Citizens Advice Torfaen Blog

Monday, 19 January 2015

Generalist Webchat project to start soon

Generalist webchat

Following a successful joint bid with Cardiff and Vale, Caerphilly, and Merthyr CABx a generalist webchat service will begin at Torfaen in the next few weeks. Located next to our Adviceline telephone desk in the Cwmbran bureau the service will be led by a jointly employed member of staff who over the next 14 months will deliver on the project targets whilst recruiting and training new volunteers to continue a sustainable service beyond the end of the initial funding. Torfaen will be expected to conduct 22 webchats a week. The service will link in to telephone advice through our other projects as well as other telephone and bureau services in much the same was as adviceline does currently.

Private sector rented housing survey

If you rent your house from a private landlord can you please help Citizens Advice with this research by completing this short questionnaire https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PRSext

Lee Chesterman from Newport

The week we welcomed Lee from Newport Bureau who will be delivering Debt Advice from our Cwmbran Bureau as part of Newport CAB's Frontline Debt Advice project

Save the Children Christmas Jumper Day

I am pleased to report that the Bureau has received a certificate from Save the Children thanking us for the donation of £70 that we raised at the Christmas Party. Bob led on this so a big well done to him and thanks to all who contributed.

Proceeds of crime fund

Some of you may have noticed that the Gwent Police Proceeds of Crime Fund is re-opening. This fund offers small grants to community organisations for projects that will reduce offending behavior, including alcohol and drug dependency. Unfortunately the fund will not cover staff costs and cannot be used to purchase capital items. I would welcome any ideas you may have about how TCAB could get involved with this.

Bureau closure

The Bureau will next be closed for Easter on Good Friday 3^rd April, Easter Monday 6^th April and Tuesday 7^th April.

Feedback

I always welcome feedback from staff and volunteers, you can ring me up on 01633 876128 send me an email at mal.edgson@torfaencab.org.uk, write me a letter, comment on this blog, place your comment or suggestion in the comments box in the Cwmbran meeting room or come and see me.

This Blog is prepared for the staff and volunteers of Torfaen Citizens Advice Bureau

Friday, 16 January 2015

Cold with Wintery Showers

Bad weather contingency plans

When wintery showers fall on parts of Torfaen they can cause some travel chaos. Last Wednesday areas of Blaenavon and Garnsychan we not passable and there are likely to be more such days before winter is through. This inevitably leads to problems for staff and volunteers trying to get to work.

Please don't travel if it is not safe to do so. If it is safe, please make your way to your nearest bureau if it is not possible to get to your normal place of work, please leave a voice message on 01633 876121 option 3 to let us know if this is the case. Paid staff should also text Mal or Lynne so we can arrange cover, notify staff and clients, and alert the public via facebook and twitter.

Paid staff staff should also make provision to allow for work to be done at home when disruption is expected.

There are good links on this page for information about travel and gritting.

http://www.torfaen.gov.uk/en/TransportStreets/RoadsAndPavements/Roadsandhighways-gritting/Winter-Maintenance.aspx

New starters

This week we welcome Matthew Chambers, Lesley Turner and Debra Lunt to the bureau. Welcome aboard we look forward to working with you

Admin - victim of its own success

Please bear with us this month as we have had an unprecedented migration of admin volunteers from our team. Five of our most prolific volunteers left us for better things recently and there is quite a hole behind them. Adam has taken a job with the Citizens Advice Consumer Advice call center, Sam has left to go full time in Brantano shoe shop. Helen left us for a new job with a Monmouthshire housing association, Hannah has been taken on by TVA as an administrator as well as her college work, and Matthew has been away to concentrate on job searches. We done to all of them for their respective successes, please try not to do it with such synchronicity in future!

Lisa is currently interviewing new volunteers and we hope to have reception cover fully up and running again soon.

The NEW way of making sure our advice is top notch.

TCAB is coming to the end of the first month of our new advice quality audit regime and we have already learnt a few things. Firstly, our advice is of high quality and has scored well so far giving us a GREEN light on our first monthly scoreboard. Secondly, we have been able to focus on how to improve. Over the next few weeks we will be holding briefings with advisers on the techniques of recognising a wider range of peripheral and consequential client issues once the presenting issues have been dealt with and making sure these are well referenced in the client notes. Please look out for these opportunities.

Benefit Sanctions

Radio 4 File on 4, this coming Tue 21st Jan at 8pm,will focus on benefit sanctions and asks if disabled people are being set up to fail. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04yk7h6

Bureau closure

The Bureau will next be closed for Easter on Good Friday 3^rd April, Easter Monday 6^th April and Tuesday 7^th April.

Feedback

This Blog is prepared for the staff and volunteers of Torfaen Citizens Advice Bureau

Monday, 12 January 2015

Happy New Year

A Happy New Year to all At Torfaen CAB

Communities First project

We are very pleased to announce that this project has been funded for an additional year. The projects provides funds for 2 caseworkers to address debt and benefits issues at outreach locations in collaboration with Torfaen Communities First. The project began in Oct 2013.

The Advice Session Supervisor – The NEW ‘Go To’ person for everything.

You have told us very clearly that you think communication needs to be improved in the Bureau. A number of volunteers report that they don’t know who to go to when there is a problem.

We would like to make it clear that ALL problems should be fed through the On Duty Advice Session Supervisor. The Duty ASS will then raise an action with the member of the management team responsible. This will ensure that the ASS is always aware of problems that arise during an advice session and can make compensating arrangements to offset the problem if possible as well as making it easy to remember for everyone else.

The duty ASS is listed on the office diary which can be accessed from any bureau PC and at Cwmbran is also written on the lower office door.

The story of James and the Eviction

Client, a single divorced man living in Bron Afon property had been claiming ESA but stopped doing so because of emotional problems he suffered following a family bereavement. His failure to claim ESA affected his housing benefit and by the time the client started claiming ESA again he was in rent arrears of around £1700. While the client had agreed a repayment plan in November 2014 no payments were made because the client did not receive the payment card Bron Afon had agreed to send to him. Consequently Bron Afon commenced possession proceedings and the client was evicted on 9th December. The client attended the Gateway session in Cwmbran on 10th December the day following the eviction. James telephoned Bron Afon on the clients behalf and they agreed that the client could return to the property if he cleared the arrears. The client was able to clear the arrears the following day and was allowed back into the property.

This case is unusual in that the client was able to find £1700 to pay off the arrears in full but nevertheless shows that even after a tenant has been evicted all is not necessarily lost.

We done James, great result

TAX Help for Older People

TOPS are resuming their monthly clinics in bureau. The next one will take place on Friday 16^th January, 10am to 12 noon.

Advice on wills, probate and powers of attorney

Solicitors Everett and Tomlin have asked if we would like another one of their solicitors to come to the bureau periodically (probably fortnightly) to give advice on wills, probate and powers of attorney. David is currently arranging this and it should be finalised shortly.

New volunteers

This week we are pleased to welcome Abigail Jones, John Hodgetts, David Roberts- Lloyd, Kelly Thompson to our team.

Frontline Debt Advisor from Newport CAB starts soon

As part of the Front line Advice project Lee a Debt caseworker from Newport will be offering Debt advice alongside our team 2days a week starting shortly. This mirrors the arrangement where Andrew provides Benefits casework out of Newport CAB. We will be organising appointments for Lee but he will be supervised out of Newport CAB. I am sure you will make him feel very welcome at Torfaen.

Adviceline style Webchat advice

Following a successful collaborative bid between Torfaen, Cardiff & The Vale, Caerphilly and Merthyr CAB’s we will shortly have an adviser and project manager one day a week to offer webchat general advice and gradually develop a volunteer team to fully operate the service by the end of the 14 month period of start-up funding. This project will be located next to the Advice line desk at Cwmbran.

Team meeting

The next team meeting will take place on Wed 25^th February 1pm – 4pm and will focus on Citizens Advice campaign work with guest speaker from the Cymru campaigns team. All Bureau services will be closed that afternoon so that everyone can attend although the Shelter session will continue as normal.

Bureau closure

The Bureau will next be closed for Easter on Good Friday 3^rd April, Easter Monday 6^th April and Tuesday 7^th April.

Feedback

This Blog is prepared for the staff and volunteers of Torfaen Citizens Advice Bureau

Sunday, 30 November 2014

24 Shopping Days to Go

Top 10 Tips to Avoid A Christmas Debt Hangover

Every year Citizens Advice publish advice articles to help people navigate the festive period. you can download their 'debt hangover'' advice here

Well Worth It

Generalist adviser Clive saw a gentleman last week who's attempt to purchase a car had gone a little badly. The gentleman had visited a car dealer to buy a VW. He had intended to purchase the car outright but was persuaded by the salesman to take out a credit agreement and he signed over a non refundable deposit. On returning home the client changed his mind and asked the garage to cancel the agreement and refund the deposit. The dealership refused because he had signed to agree the deposit was non refundable.

Following our advice the client used social media to complain to VW who responded with an apology and £500 in compensation. A second letter of complaint to the dealership led to the cancelling of the contract and the refund the deposit. Well done to our client for getting a great result, well done Clive for helping him get there and well done VW and the car dealership for doing the right thing in the end.

Staff & Volunteer engagement survey

Thank you to the 25 people who completed our questionnaire. The overall picture you painted of working for TCAB was very positive. Happy.co.uk the company who organise the survey congratulated us on another very strong result and for the third year running we exceeded the benchmark scores on every single factor measured.

But this year you were slightly less positive on issues around communication, management and pay. You told us that you felt that often we were not as organised as we should be, do not communicate as well as we could and did not innovate enough. Thank you for this feedback, please be assured that we get the message and will do our best to respond in these areas.

The Local Government pay award (we follow their terms and conditions) has now been agreed and will be passed on as soon as the new scale points are available. Staff can view the details of the pay award here

Diary changes

Our new Frontline Advice project started at the beginning of November. Whilst it only involves two of our caseworkers directly in the delivery the knock on changes have made some difference to the working week of nearly everyone.

The seven different projects which account for the majority of the bureau's funding all require different combinations of specialism, experience and location. Balancing this with the skills of our adviser team both paid and voluntary sometimes presents a bit of a puzzle to achieve the best solution. we hope that we have settled on the right changes until march 2015 but there will inevitably be further changes then, potentially affecting everyone a second time although we will try and keep changes to a minimum.

The TCAB Christmas Bash

Over 30 staff and volunteers of the bureau joined together for our Christmas Meal at the Unicorn in Pontypool last Friday. It was a lovely afternoon for good food, good wine, good company and chat. It was great to spend time talking to some that I have not had the chance to talk to before as well as old friends and colleagues.

A special message goes out to the Secret Santa who chose my present. The vintage stilton is excellent. Good choice.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

This will be the last Blog before 2015 so I wish you all well and thank you for your hard work and generosity in 2014 and look forward to an even better 2015.

Feedback

Diary dates

Christmas closure: The Bureau will be closed from Mon 22nd Dec until Friday 2nd Jan inclusive. Staff are expected to take the period around the statutory holidays as annual leave as usual.

This Blog is prepared for the staff and volunteers of Torfaen Citizens Advice Bureau

Monday, 24 November 2014

The busiest of times

September 2014, our busiest month ever

September was perhaps the busiest ever month for TCAB. We dealt with 892 people across gateway, generalist and specialist appointments, telephones, webchat and email.

The previous highest monthly total being 823 in July and there is no doubt that we are seeing a steady growth in demand and, more importantly, in our ability to meet it.

Birthday Party - this Tuesday

We will be celebrating the Citizens Advice 75^th Birthday & the 50^th Birthday of our Pontypool Bureau on Tuesday 25th November. Join us at 3pm here at the Cwmbran Bureau we will be having Sandwiches, nibbles & cake and just celebrate the Bureau together.

People are invited to finish early at Pontypool and the outreaches to come and join in.

Energy Best Deal

Hats off to Natalie Hopkins this week for realising the potential of this scheme and registering the Bureau. Energy Best Deal will provide a small amount of funding to enable the bureau to undertake some group briefing sessions for local front line staff and to undertake energy reviews with up to 50 clients between now and March 2015. This is a very suitable opportunity for Gateway Advisers and Generalists alike so watch this space for the training opportunities shortly.

Team Meeting - this Wednesday

the final team meeting of 2014 will feature a session from energy best deal demonstrating how we can help our clients reduce their energy bills, we will have a session from Torfaen Families First who we are keen to join with in supporting the best wrap around support for families in the area. We will also have a session from Andrea showing us all how to correctly capture the advice issue codes on our case recording.

A gentle reminder about appointment forms

Please would staff and volunteers remember to properly complete client appointment forms ensuring the name of the caseworker is correct and that the client knows what information they need to bring with them to the appointment so they avoid a wasted journey.

Christmas Do...

Just a reminder that we will be closed this Friday afternoon for our Christmas celebrations. If you have not yet registered there may be the odd place left. Please contact Lisa Oates. We all need to be at the Unicorn in Pontypool by 1.30pm in your best festive jumpers.

Feedback

Diary dates

Sunday, 2 November 2014

Time to give us some feedback

For the last two years we have asked all Employees, Volunteers and Trustees of Torfaen CAB to complete a short survey to let us know what its like to work with us.

In 2012 and 2013 we got extremely positive results from a small group of you. This group of around 20 staff, volunteers and trustees basically told us that they were very positive about TCAB. It was great news to know you thought we were on the right track.

This year we want to hear from all of you, warts and all (that's our warts, not your warts) because we want Torfaen CAB to be a great place to work and volunteer and if we are not hitting the mark we are relying on you to tell us.

The survey takes less that 5 minutes to complete. Please follow the link. Use code TC3 in the first box and leave the Department box Blank.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SBNCR9Z

The survey will close after two weeks and the results will be reported at our Team Meeting on Wed 26th November at 1pm

Diary Dates

Annual General Meeting: Friday 21 Nov, 3pm in the meeting room
Team Meeting 26 Nov 1pm
Christmas Meal: Friday 28th November, 1.30pm The Unicorn, Pontypool
Christmas closure: The Bureau will be closed from Mon 22nd Dec until Friday 2nd Jan inclusive. Staff are expected to take the period around the statutory holidays as annual leave as usual.

Friday, 24 October 2014

The Curious Problem with Social Policy

I always think that changing the world for the better should be an exciting thing to do. Large groups of like minded people, an intoxicating bond of common cause and scent of victory. It is curious then that our main link to the campaigning work of Citizens Advice is such a solitary activity.

The Bureau Evidence Form, or BEF for short, changes the world through hive behavior. Each tiny pollen like grain of evidence building a sticky and powerful story from which the policy maker cannot escape, and in the same way that bees know little of bread and butter, we are also largely ignorant about what happens to our BEFs once we have passed them on.

But we do know that bees make honey, that many hands make light work, that telling stories is powerful and that we have stories; stories that tell personal tragedies of wrongs that need righting and laws carelessly made. Stories that have changed lives by changing laws, laws about payday lenders, renting houses, the treatment of the disabled in the benefits system and more.

When we act locally the stories, along with their hero's and villains, are closer to hand, our influence more direct and, quite frankly the whole thing can be a bit more rewarding because we can do it together and take part in what is going on.

Currently we are doing two things:

1) We have told our local Job Centre's that they don't live up to their own standards. We told them that too often they were

not taking into account people circumstances
not taking into account peoples disabilities
advising people incorrectly
not doing simple things to help people
being rude and disrespectful

We have met with them to discuss these issues and will be meeting with them again. We will raise issues anonymously with a named contact in each Job Centre as we come across them. We are hoping to change some local attitudes and local practices. Please keep the information coming.

2) We are also challenging the Local Authority to provide more child care in advance of the stricter requirement for young mums to work that Universal Credit will bring.

So here is my call to arms

if you can see a local wrong that needs righting
if you can identify the problem, the victim and the person locally who can do something about it
join in with a small group of staff, and volunteers in the Bureau and TOGETHER will see what can be done about it.

At our next Team Meeting on November 26th, Alun Evans from the Citizens Advice Cymru Campaigns Team will be coming to talk about the hot issues that Citizens Advice will be campaigning on. Please don't miss this opportunity to get involved in some local campaigning together.

Mal

Diary Dates

The Citizens Advice Social Policy Newsletter is produced monthly, you can subscribe to it, there is a link to the September edition on Cablink below

https://newsletter.citizensadvice.org.uk/display.php?M=23816&C=9648c90134eda5ac9ec0ea6caa709475&S=1238&L=3&N=807

This Blog is prepared for the staff and volunteers of Torfaen Citizens Advice Bureau