debra Grace Simon Parr Mary Borrett Ann Goodburn* Robert Pearson David Boyes Noreen Harrison Phil Sample Anne Brown John Hewitt Clare Scott Andy Butler Neil Hobson Jeremy Sherlock Ros Campbell Adrian Hodgson David Smee Helen Chapman Jeff House Martin Stott Christine (Chris) John Hugill Jennifer Veitch Chatterton Hugh Jenyns Gill Wadsworth Aileen Chisholm John Kitson Ann Wallwork* Anne Cox Michael Longstaff Yvonne Wood Hilary Cullen Tony Martin*
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TraineeAdvisers/Assessors Atef Abojesh Petria Lavelle Julia Priestnall Pamela Allison Jasmine Leonard Philip Saville Carolyn Bell Kathryn Marsden Krishna Somanah Anita Devakumar Bernard McGaughey Maciej Stepien Caroline Docherty Shiralee Myhill Alison Sutcliffe Paul Edworthy Joanna Norman Molly Walton Mo Hayward Christopher Olie Kate Willink Mirren Hunter Martin Pendrey Nerys Woolacott Fanny Kondowe Alice Pettifer
*Volunteers who left during the year 2018/19.
Paid staff ______
Carol Shreeve – CEO Rachel Hunter - Advice Coordinator* Lucy Ballantyne - Deputy CEO Rosalie Boyles - Reports and Funding Simon Farquhar – Head of Advice Tracy Watts - Projects Manager Carolyn Newman- Finance Manager Emma Klienfeldt - Bid-Writer Matilda Buckley - Casechecker Adam Matthews - Communications
Advice Service Managers Advice Session Supervisors Jane Ferguson (Ryedale/Selby) Judy Long Simon Jones (Hambleton/Richmondshire) Michael May Advice Coordinator (Ryedale) Julie Medford Laura Docherty Sue Palin*
Volunteer Recruitment and Training Jane Ferguson (Ryedale/Selby) Sharmila Malla (Hamb/Rich)
Administrators Suzette Armstrong Gillian Cohen Wendy Morrison Charlotte Baker David Hatton Andrew Peacock Shirley Boyle Sarah Matthews
Cleaners Suzette Armstrong, Hannah Brown (Richmondshire) Una Atkinson (Selby)
Projects See project pages for paid staff working on the project alongside volunteers.
*Paid staff who left during the year 2018/19.
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Contact details ______
Local offices
Hambleton Richmondshire 277 High Street, Northallerton 23 Newbiggin, Richmond, North Yorkshire, DL7 8DW. North Yorkshire, DL10 4DX. Telephone: 01609 776551 Telephone: 01748 823862 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
Ryedale Selby & District Harrison House, Norton Road, Norton, 38 Ousegate, Selby, Malton, North Yorkshire North Yorkshire YO8 4NH Telephone: 01653 695542 Telephone: 01757 701320 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
Outreach locations
Bedale Library Leyburn Medical Practice Colburn Library Phoenix House (Catterick Garrison) Easingwold Library Sherburn Old Girls School Pickering Library Tadcaster (MP’s Office) Stokesley Library (The Globe) The Clock, Thirsk
Rural Reach Information and Advice Bus
Telephone Advice Adviceline 0300 3309 036
Online and social media www.citizensadvicehrs.org.uk
@CAMid-NorthYorks
@citizensadvicemidnorthyork
Registered office: 277 High Street, Northallerton, North Yorkshire DL7 8DW. Charity Registration Number 1146084. A Company limited by Guarantee in England Number 7890996. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority FRN: 617621.
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