Everything was falling
apart - Citizens Advice helped me get back on track.
Annual Report 2015-2016 Our service aims
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 the national network.
It’s also what makes our service unique.
Page 1
Contents
1. Chair’s report page 3 2. Chief Executive Officer’s report page 4
3. Key Statistics pages 5 - 6 4. Our core service pages 7 - 9 5. Projects pages 10 - 15 6. Outcomes and the difference we pages 16 - 18 make to peoples’ lives
7. Research and campaigning page 19 8. Our volunteers page 20 9. Recruitment and training page 20 Volunteers and staff list page 21 - 22
10. Working in partnership page 23
11. Funders and supporters page 24 12. Contact details page 25
Thank you to everyone who contributed and to Rosalie Boyles who volunteered her time to design and produce this year’s report.
Page 2
1. Chair’s report - Councillor Carl Les
Every year I never cease to be amazed at what we do and what we deliver with our willing band of volunteers, and our small team of excellent staff, ably led by Carol. Our communities are well served by our efforts. My thanks to you all.
I must also recognise and thank all our funders, big and small, without whose resources the doors would not be opened at all each day. Recently we merged Ham & Rich into one bureau with two main sites, and numerous outreach locations, and made it work, and work well. So it was with a degree of confidence that we embarked on a similar pathway with Selby and District. With our experience, and a shared desire from both Hambleton, Richmondshire, and Selby & District to succeed, again we have made it work. I welcome Selby trustees who have come on board to strengthen our board, especially Bob as Vice Chair, and Mark as Treasurer and I think we are already proving to be effective. At this point I must thank Jonathan Thompson for his efforts as our former treasurer and wish him well in his retirement.
I believe our offices are delivering quality advice services which is our raison d'ȇtre. Client satisfaction is high. Our recent audit assessed us as excellent. Well done to all!! Together we are stronger and we can face the ever changing world with confidence, and often with a better prospect than some of our neighbours.
As I said earlier, our communities are well served by our efforts.
12 5,995 locations where 88 clients seen with we provide free and volunteers with impartial advice an economic 19,102 and information value of issues across Hambleton and Richmondshire £229,454
Page 3
2. Chief Executive Officer’s report - Carol Shreeve
Although in theory this should be the last annual report of Hambleton and Richmondshire Citizens Advice Bureau it already feels strange to be looking at ourselves in that way. To see this as the ending of something when it already feels like we are well on our way to a new adventure.
In fact, one of the main highlights for me of the last financial year was the merger process with Selby. I have been involved in several mergers and I have never before had one that it anyway could have been said to be fun but this one actual was. The attitude and the willingness of all involved, particularly Melanie Davis and Bob, made the process an interesting and entertaining one. I see the recent successful result our new organisation has achieved at audit as celebration of how well each organisation and site has coped with the merger and the positive contribution and attitude of the staff and volunteers. Although this was the perhaps most noteworthy event of the year I would like to look at some of the work we did in our communities last year.
Money Advice Service Debt Project (MASDAP) was awarded a very high rating on its external quality of advice audit. We developed our channels of communication with our community by extending our phone contacts and introducing webchat to sit alongside our email service. We began our new Big Lottery Reaching Communities project – Rural Reach – and have done a fantastic job of extending our outreach services. We have increased our training opportunities for volunteers and are developing new ways of enabling volunteers and staff to develop in their roles We joined the Warm and Well in North Yorkshire partnership run by Rural Action Yorkshire and have enjoyed working with our new contacts and are learning from all involved. We have gone forward in reaching people and services with our use of social media and publicity. We have enjoyed working as part of Citizens Advice to highlight campaigning issues, particularly around Universal Credit and digital access.
One of the main challenges we are looking at for our current service is making sure we have the resources and the support going forward to deal with challenging times. Although we are very aware that problems for our community lie ahead we are determined to do our best to be there to support our communities and to join with other agencies to provide the best services we can.
Page 4
3. Key statistics 2015 - 2016
Clients and issues Financial Outcomes
Clients 5,995 Income Gain £877,187
Advice Issue Codes 19,102 Debts Written Off £1,073,769
Client Contacts 11,691 Repayments Scheduled £30,457
Enquiries 6,016
Top 5 advice categories
Debt 19%
34% Benefits & tax credits
5% Financial services & capability 7% Employment
11% Housing
24% all other
Contacts by Channel
Face to Face Adviceline Phone 35% 20% 19% 23% 3% Telephone Letter/Mail Email/Web
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Page 5
Gender of Clients Disability
Female Disabled or LTH Male 35% condition 45% 55% Not disabled/no health problems 65%
Ethnicity of clients
1% 1% 1% 0%
Asian or Asian British Black or Black British
Mixed Other
White 97%
Age range of clients
600 531 539 484 495 500 500 454 431 409 401 400 325 300 217 200 130 73 100 55 34 0 1 0 1 0
Page 6
4. Our core service
Advice Services Manager Simon Farquhar
It was commented recently that I always mention how long I've worked for Citizens Advice in my annual report contribution...it's true I do! But I think it's important to highlight that there are staff and volunteers who have committed themselves to the service for a considerable length of time. I've been lucky enough to work here for 16 years but we have volunteers who, despite not having the incentive of being paid, have been here over 20 years. It never ceases to amaze me the level of commitment our volunteers are prepared to give year in and year out and I commend them for their determination to keep helping others.
We have since the inception of the service provided advice to residents of our districts face to face. This suits many of our clients but makes it difficult for some to access our service. Many years ago we extended this to telephone advice (Adviceline), a service we have expanded significantly in recent years by working in partnerships with neighbouring offices in North Yorkshire. This allows those who can't get in to the office much easier access to our services.
Some years ago we also introduced an email advice service on a local basis which again expands access to those who need more than the public website but who have problems accessing the office. Our public site at www.citizensadvice.org.uk continues to expand and become more detailed and customer friendly...this allows many who can't access the service during working hours get significant amounts of information on the issues they face.
In 2015/2016 we were working up to implementing our email and webchat service as part of a national Citizens Advice pilot project. We have, as I already stated, offered advice via email for years but the opportunity to join this project to include webchat was an opportunity to develop our service that was too good to miss.
Many of us have used websites to find information only to find ourselves a little stuck or confused. What happens on our public site now is that visitors are offered a chat with a real person! This is a fantastic service that the clients seem to really appreciate and our staff and volunteers love doing. We can help a significant number of people in a shorter period time. I hasten to add that this is absolutely not a replacement to our face to face advice service but another way of opening our service to different types of clients and maximising the impact we can have on improving people’s lives.
I continue to be very proud of the work we do and long may it continue to expand.
Page 7
Advice Coordinator and Rural Reach Project Coordinator Rachel Hunter
Adviceline This service is another vital way people can access our service and we are proud to say that Hambleton and Richmondshire have been consistently at the top of the North Yorkshire leader board when it comes to answering the call demand.
We have recruited a steady stream of volunteers to deliver this valuable service - some stay, some come in during their holidays and some leaving having found paid work, which is fantastic to know we have given them to confidence to go out and achieve this.
Equality and diversity My new role this year was to lead on the Equality and Diversity group. The working group was formed at the beginning of 2016 and has a mixture of staff and volunteers.
We have formulised a yearly Equality and Diversity monitoring plan that is now part of our business plan. From that we have started to develop the E&D work we do within our organization including training on Equality and Diversity for our staff and volunteers. We have started work on looking at the demographics of our area and how we can reach the harder to reach groups within it. We are looking for our services to reach more of these groups and also to try and recruit from them.
We are now a Hate Crime organisation – this means anyone who wants help to record a hate crime can visit any of our offices and our advisers will help them to do this. This is going to be widely promoted and the local police are working closely with us on this.
We have a presence on the North Yorkshire Equality and Diversity Strategic Partnership, where we are gaining knowledge and more understanding of the E&D issues within North Yorkshire as well as establishing good working partnerships.
I am proud of what we have done in the short space of time and look forward to carrying on with the E&D work we are doing now and into the future.
The adviser talked me through my legal Helped me on a tough road ahead, options and how to access them. realised there was help for me.
It set my initial worries at rest and Will get a full appointment now I know made me less anxious. what to do.
I would have preferred a shorter It helped me make choices.
waiting period but understand it's a much used service. Good info on setting up a business.
Page 8
Advice Session Supervisor Beth Dowson
As Advice Session Supervisor covering both Northallerton and Richmond offices I would like to say what a fantastic job the volunteers do. They continue week after week to give up their time in order to assist the people in their community with various issues which can often be very complex. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them all for the remarkable work they do.
Gateway Our Gateway service which is conducted via face to face, Adviceline, email and webchat is an invaluable service. It allows for many clients to be directed straight away to information which helps to assist with or resolve their issues but also highlights any more serious issues to be directed to a full generalist or specialist appointment. Universal Credit is now fully operational in Richmond and this will be the same in Northallerton by October 2016. As more people move to Universal Credit it is expected that issues revolving from it e.g. budgeting will be a major part of our work load.
Email and web chat I am certainly not the most confident when it comes to anything to do with IT so to say I panicked slightly when asked if I would co-ordinate the Web chat project is an understatement. Now several months down the line I can happily say I had absolutely nothing to worry about. The software is easy to use and it is a quick and efficient way of passing information and advice to clients. We are meeting our key performance statistics by more than double most months and the satisfaction surveys show that on average 80% of our clients are very happy with the service we are providing. Originally this service was run by paid staff on a rota system however we now have several volunteers on board which is fantastic.
Debt Team Yvonne Denison and Martin Bottrill successfully completed their Debt Relief Order Intermediary Training and were thrown straight in at the deep end. Debt Relief Orders are a very popular debt option with clients so it’s certainly keeping them busy. A big thank you to them both for the invaluable service they are providing our clients in assisting them in managing their debts and subsequently reducing their stress.
Adviceguide gave good guide on how All the advice we have received has to sort problem. been very good.
Pointed me in the right direction to Their help allowed me to get re homed. be able to move forward. Helped solve my money worries.
Page 9
5. Projects
We also deliver our service through a variety of additional projects, relevant to our local areas or expertise.
Rural Reach Rachel Hunter - Project Coordinator
Our Reaching Communities Project funded by the Big Lottery continued to provide advice through- out the whole of Richmondshire. Volunteers still provided advice on various subjects, the main ones being financial and welfare benefits, housing and employment.
Our established Richmondshire outreaches staffed by volunteers at Leyburn Medical Practice, Phoenix House Recovery Centre at Catterick Garrison, Colburn Sure Start Children’s Centre, Homeless Unit, Colburn, Richmond District Council office and Colburn Library continue to provide the vital service throughout the community.
With the success of the Reaching Communities project in Richmondshire, we had fantastic news that further funding was gained from the Big Lottery to carry on this amazing service but also to replicate it in the Hambleton district. So the project now runs over the two districts.
This meant that more volunteers could be recruited for both offices and more outreaches could be opened. Since October 2015 I have opened two new weekly outreaches in Topcliffe Doctors Surgery and Easingwold Library in the Hambleton district and Aldbrough St John Doctors Surgery in the Richmondshire district. More outreaches are planned throughout the projects lifetime.
There has also been an increase in the number of home visits which have mainly been to help with welfare benefit cases, with lots of form filling for clients moving from one benefit to another due to changes in welfare benefit reform.
With the introduction of Universal Credit within our districts and other rural issues, such as reduction of bus routes, this project and our Adviceline service is going to get busier. I would like to thank all the volunteers and staff who work so hard to keep things going, without them clients would not have the access to our service as readily as they do. I look forward to meeting lots of new people and carrying on the hard work we do into the next year.
Page 10
Macmillan Benefits and Money Advice Simon Fisher - Specialist Adviser
We are delighted to report that funding for the project was continued for another year by Hambleton, Richmondshire and Whitby Clinical Commissioning Group.
The service has one full time specialist adviser, and one part time administrator (7 hours), Liz Foster, who also volunteers one day a week as a benefits adviser to further enhance the project.
This year the number of appointments at the Macmillan Information Centre has increased which means we are able to see clients earlier in their journey which enables early intervention and planning options for the client. We are also able to provide home visits to clients who are too unwell or have difficulties in getting out of their house.
A telephone service is provided to clients who live in the Whitby area, although most are seen Clients seen 183 by a Macmillan Adviser in James Cook Hospital in Middlesborough when they attend for treatments. Benefits gained £826,137 Average financial £4,514 Grants were claimed from various agencies, gain per client including Macmillan, Warm Home grants, Energy grants, Two Ridings Community Foundation and Debts dealt with £86,672.02 occupational grants (ie Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institute- RABI). Grants claimed £34,698
Page 11
Money Advice Service Debt Advice Project Bev Dixon - MASDAP Caseworker
The Money Advice Service Debt Advice Project (MASDAP) continues to see clients face to face, by telephone, email and more recently, by Web chat.
Face to Face is by far the most popular and needed form of advice. Clients are initially assessed at Gateway using the Common Initial Assessment (CIA) tool. The CIA is used to ascertain which clients could manage to self-help by directing to online information and advice, or if this is not suitable, they are offered a telephone or face to face appointment depending on their needs.
The project continues to meet its. Between March 2015 and April 2016 we saw 401 clients with total debts of £3.62 million. As well as helping clients to deal with their debts we also help them to secure gains. This includes applying for eligible benefits, Debt Relief Orders/Bankruptcy, writing off debts and challenging unenforceable debt. Gains for 2015-16 were almost £630,000.
The most common type of debts we continue to see are rent and council tax arrears. Many clients are still struggling since the benefit reforms which were introduced in 2013; most no longer receive full housing and council tax costs. Clients will often contact us when they have been threatened with eviction or have had bailiffs turn up on their doorstep.
Another area where we have seen an increase in queries is late filing penalty charges for self-assessment from HMRC. We have seen several clients who have needed to register as self-employed to enable short term work. Once registered, HMRC require a self- assessment form to be completed at the end of each financial year but often clients do not return these forms as they are no longer self-employed. Failure to return self- assessments incurs late filing charges which quickly escalate into several hundred pounds. Contacting and dealing with HMRC can be very lengthy and often difficult.
We had great success with HMRC and a Tax Credits overpayment in March 2016. After nine months of correspondence back and forth, they finally agreed that our client had given the required information needed to continue with her Child Tax Credits back in 2007. Although HMRC had recovered most of the alleged overpayment from her most recent awards, they reimbursed the client with a payment of over £5,000!! Needless to say, the client was very happy with the result!
Page 12
For clients with debts of less than £20,000, Debt Relief Orders continue to be a preferred option when there is no prospect of a change in their circumstances. If a client can manage, they are referred to the DRO Team based at Durham Citizens Advice. Once referred, Durham takes over dealing with clients by phone and post. Clients who cannot manage this type of advice, (if they have mental health, literacy issues, etc.) are kept within their local Citizens Advice.
If the total amount of personal debt is over £20,000, clients have the option of declaring themselves bankrupt. In April 2016 this was moved to an online application instead of going to Court. This is a much easier and less stressful experience for a client.
January 2016 saw a new volunteer join the MAS DAP team in Northallerton. Grahame Tebbutt moved into our area; he had previously advised at Northumbria Citizens Advice. Grahame came with a wealth of debt experience which has proved to be very useful.
Our other MAS DAP volunteers are based in the Richmond office. Martin and Yvonne are actively involved in the project and are supported by Beth Dowson, an experienced debt adviser.
We had a change to the admin role in September 2015 when our previous administrator, Kitty, decided not to return after maternity leave. Charlotte Baker, who had been covering the role for over a year decided to stay on and has provided great support to the project team.
Page 13
Pension Wise Tom Adamski - Pensionwise Caseworker
Citizens Advice Hambleton, Richmondshire, and Selby & District is one of 50 local Citizens Advice who have been delivering the government’s Pension Wise service for over one year. Launched in April 2015, Pension Wise was a new guidance service set up to help people understand their options under the pension freedoms.
The centre delivers face-to-face Pension Wise appointments to people aged 50 and over with a defined contribution pension, across a number of locations. As well as on site at Hambleton, Richmondshire and Selby, the service is delivered from Craven, Harrogate, Ryedale, Scarborough, Whitby and York local Citizens Advice centres. Coverage is spread strategically to satisfy demand across North Yorkshire and York.
Citizens Advice Hambleton, Richmondshire, and Selby & District set up the new service, trained a team of staff, set up outreach locations and developed Quality Assurance policies in record time and to an exceptional standard. ‘The guider was very personable
and put me at ease. I felt I could Key statistics ask questions and get help in a safe environment.’ For 2015/16, Pension Wise has delivered 61,200 appointments across the service in England, ‘I feel so much more confident Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. now that I understand the
options.’ People visiting Pension Wise are pleased with the guidance they are receiving with satisfaction ‘It was an excellent meeting and ratings remaining consistently high. In its first I now have a much clearer route year at Hambleton, Richmondshire, and Selby forward. My mind is at ease.’ & District, Pension Wise achieved a satisfaction score of over 99%.
Page 14
Warm and Well Sue Palin - Adviser
Warm and Well in North Yorkshire is a partnership project being led by Rural Action Yorkshire and involves over 30 organisations across North Yorkshire and Citizens Advice Hambleton and Richmondshire joined the partnership in March 2016.
The project is funded by the British Gas Energy Trust and partners are providing practical, financial and holistic support to residents to enable them to stay warm and well in winter. We are providing a range of information and advice as part of the project including applying for Warm Home Discounts, benefit advice, help and advice for fuel debt, energy supply switching and signposting for the hardship fund. People can also be referred to partners if they require additional help to insulate or draught proof their homes, energy efficiency or social support to ease isolation.
Since March 2016 we have provided advice from our local offices as well as home visits. Issues range from assistance with energy supply switching to benefit and income maximisation to fuel debt. North Yorkshire has over 26,000 homes living in fuel poverty and it is not unusual to see clients who have made it through the winter without any heating at all due to lack of money and fuel debt.
Feedback from the project has been really positive with all clients stating they have received a lot of help and advice and were better informed as to how to stay warm and well in winter. The project continues to have an open referral system where anyone can refer to the service and the project aims to support those who are unemployed or on low incomes or priority groups such as people over 65, families with young children and people with existing health issues.
Two Ridings Community Foundation
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Two Ridings Community Foundation who kindly provided us a grant which enabled us to financially help people with issues related to energy and keeping their homes warm.
On page XX there is an example of how we helped a client. For more information about Two Ridings Community Foundation please visit their website at http://www.trcf.org.uk/about/what-is-a-community-foundation/
Page 15
6. Outcomes and the difference we make in people’s lives We collect data on two main types of outcome. Firstly, the financial difference we make to clients and their families’ lives, either by maximising income or by reducing debt. Secondly, through client surveys and studies we collect data on the difference we have made to clients’ lives and often their feelings of health and wellbeing.
Financial Outcomes
These financial outcomes were based on actual income received or debts written off. Total income gained through benefits claimed, trusts and charity grants et al was £877,186. Debt written off in the same financial year was £1,073,769. This was mainly achieved by assisting clients in accessing Debt Relief Orders.
Satisfaction Outcomes
We carry out client satisfaction surveys to help us gain an understanding of how our service can be improved and how we can further provide the outcomes people want.
Below is an example survey showing the clients’ view of the work we do:
Unhappy/Very Questions Very Happy/Happy unhappy Access to Service 99% 1% Opening Times 98% 2% Waiting Time 98% 2% Advice Time 99.5% 0.5% Advice 100% 0% Overall Service 100% 0%
100% 98% of clients surveyed of clients surveyed would use our would recommend service again our service
Page 16
In addition, projects that have an element of health/ social welfare we often ask clients about the Service’s effect on their wellbeing. The results below are feedback from clients of the Big Lottery Reaching Communities Rural Reach project;
87% of clients said that the project helped them to make informed choices about the problems they face. 81% of Clients are identifying that their lives have positively improved. 76% of clients are stating that they are more in control of their lives.
Client case studies Statistics only tell part of the story of the work we do, below are examples of how we have helped people directly to resolve their issues as well has helping them to find a way forward.
Client’s situation - Jane contacted us by phone for help to sort out her £2,000 of catalogue debts. She is a young single mother living in an isolated village on a rural estate. Most of the people living around her are older and better off. Jane works as a dinner lady in a school based several miles away. Because her income is low she receives tax credits, housing benefit and council tax reduction. Our workers interviewed Jane in one of the project’s outreaches. They found Jane’s money problems were being driven by travel and fuel costs. Bus fares to work were costing her nearly £5 a day and her electricity bills were very high because she was heating her home with fan heaters. The fan heaters were inefficient and her home was damp. Her home did have oil- powered central heating but Jane couldn’t afford the £500 needed to fill the tank.
The difference we made - We helped ease Jane’s financial situation. A grant from a local energy trust helped with her electricity costs and we put about £40 a week back into her pocket by moving her onto a cheaper energy tariff and negotiating lower payments on her catalogue debts. But Jane herself made the greatest difference by deciding to move nearer to the small local town once her tenancy ran out, so that she could heat using gas and cut her travel costs. Jane’s story typifies rural poverty where fuel and travel costs are much higher and cancel out financial gains made through work. She also typifies rural people who are fiercely independent, keen to work and who.
Page 17
Client’s situation - a client who was referred into the Warm and Well North Yorkshire project was in a situation where he lived in social housing and had a prepayment meter for gas but had not been able to add credit to it for over 6 months and had not had any heating on over winter 2015/2016. He had a range of health issues and had been unable to work for nearly a year. His situation was made worse by threatened eviction as the landlord was not able to complete an annual gas check without supply. As the meter had not been topped up for such a long time the arrears from standing charges alone were over £60 so he needed a significant amount of money to enable the supply to recommence.
The difference we made - He was helped to clear the arrears with £100 from the Two Ridings Surviving Winter Fund and the annual gas check was successfully completed. In addition, he was helped to explore alternative energy suppliers and switch to a supply with no standing charges so he was better able to budget and top up supply when funds allowed without credit being consumed by standing charges.
Clients situation A 63-year-old gentleman was referred by a nurse to the Macmillan Money Advice Service. He was self-employed but now unable to work due to his cancer diagnosis and treatments, and his 63-year-old wife received state pension of only £74.60 a week. They had an outstanding mortgage, and he was concerned that he would be unable to meet his mortgage payments and other bills. An appointment for a home visit was made and during visit a full benefits check was carried out and advice given and also assisted in claiming Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and in a joint claim for Pension Credits (PC). A claim was also made for his wife for Carers Allowance (CA).
The difference we made PIP – Client awarded £139.75 per week; PC – Client initially awarded £156.25 per week; CA - Wife entitled to carers premium only due to pension income which increased their PC award to £190.85 per week.
Awarded 100% of council tax reduction (£22.95 per week) so had no council tax to pay.
Mortgage - Adviser was able to contact the mortgage provider and check if there was terminal illness or critical illness cover on the mortgage. There was terminal illness cover, so adviser provided the relevant information to the mortgage provider and mortgage was paid off.
As Pension Credit was a “means tested” benefit, the award also signposted them for help with travel costs to hospital, dental treatments and eye tests cost. Adviser also contacted the clients’ energy provider and had a £140 reduction made on their energy bill from the Warm Home Discount Scheme.
Although income was not as high as when client had been working - they did not have to find money to pay the mortgage or council tax, and had enough to ‘live off’
Page 18
7. Research and campaigns - Rosalie Boyles
We take our involvement in Research and Campaigns very seriously. In October 2015 a new Research and Campaigns working group was setup. An action plan was created with a mixture of local and national campaigns. The plan is part of our Business Development Plan and is regularly monitored, reviewed and updated.
The group meetup on a quarterly basis and the minutes provided to the Trustee Board. Outside of these meetings a member of the team will attend worker’s meetings to update everyone on our activities and We encourage all volunteers and staff to get involved with work in this area, for example, by raising BEFs on any issues.
We are now more able to react to any local issues, for example we worked alongside the Equality and Diversity group to highlight the issues discrimination and racial abuse which has increased since the referendum on Brexit.
As well as having our own Research and Campaigns group we also take part in regional campaigns through Citizens Advice North Yorkshire and York cluster group and national Citizens Advice campaigns.
Helen Donnelly, Advice Session Supervisor at our Northallerton office, monitors all BEF’s created and will inform the group of any trends that indicate issues that may be affecting people in our communities. We use surveys, client feedback, hold events and use social media to publicise campaigns as well as providing information to campaigns being run by national Citizens Advice.
Some campaigns from the last year that we have taken part in:
Scams Awareness Month - encouraging everyone to be more vigilant regarding scams; “Don’t be rushed, don’t be hushed”
Energy Best Deal October 2015 - 2016 - We delivered 23 training sessions to frontline workers and end users. The training is designed to help people cut their fuel bills and get all the financial support they are entitled to.
Financial Capability and Numeracy - We surveyed our clients as part of a national campaign to find out our clients’ needs around financial capability and numeracy. The findings on this survey form part of the 2015-2016 Impact Report for national Citizens Advice.
Welfare Reforms Survey - As part of a national campaign into how a reduction in working and child tax credits would affect working people. A report has been produced on the outcomes of this survey - ‘Cutting Back: dealing with changes in income’.
If you would like a copy of any of the reports mentioned above, please contact Rosalie Boyles, [email protected]
Page 19
8. Our volunteers
A total of 88 people volunteered for Citizens Advice Hambleton and Richmondshire last year with an economic value of £229,454.
Now more than ever, the true value of volunteers is being recognised by all sectors. Research acknowledges not just the economic value they have but also the positive social impact they have on communities. In addition, volunteering has positive effects on the wellbeing of the individuals, both in terms of health and employment prospects.
Volunteers have provided the majority of our services throughout the organisation’s history and over the last few years, we have opened up the roles available to volunteers even further and we now have volunteers at all levels of our organisations in all roles, such as advisers or information assistants, providing added value and community input throughout our service. An example of this is our volunteer debt advisers who support the work of our paid staff meaning that more individuals can be helped and greater support given to those in need.
We have helped individuals develop their career paths and increase their employability. We actively encourage volunteers to use the skills, experience and confidence they have gained with us to enter the world of work.
9. Recruitment and training - Leanne Hawkes
Recruitment is ongoing and we regularly receive enquiries from Citizens Advice and Do- IT websites as well as referrals from Hambleton Community Action and Richmondshire Voluntary Service. Our recruitment process means we are able to respond to enquiries quickly and provide people with our Volunteer Information Pack which explains what Citizens Advice do and the various roles that are available.
In the last year we have recruited 23 new volunteers to various roles including telephone, email and/or face to face assessors, generalist advisers and administrators. By the end of the year 21 are still volunteering with us whilst 2 moved into paid employment outside of Citizens Advice.
At the end of March 2016 we became part of the Citizens Advice email and webchat project and this new role is attracting new volunteers to the service.
Page 20
Volunteers
Trustee Board Advice Session Supervisors Cllr. Carl Les Chair Helen Donnelly and Anita Wood Mrs. Rosalind Earl Vice-Chair Mr. Jonathan Thompson Treasurer Reception/Administrators Mrs. Rachel Allen Christine Cottam, Sheila Crosby, Mrs. Christine Brown Suda Reed and Gillian Rowland. Ms. Claire Chambers Cllr. Lawrence Grose IT Support Mr. Kevin McGready David Hatton and Alistair Newman Mr. Mark Hoggard Mr. Neal Porter Rural Outreach Workers Mr. Robert Pringle Brian Woodley and Martin Garside Mr. Luke Swinhoe Thank you to Jane Ashcroft who deputised as Treasurer.
Generalist Advisers Sue Beeken, Sarah Blakemore, Martin Bottrill, David Bowes, Andy Butler, Thaynara Charlesworth, Ewa Cieniek, Ted Darwin, Yvonne Denison, Joan Edwards, Sue Farr, Ann Goodburn, Peter Greenslade, David Harris, Noreen Harrison, Patrick Hodgson, Simon Jones, Judy Long, Michael Longstaff, Marshall Hagemeyer, Natasha Hagemeyer, Paul Hughes, Elaine Lynam, Kathy Marshall, Alister Matheson, Fiona McCulloch, Pamela Moffat, Jo Murray, Sue Palin, Peter Purves, Gerald Ramsden, Colin Reed, Diane Renoldson, Helen Richardson, Margot Richardson, Phil Sample, David Smee, Geoff Solomon, Simon Tate, John Thorburn, and Jill Wilkinson.
Gateway face-to-face/telephone Sue Adsett, Cosmo Alderson, Peter Brown, Some quotes from Andy Butler, Martin Garside, Jackie Harrison, our Volunteers Noreen Harrison, Zillah Holmes, Sue Jemison, Feedback Survey
Julie Leonard, Veda Limya, Michael Longstaff, George Lonsdale, Chris Lyon, Kathy Marshall, Excellent training programme, Adam Matthews, Tony Martin, Janet Menzies, helpful fellow members of staff. Ros Merritt, Jo Murray, Shona Padbury, Rachel Sayer, Claire Scott, Megan Scott, Excellent experience at client Ludmila Selezneva, Laura Thomas, facing and problem solving skills. Gill Wadsworth and Ann Wallwork. Also learning critical thinking and research skill under pressure! Debt Specialists
Graham Tebbutt, Martin Bottrill Although I am just learning this and Yvonne Denison clearly is very valuable, with Employment Specialist excellent experience. Steve Wykes
Page 21
Paid Staff
Chief Executive Officer Carol Shreeve
Advice Services Manager Simon Farquhar
Advice Coordinator/ Rural Reach Coordinator/Equality and Diversity Rachel Hunter
Advice Session Supervisors Beth Dowson, Helen Donnelly, Simon Farquhar and Rachel Hunter
Financial Administrator Carolyn Newman
Reception/Administrators Suzette Armstrong, David Hatton, Wendy Morrison
IT Support David Hatton and Carolyn Newman
Training Leanne Hawkes Projects Development/Research and Campaigns/ Publicity/Website/Social Media Rosalie Boyles Macmillan Benefits Advice Simon Fisher - Project Coordinator and Caseworker Liz Foster - Administrator and Caseworker
Money Advice Service Debt Bev Dixon - Debt Caseworker
Charlotte Baker - Administrator
Pension Wise Tom Adamski - Project Coordinator and Caseworker Peter Couch - Guidance Specialist Nigel Lewen - Guidance Specialist Pauline Ohr - Guidance Specialist Tom Farquhar - Administrator
Cleaners Suzette Armstrong and Hannah Brown
Page 22
10. Working in partnership
Hambleton and Richmondshire Advice Services Partnership was funded by the Cabinet Office and managed the Big Lottery as part of the Advice Services Transition fund, from October 2013 to September 2015.
The aim of this project was to build on existing advice provision and bring greater cohesion to advice, advocacy and support services in Hambleton and Richmondshire and to improve the quality and accessibility of advice, advocacy and support so that the people of Hambleton and Richmondshire receive a consistent and high quality service from a vibrant and collaborative advice, advocacy and support sector.
Although funding has ended the partners have continued to meet on a quarterly basis, sharing ideas, publicising and attending each-others events and working together to bid on new funding streams for the benefit of all partners in order to continue to deliver their services across Hambleton and Richmondshire.
New partners have since joined the partnership and in November 2016 SPARC will be hosting an event to potential new partners.
The SPARC Partnership is now made up of the following organisations:
British Red Cross Citizens Advice - Hambleton and Richmondshire offices Hambleton and Richmondshire Carers Centre North Yorkshire Advocacy Northallerton and the Dales Mencap Society Hambleton Foodshare IDAS Richmondshire Voluntary Community Action
Further information
If you would like to find out more about the SPARC Partnership, please contact Carol Shreeve [email protected].
Supporting people across rural communities
Page 23
11. Funders, partners and supporters
Thank you to everyone who have supported us financially and in kind to enable us to deliver our service across Hambleton and Richmondshire.
Main funders North Yorkshire County Council Hambleton District Council Richmondshire District Council Richmondshire Local Strategic Partnership The Big Lottery Money Advice Service NYRCC NYCC Stronger Communities BERR/National CAB Rural Action Yorkshire Hambleton, Richmondshire, Whitby CCG
Donations
Two Ridings Community Foundation
Town Councils Colburn, Middleham (Stables Open Day), Northallerton, Richmond and Thirsk
Parish Councils Aysgarth, Bilsdale, Brompton on Swale, Caperby cum Thoresby, Carthorpe, and Tanfield.
Thank you also to our clients for their kind donations.
Partners and Supporters Army Welfare Service - Citizens Advice North Yorkshire and York - Colburn Library, Connect Mediation - General Practitioners throughout both districts Hambleton and Richmondshire Carers Centre - Hambleton Community Action HARCAS - Hawes Community Office - HIVE - IDAS - Infantry Training Centre (ITC) Leyburn Medical Practice - Malcolm Ashman (Mental Health Support) NYCC Trading Standards Unit - Northallerton and the Dales Mencap Society Northallerton Magistrates Court, North Yorkshire Advocacy - NYCC Libraries Phoenix House Recovery Unit - RAF Leeming Relate - Hudson House (Reeth) Richmondshire Community Volunteer Action - Shelter - SSAFA - The Beacon The Galleries/SPACES - Upper Wensleydale Community Office - Veterans Agency Welfare Officers Catterick Garrison - Welfare Benefits Unit - WRVS - Your Consortium.
Page 24
12. Contact details
Local offices:
Northallerton: 277 High Street, Northallerton, North Yorkshire, DL7 8DW.
Richmond: 23 Newbiggin, Richmond, North Yorkshire, DL10 4DX.
Selby: Rear of 4 Park Street, Selby, North Yorkshire, YO8 4PW.
Outreach locations Bedale Library, Colburn Library, Easingwold Library, Leyburn Medical Centre, Mercury House (Richmond District Council), Tadcaster and Topcliffe GP Surgery.
Telephone Adviceline 03444 111 444 Northallerton 01609 776551 Richmond 01748 823862 Selby 01757 701320
Online www.citizensadvicehrs.org.uk www.citizensadvice.org.uk
Social media
@HambRichSelbyCAB
www.facebook.com/CitizensAdviceHambRichSelbyandDistrict/
Page 25