WDCA Annual Report 2014-15 - Warwick District Citizens Advice

Warwick District Citizens Advice
10 Hamilton Terrace
Leamington Spa
CV32 4LY
Website: www.cableamington.org.uk
Warwickshire Adviceline: 0844 855 2322
www.citizensadvice.org.uk
We are very grateful for the services and
dedication of all of the following volunteers in
2014/15:
John Boden - Advice Session Supervisor
Andy Bolam - Money Adviser
Sergia Hadjitofi - Macmillan Case Support
Sarah Kingsley-Fried - Macmillan Case Support
Paul Newton - Employment Adviser
Anne Wood - Grants Administrator
Jane Beckett - Grants Administrator
Jackie Walker - Healthwatch
Nigel Milne - IT Support
Peter Blackledge - Webmaster
Money Saving Advisers: Robert Bicker, Margaret
Green, Chris Haylock, David Ndolo
Gateway Assessors: Hugh Beale, Margaret Bold,
Heidi Bottomley, Alexander Bunzl, Angela Fielding,
Rosa Gilham, Sally Harrison, Roger Laws, Jim
Loughran, Lara Moir, Steve Nicholls, Ada Onunkwo,
Andrew Patrick, Mike Slater, John Thomas
We’ve been
changing lives
for 75 years.
Generalist Advisers: Wendy Abdulkarim,
Kathy Blackledge, Jessie Boyes, Jackie Cranmer,
Randolph Hill, Rachel Hopkins, Nick Hoten, Helen
Lord, Bill Lowe, Alan Markless, Alex Mellon, June
Newton, Kevin Payne, Nigel Phipps, Karen Ralph,
Robert Stockdale, Sarah Strachan, Ann Such, Pat
Vallins, Marilyn Waters
Main Office Drop-in Sessions:
Monday
10am—3.30pm
Wednesday
10am—2pm
Thursday
10am—2pm
Friday
10am—2pm
Like us on Facebook
facebook.com/warwickdistrictcitizensadvice
Follow us on Twitter
twitter.com/wdcab
Watch our films on YouTube
youtube.com/citizensadvice
Produced by Warwick District Citizens Advice
September 2015
Registered charity number: 1106631
Registered company number: 5752247
Financial Conduct Authority registration: 617786
Receptionists and Administrators: Rebecca Ashby,
Elizabeth Collins, Rosa Coleman, Marion de Beer,
Will Hopkins, Patty Icke, Moira Jones, Margaret
Lawson, Jean Perry, Ashley Robertson, Sofena
Phillips, Trish Sear
Research and Campaigns Team: Kate Booty, Mike
Slater, Ian Stevens, Marianne Pitts
Trustees
John Daly - Chair
John Plumb - Treasurer
Alison Berry, Richard Brooks, Geoff Brooke-Taylor,
Nicola Davies, Kate Dickson, David Greenwood,
Yvonne Moore, Phil Parker, Antony Townsend, Alan
Wilkinson
Paid staff members 2014/15:
Aidan Knox - Bureau Manager
Charlie Adams - Advice Services Manager
Ann Frogley - Office Manager
Alison Elkin - Advice Session Supervisor/Trainer
Hazel Carrington - Cleaner
Tim Burden - Macmillan Caseworker
Hudha Chowdhury - Macmillan Case Support
Ruth Charsley - Money Adviser
Jenny Harding - Money Adviser
Paul Hobday - Money Adviser
Christine Rutter - Graham Weston - Money Adviser
Jonathan Hattersley - Money Saving Adviser
Thiru Ponnambalam - Money Saving Adviser
Janine Earl - Outreach Worker
Warwick District Citizens Advice
Annual report
2014/15
Warwick District
Citizens Advice
turns 75
In 1939 the government decided to set up an
information service called the Citizens Advice
Bureau (CAB) to help and guide the population
throughout World War II.
The ‘Royal Leamington Spa CAB’ was set up by
the Rotarians in November 1939 and the bureau
was formally opened by the Mayor in Regent
Street in January 1940. By this time over 1,000
bureaux had opened nationwide, They operated
out of public buildings and private houses and
even out of a converted horse box that parked
near bombed areas.
Initial enquiries related to matters such as lost
ration books, evacuation, homelessness and
locating missing relatives and prisoners of war,
although debt quickly became an issue as
income was reduced due to call-ups.
From the beginning the service was run using
volunteers. The core principles of providing free,
confidential and impartial advice underpinned
the service as they still do today.
Over the past 75 years the bureau has witnessed
tremendous societal change but has remained
adaptable and responsive to the changing needs
of its clients. Today the ongoing impact of the
recent economic downturn, austerity measures
including welfare reform and cuts to legal aid
present huge challenges to our service users, but
we remain committed to providing an excellent
service to those who need us most.
Our new cost benefit tools (pages 4 and 5) go
some way to demonstrating both our positive
impact on clients and on wider society and the
savings to government of funding our work.
1
Technology has come a long way and we have
improved access to advice services via the
telephone and Internet. In 2014/15 our advice
website, www.citizensadvice.org.uk, provided
online advice to over 20.7 million visitors.
Across Warwickshire we answered over 5,615
calls to our County Telephone Service. From
October 2015 we will also be providing advice
via web chat.
Increasing digital and telephone access to our
services does not, however, diminish the need
for face to face advice, which many of our
clients require and rely on. As well as
continuing to recruit more volunteers to run
our core service at Hamilton Terrace, we have
committed to increasing our face to face
outreach provision. In 2015/16 we will be
setting up volunteer-run advice clinics in
community hubs in the areas of Warwick
District with the highest levels of social and
financial exclusion in order to improve face to
face access by the most vulnerable.
As ever we are indebted to our paid staff but
also to our 70-plus volunteers who provide
over £377,000 worth of their time for free, and
without whom we simply could not deliver our
service to clients every year, no matter what
each new year brings.
Here’s to another 75!
Aidan Knox
Manager
In memory of
Roy Kenwright
MBE
In 2013 we were sad to learn of the death of
Roy Kenwright MBE at the age of 90. Roy was
a volunteer adviser for Warwick District
Citizens Advice Bureau from 1987 - 2004. He
specialised in employment law and
represented many of our clients at tribunals.
Mr Kenwright, who was made an MBE in the
New Year’s Honours List in 2000 for his
services to the community, flew specially
camouflaged blue Spitfires on more than 125
reconnaissance missions over Europe in the
Second World War. He was recognised for his
brave service by being awarded with the
Distinguished Flying Cross and the Medal for
War Service from the former USSR.
Retiring in 1987 at the age of 65, Mr Kenwright
was determined to remain active and he
worked for 30 hours a week for organisations
including the YMCA, Warwickshire Association
for the Blind, and Myton Hospices as well as
Citizens Advice.
Roy generously bequeathed £2,000 to us and
we agreed with his family that it would be used
to make improvements to our reception and
client waiting area. In June we officially
opened our newly decorated and refurbished
waiting area complete with new chairs and a
television screen displaying information about
our advice process and other useful
information for clients to read while they wait
to be seen.
Roy is sadly missed and warmly remembered
by many.
With thanks to our
funders
We would like to thank all of our funders listed below for their continued and robust
support for our work. For funding detail this newsletter should be read in conjunction
with the Financial Statements 2014/15 on our website.
As we all know, Local Authority Budgets are under ever-increasing pressure and Warwick
District Citizens Advice needs to attract more and varied forms of funding. Please consider
a one-off or regular Gift Aid contribution to Warwick District Citizens Advice. You can
donate to us by sending a text message to 70070 containing the message “WCAB10”
followed by the amount you want to donate, e.g. WCAB10 £5.
We thank all of our funders and donors in 2014/2015: Warwick District Council,
Warwickshire County Council, Royal Leamington Spa Town Council, Warwick Town Council,
Warwick Relief in Need, Kenilworth United Charities, The Leamington Children’s Centres,
The Money Advice Service, Macmillan Cancer Support and Healthwatch Warwickshire.
WARWICK DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVICE ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
14
Advice services
2014/15
We have strengthened our partnership
working this year: in August 2014 we launched
multi-agency initiative ‘Breathing Space’ in
partnership with Warwick District Council,
Bromford, Orbit Housing, Waterloo Housing
Group and Midland Heart, which allows people
to access advice on money worries from
Brunswick Hub every Thursday.
We have also teamed up with Alsters Kelley
and Field Overell solicitors to offer free 30minute slots to clients at monthly advice clinics
from our premises on family and immigration
law matters.
A huge amount of effort and energy went into
honing the quality of our advice this year in
preparation for our Quality of Advice Audit (QAA)
in March. We were absolutely overjoyed with
our 90% score, which puts us in the top 3% of
local Citizens Advice charities nationally in terms
of quality. Our auditor commented, “None of
this could have been achieved without a great
deal of hard work and effective leadership and
all those involved, both paid and volunteer staff,
are to be commended for their outstanding
performance at this QAA”.
Our ambition in 2015 is to increase our face-toface, telephone and web chat capacity whilst
maintaining our excellent standards.
Advice in numbers
2014/15
100%
of our clients
say they would
recommend us
3,394
14,341
92%
clients advised
advice issues
addressed
reported
satisfaction with
the overall service
they received
Charlie Adams
Advice Services Manager
Words from
the Chair
Types of advice issue
14%
In March this year we were delighted to
celebrate our 75th Anniversary at a lunch hosted
by our friends from The Rotary Club of Royal
Leamington Spa. It was a fitting occasion for the
two organisations that work in the voluntary
sector to come together, especially as Rotary had
been instrumental in setting up Citizens Advice
in Leamington Spa in 1940. From small
beginnings demand for our services has grown
but our commitment to providing effective,
impartial and free advice in a confidential setting
has not changed.
13
I am grateful for the opportunity to have led
the Trustee Board during the last 6 years. It
has been a period of substantial change –
some anticipated, some not -- but we have
managed to adapt to those changes
successfully so far. I believe we have an
excellent group of trustees who work well as a
team and give support to the Manager
whenever required. My thanks to all my
colleagues – I have enjoyed my time as Chair
and learned a lot along the way.
Debt
3%
34%
4%
4%
Benefits
Employment
Housing
Family and Relationships
7%
Consumer and utilities
Legal
7%
27%
Other
John Daly
Chair of WDCA Trustee Board
WARWICK DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVICE ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
2
The impact of our
service
Money saving advice
Our value to society in 2014/15
We prevent detriment occurring or escalating and help maintain or improve the health and
wellbeing of both our clients and our volunteers.
New Economy Manchester has created a cost benefit tool which was developed with and
approved by HM Treasury economists. This tool, combined with real client information from our
case recording system Petra, has shown that for every £1 invested in Warwick District Citizens
Advice, we generate the following:
£2.29 In fiscal benefits
(saving to government), e.g.
reduction in health service
demand, local authority
homelessness services and
out-of-work benefits for
clients and volunteers
Total: £807,000
£15.62 in benefits to
individuals (value to our
clients), e.g. income gained
through benefits claimed,
debts written off and
consumer problems
resolved.
Total: £5,500,000
£12.77 in public value
(wider economic and social
benefits), e.g. improvements
in participation and
productivity for clients and
volunteers
Total: £4,509,000
Here’s the technical bit...
Our value is likely to be even higher than this. We have factored in a 50% impact deadweight (i.e.
the assumption 50% of client problems could have been resolved without our help - although
according to Citizens Advice research only 20% of clients tell us this).
We haven’t factored in the savings to government of helping clients navigate processes such as
welfare reform, the savings to creditors including Local Authorities in not chasing arrears, the
health, economic and societal benefits of the following: maximising clients’ income, helping clients
remedy unsafe or substandard living conditions, keeping families together, preventing suicide and
helping those living with domestic violence, and the advice given to 20.7 million visitors to our selfhelp website. We also haven’t calculated the monetary value of our research and campaigning or
financial education work.
3
WARWICK DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVICE ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
This year our team of 4 money saving advisers
worked with 561 people in groups or on a 1:1
basis on strengthening money management
skills. Within these numbers were 174 front line
workers who could cascade the information
received to the people they work with.
This support included how to manage a budget,
finding the best deals and borrowing wisely, for
example by accessing local Credit Unions.
Energy Best Deal sessions aimed to tackle fuel
poverty by showing people how to shop around
to reduce energy costs by switching tariff,
payment method or supplier. They also covered
where to go for help if paying energy bills was a
struggle including the availability of energy
grants and discounts.
Warwick District Citizens Advice continues to be
a Healthwatch Warwickshire reporting centre
which means that we ask clients to tell us about
their positive and negative experiences of health
and social care in the local area. Healthwatch
Typical savings made by people who had not
considered changing supplier or tariff for some
time were between £200 and £500 a year!
Next year our emphasis will be on 1:1 work and
we will work with the money advisers to
integrate money management sessions into the
debt advice process.
Warwick District Citizens Advice also leads a
Consumer Empowerment Partnership (CEP)
group which meets quarterly along with Trading
Standards and frontline staff from various other
partner agencies. The aim of the partnership is
to draw attention to consumer scams, raise
awareness of consumer rights and promote
consumer confidence.
monitors this information and where
appropriate can recommend investigation or
special review of services to the Care Quality
Commission.
Looking to the future...
Our focus over the next 12 months will be the
recruitment and training of more advice
volunteers and the expansion of our outreach
services.
We are also preparing for the implementation of
universal credit which is coming to Jobcentre
Plus in Leamington Spa in early October.
Universal credit will be paid monthly in arrears
and is due to replace income support, incomebased JSA, income-related ESA, tax credits and
housing benefit. Citizens Advice research
(Universal credit managing migration pilot: Final
results, 2013) showed that 50% of our clients will
eventually be affected, and that 9 in 10 will need
help managing the transition successfully. We
are liaising with Jobcentre Plus staff to set up
referrals to our financial capability team where
individuals require budgeting support. Our
Research and Campaigns Team will also be
keeping a close eye on the impact on families of
lump-sum monthly payments and the far more
stringent conditionality requirements.
From April 2015 we will also be offering
‘Pensionwise’ appointments to give guidance to
people with defined contribution pension pots
on their options and how to avoid scams.
12
In focus: outreach
We resolve 2 out of 3 client problems1
66% resolved
Janine Earl has worked for Warwick District
Citizens Advice for over 17 years and currently
delivers outreach advice at Shire Hall in Warwick,
at Kenilworth Library and at Lillington and
Kingsway Children’s Centres. This is what she
said about her role.
What kinds of enquiries do you get?
The clients I see come in with all kinds of
enquiries: usually about debt, benefits, housing,
employment, consumer or relationships but
sometimes I get unusual ones like who owns the
ashes of a deceased person following cremation.
The variety keeps the job very interesting!
What are the challenges of working across
different outreach locations and for various
projects funded by different organisations?
Lone working requires me to be very selfsufficient but I make sure I stay in touch with my
colleagues at the main office and take everything
I’m likely to need with me—which is a lot! Every
funded project has different reporting
requirements which can feel onerous but I know
we’re under ever-increasing pressure to
demonstrate the value and impact of our work
to maintain our funding.
What do you most enjoy about your role?
Meeting people, resolving problems, seeing
people smile or tell me they are relieved
following the advice, learning new things,
working alongside people from other
organisations.
How do you advise people who are very stressed
or upset about their problems?
I allow them to express their emotions, try to
make them feel comfortable and reassure them
that there is usually a solution even though they
may not think this at the time.
11
You never know what the next person coming to
see you is going to ask for advice about – how do
you go about finding the answers for people?
The law changes all the time so I always use the
Citizens Advice ‘AdviserNet’ information system
to look things up. I have a lot of experience so
know what information I need to gather from
the client and know where to look to find the
advice quickly. We also work closely with
partner organisations who specialise in
particular areas for example the National
Homelessness Advice Service (NHAS),
Warwickshire Employment Rights Service (WERS)
and Warwickshire Welfare Rights Advice Service
(WWRAS). Citizens Advice also has a ‘Specialist
Support Unit’ that we can contact for help with
very complex cases or for tactical advice.
Warwick District Citizens Advice has been
working in partnership with the Leamington
Children’s Centres for over 8 years – what are
the benefits of working together to help resolve
families’ problems?
The family support workers at the children’s
centres have already gained the trust of the
families they refer to us and often attend the
meetings to give support to the clients and are
able to help them follow up on the advice given.
The health visitors are also there to provide
letters to back parents up where, for example, a
landlord isn’t taking action to deal with damp or
mould and it’s affecting a child’s health or they
are applying for Disability Living Allowance.
I know that lots of parents would struggle to get
to the main office for advice so they really
appreciate having access to it at their local
children’s centre. Families can get there easily
and they have access to all the facilities they
need such as baby changing equipment, bottle
warmers and lots of toys and there is someone
there to mind the children whilst the parent gets
advice.
WARWICK DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVICE ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
19% need more time
15% not resolved
Our work makes a difference for
those most in need

Local Citizens Advice clients are almost five
times as likely to live on a low income than
an average member of the population in
England and Wales

Their lack of access to affordable credit also
means that they pay an annual £1,000
‘poverty premium’ for essential goods and
services2, cutting into already tight finances

There are often greater risks associated with
allowing these clients’ problems to escalate
to the point of state intervention. Helping
them to solve their problems helps mitigate
the social inequalities and the health
inequalities that these give rise to3

The Citizens Advice service also sees a high
proportion of clients who are disabled or
have long-term health problems: 37% of
clients. These clients are at a greater risk of
social exclusion and are likely to experience
greater detriment as a result of a problem,
as well as feel less confident about knowing
how to resolve an issue1
1 Citizens Advice National outcomes and income research, 2014
2 Strelitz, Jason & Kober, Claire (2007) The Poverty Premium: How poor households pay more for essential goods and services.
3 The Marmott Review (2010) Fair Society, Healthy Lives. This review provides clear evidence that people in lower socioeconomic
groups have less chance of leading a healthy life than those in higher socioeconomic groups
4
Research and campaigns
Sometimes client issues cannot be
resolved due to underlying systemic
problems with a policy, practice or set of
regulations. This is why our research and
campaigning work is so important. We
gather evidence of the impact that this has
and push for positive change.
The majority of issues we raised this year
were about benefits: the most common
issue being about administrative failings
and delays, in particular from HMRC in
dealing with tax credit claims and resolving
problems. We also highlighted several
cases where there had been a lack of
support for disabled clients in managing
the transition between Disability Living
Allowance and the new disability benefit
Personal Independence Payment. Delays
of over a year in processing these claims
led to hardship and great anxiety.
We identified one employer who was
routinely underpaying its employees,
raised evidence of the impact of zero
Benefits
24%
40%
Employment
Debt
10%
Housing
12%
27%
Other
-hours contracts and highlighted various instances
of unfair debt collection practices.
In 2014 we wrote a detailed report on the impact of
welfare reform in Warwick District including the
associated rise in rent and Council Tax arrears,
which we shared with key partners including
Warwick District Council, Warwickshire County
Council and Warwickshire Observatory to help
inform policy development.
Q and A with money adviser
Ruth Charsley
You’ve recently celebrated 10 years of working
for Warwick District Citizens Advice – what helps
you stay motivated in your role?
Every person and every situation is different so it
keeps the job interesting. Also the laws relating
to debt keep changing so that keeps me on my
toes. However, mostly it is seeing people
starting to feel free from the worries and
pressures associated with being in debt. That
always motivates me. So often people say to me
after they have had the advice, “I might be able
to sleep now”.
Have you noticed that the types of debt problem
people bring to Citizens Advice have changed
over the past few years?
Very much so. Just after the recession we had
many people with a lot of credit card and loan
debts that they needed help with. Now we often
see people who have just not had enough money
to live on due to welfare cuts and low paid jobs.
They have got into arrears with bills such as rent
or Council Tax or used credit to pay for food or
bills.
Tell us about a recent memorable case where
you felt that you really made a difference
Someone came to see me who had a possession
hearing regarding her mortgaged house. She
had mental health problems and had managed
to keep working but was struggling to manage
her finances. She had taken out payday loans to
help her pay her bills but it made her situation
worse. We looked at her budget and worked out
an offer she could afford towards her mortgage
arrears. I negotiated with the solicitors and they
not only accepted her offer but cancelled the
hearing so she did not have to attend court. This
was a great relief to her.
If you had one piece of advice for a person
struggling with money worries, what would it be?
Pay your most important bills first (e.g. rent and
council tax) and get advice - we are free,
independent, confidential and impartial and we
are here to help. Most of the time we can either
help rearrange payments or help you access a
solution to clear your debts. We also offer help
in saving money, securing more benefits or
accessing charity help.
Our debt advice team got an outstanding 97% score for quality of advice in our March 2015 audit.
£870,586
secured for clients in welfare
benefit payments
£8,819
of Macmillan grants awarded for
items such as heating costs,
clothing and travel
Supported by 3 volunteers, our Macmillan welfare
benefits caseworker provided information, advice and
support to 330 people affected by cancer across South
Warwickshire in 2014/15. Working closely with
Macmillan nurses, staff at Warwick Hospital’s cancer
unit and other health professionals he to ease patients’
financial worries often caused by loss of income and/or
additional care needs.
Thanks to my oncologist we found out about
you and in one morning you sorted out 8
months of worry. Bless you.
Warwick District Citizens Advice
Macmillan Benefits Service Client
5
WARWICK DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVICE ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
Debt advice - impact research
Research carried out by Citizens Advice in 20141 showed that after seeking debt advice from us:
89% felt less stressed, depressed or
anxious
31% had a more secure housing
situation
53% reported improvements in
their physical health
24% had better relationships with
other people
65% had more money or better
control over their finances
18% found it easier to do their job
or find a job
1 Citizens Advice National outcomes and income research, 2014
10
In focus: debt advice
Volunteering with us
Our dedicated volunteers provide the backbone of our service. We asked them to tell us what they
get out of volunteering for Warwick District Citizens Advice.
In 2014/15, Warwick District Citizens Advice Bureaux helped 827 clients
manage over £8 million worth of debt
When people approach us with money
problems, the stress associated with their
creditors’ chasing letters and phone calls has
often led them to pay those that shout the
loudest first. We help them take stock of their
financial situation, maximise their income, plan
a budget and negotiate affordable repayments
ensuring that the most important debts such as
rent arrears, council tax arrears, gas debts and
electricity debts are prioritised in order to
protect their homes, liberty and fuel supply.
This also saves the Local Authority money in
debt collection, employing bailiffs or starting
possession proceedings.
Options for dealing with non-priority debts
include offering token payments until
circumstances improve, an IVA or, where
affordable, offering a lump sum in full and final
settlement. Where clients simply cannot afford
to pay, we negotiate for non-priority debt to be
written-off or assist them in applying for
bankruptcy or a debt relief order, preventing
the debt from continuing to impact on the
wellbeing of the client and preventing creditors
incurring further unnecessary administrative
costs.
We never tell our clients what to do, but explain
the pros and cons of each debt option to allow
them to make their own informed decision. We
then help them fill out forms, negotiate with
creditors and even represent them at court
hearings where necessary.
Unsecured personal loan debts
236
Rent arrears
233
225
205
Credit card, store and charge card debts
Water supply and sewerage debts
Between 2010 and 2014 we contributed
evidence of bad practice, high fees and
resulting problem debt to a national Citizens
Advice campaign on payday lending. As a
result of our campaign there is now a cap on
the cost of payday loans, aggressive adverts
have been banned, and the FCA is regulating
the industry tightly to protect customers.
9
Andrew, Gateway Assessor
I decided to volunteer to
help people and give
something back. I find it
enjoyable, fulfilling and
rewarding.
Heidi, Gateway Assessor/Trainee Adviser
Top debt problems (unique clients affected) in 2014/15
Council tax arrears
It’s very rewarding to know
that you’re offering help to
people who really do need
it. Every client enquiry is
different. It really feels like
essential work.
138
In the 6 months after
the regulation
changes the number
of payday lending
problems brought to
Citizens Advice has
halved
WARWICK DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVICE ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
I feel like I’m making a
difference and at the same
time gaining valuable
experience.
Sarah, Macmillan Case Support
It’s a good feeling to
empower clients and it
continues to challenge and
stimulate my mind and
keep me young at heart!
Rosa, Gateway Assessor/Trainee Adviser
We ask a great deal of our volunteers. Training to be an adviser, for example, takes a minimum of 9
months and once on the rota we ask for a commitment of at least 6 hours per week over 2 sessions,
plus training time.
However, Citizens Advice volunteers learn valuable skills, stay mentally active, feel better equipped
and empowered to deal with their own issues and feel a stronger connection with their local
community. (Citizens Advice Report (2014) CAB volunteering: how everyone benefits.) At Warwick
District Citizens Advice our volunteers tell us that they particularly enjoy the ‘team spirit’. We also
arrange various social events throughout the year.
Volunteer roles are many and varied. As well as advisers we have financial capability trainers,
administration support volunteers, receptionists, money advice caseworkers, research and
campaigns co-ordinators, advice session supervisors and grants administrators.
If you are interested in volunteering with us, please e-mail our Volunteer Development Co-ordinator
Tim Burden: voldevelopment@wdcab.cabnet.org.uk
6
75 year timeline
The owl:
Original CAB logo
3rd September
1939: war is
declared.
4th September
1939: the first
200 Citizens
Advice Bureaux
open
1967 - The move to 28
Hamilton Terrace enables
the Bureau to expand and
extend services.
In 1950 Mr Cyril Carter set up the
Leamington Spa Bureau’s first
committee. Miss Carter (no
relation) ran the service from
Jephson House in Holly Walk.
Later the Bureau moved to WVS
Headquarters at 5 Regent Grove,
where Mrs R. Craven Jones
became Organising Secretary.
1945
1940
1965
1950
January 1940:
The Royal Leamington Spa Citizens
Advice Bureau is formally opened in
Regent Street by the Mayor,
Alderman C.S. Moore. Initial
enquiries relate to evacuation, food
rationing, missing persons and other
war-time related difficulties.
7
1960
In the 1970s, the Bureau ran
on a shoestring, with one
general office, approximately
12 volunteers and 2
interview rooms.
1973 - Organising
Secretary Mrs Beryl
Crutchfield and Area
Organiser Mr Ayr
help to modernise
the Bureau by setting
up an information
system supplied by
‘NACAB’
1970
Miss Margaret
Brasnett,
previously a
Whitehall cabinet
secretary, was the
bureau’s first
‘Secretary’. In an
article for the Warwickshire Journal, Autumn
1940, she wrote, ‘In Whitehall, one sees
policy debated and laws made. Here one
sees the facts that make policy and the laws
in action. She ends the article by saying,
“This is an ‘emergency service’ for the citizen,
but all who are working in it hope that it will
grow in peace-time into a permanent service
with a wider meaning”.
Miss Brasnett wrote ‘The History of the
Citizens’ Advice Bureaux’ in 1964, describing
the first 25 years of the service.
WARWICK DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVICE ANNUAL REPORT 2014/15
1985
50th
Anniversary
Celebrations
July 1999
June 2015
Bureau moves to
current location:
10 Hamilton
Terrace.
Official opening of
new client waiting
area
adviceguide.org.uk
becomes available
2015
1985
1980
Mary Milton
Bureau Manager
1978 - 1989. She
recalls that the
information system
wasn’t nearly as
detailed back then
and cases were
recorded in
hardback foolscap
books.
1990
Client waiting area
28 Hamilton Terrace
2000
2010
Client waiting area at
10 Hamilton Terrace, 2014
Hilary Holland
Bureau Manager
1989 - 2013
pictured here at
Kenilworth Library
outreach in the
1990s.
8