Gateshead Council and Citizens Advice Gateshead joint working benefiting residents
The turmoil of recent years, including the pandemic and the rising cost of living, has undoubtedly made life more difficult for many Gateshead residents, with more people than ever seeking advice and support.
To help meet this challenge, Gateshead Council have closely collaborated with Citizens Advice Gateshead (CAG) to expand the reach of their service and widen the range of advice and guidance they collectively bring to local communities, so that everyone can access the right support for their needs.
Each year the council provides financial assistance to CAG to help support their service delivery. In the last year, through council funding and other sources, they have helped over 18,500 residents with 150,000 issues and generated £27.53m in financial gains for the people of the borough.
Councillor Maria Hall, Cabinet Member for Localities, Communities and Volunteering at Gateshead Council, said:
"The economic conditions throughout the country presently are causing hardship for many of us, particularly the most vulnerable. CAG's ambition is for a fair society for all, with lives well lived, and to help achieve this we are working hand in hand with them to identify new and innovative ways to deliver the quality and impartial advice they've become synonymous with, providing the help people need, at the right time."
The vast majority of issues residents seek support with relate to benefit entitlements, debt, housing, and health, but an emerging issue was the ease with which residents were able to access services.
Judith Wood-Archer, Service Delivery Director at Citizens Advice Gateshead, said:
"Driven in part by increasing destitution in our local population, we were finding that despite a clear need for support, many residents weren't able to engage with us in a traditional 9 to 5, Monday to Friday model, so we made the decision to bring the support to them and have changed our model to one of localised delivery in community locations. This has given us much more flexibility and increased accessibility for residents"
As a result, CAG now operate across seven local venues spread across Gateshead in areas of high demand, with advisers working closely alongside the existing support at each location.
A further service improvement has been the training of all advisers to be able to respond to housing related enquires. Previously such issues, which could relate to anything from rent arrears to homelessness, were handled exclusively by a smaller team of housing experts. This upskilling has reduced wait times and now all but the most complex of cases can be responded to by all colleagues.
The council have also invested in the development of their contact centre team, who already provide a valuable support function to residents. This team will both make referrals to CAG where appropriate, and received them following a CAG intervention where their issues will be reviewed, and the resident offered guidance on how best to engage the council depending on their needs.
In addition, with the help of funding from Gateshead Council, CAG have been able to recruit an additional adviser, and have extended their opening time to include weekends to be able to support those in full time employment or who find it difficult to get into the service at other times. They are open at their main centre Davidson Building, Swan Street in Gateshead town centre between 10 am and 4pm on both Saturday and Sunday.
Barry Taylor, Chair of Trustees at Citizens Advice Gateshead, said:
"The relationship we have with Gateshead Council is critical to the development of better services for Gateshead residents. We can act as a trusted voice for the residents and a respected partner with the council. Working together for the people of Gateshead, we're constantly innovating together to find new ways of delivering support, and we look forward to continuing this pathway into the future, to make sure everyone gets the help they so desperately need."
Councillor Maria Hall, added:
"The role of CAG in supporting the wellbeing of Gateshead's residents cannot be understated, and with the council forging an ever-closer relationship with them, we can make sure we're providing a comprehensive and joined up service provision that is willing and ready to support those in need.
"The impact of the funding we provide has been remarkable, and I'm so pleased we've been able to support the introduction of a broad of service developments that are making a real difference to local residents. Long may it continue."
If you are experiencing issues relating to benefits, financial hardship, employment, housing, health, discrimination, legal, relationships, crisis support, or anything in between and you think CAG may be able to help, you can call them on 0808 278 7902, or drop-in to one of the convenient locality hubs. Further information can be found on the Citizens Advice Gateshead website (opens new window).
The turmoil of recent years, including the pandemic and the rising cost of living, has undoubtedly made life more difficult for many Gateshead residents, with more people than ever seeking advice and support.
To help meet this challenge, Gateshead Council have closely collaborated with Citizens Advice Gateshead (CAG) to expand the reach of their service and widen the range of advice and guidance they collectively bring to local communities, so that everyone can access the right support for their needs.
Each year the council provides financial assistance to CAG to help support their service delivery. In the last year, through council funding and other sources, they have helped over 18,500 residents with 150,000 issues and generated £27.53m in financial gains for the people of the borough.
Councillor Maria Hall, Cabinet Member for Localities, Communities and Volunteering at Gateshead Council, said:
"The economic conditions throughout the country presently are causing hardship for many of us, particularly the most vulnerable. CAG's ambition is for a fair society for all, with lives well lived, and to help achieve this we are working hand in hand with them to identify new and innovative ways to deliver the quality and impartial advice they've become synonymous with, providing the help people need, at the right time."
The vast majority of issues residents seek support with relate to benefit entitlements, debt, housing, and health, but an emerging issue was the ease with which residents were able to access services.
Judith Wood-Archer, Service Delivery Director at Citizens Advice Gateshead, said:
"Driven in part by increasing destitution in our local population, we were finding that despite a clear need for support, many residents weren't able to engage with us in a traditional 9 to 5, Monday to Friday model, so we made the decision to bring the support to them and have changed our model to one of localised delivery in community locations. This has given us much more flexibility and increased accessibility for residents"
As a result, CAG now operate across seven local venues spread across Gateshead in areas of high demand, with advisers working closely alongside the existing support at each location.
A further service improvement has been the training of all advisers to be able to respond to housing related enquires. Previously such issues, which could relate to anything from rent arrears to homelessness, were handled exclusively by a smaller team of housing experts. This upskilling has reduced wait times and now all but the most complex of cases can be responded to by all colleagues.
The council have also invested in the development of their contact centre team, who already provide a valuable support function to residents. This team will both make referrals to CAG where appropriate, and received them following a CAG intervention where their issues will be reviewed, and the resident offered guidance on how best to engage the council depending on their needs.
In addition, with the help of funding from Gateshead Council, CAG have been able to recruit an additional adviser, and have extended their opening time to include weekends to be able to support those in full time employment or who find it difficult to get into the service at other times. They are open at their main centre Davidson Building, Swan Street in Gateshead town centre between 10 am and 4pm on both Saturday and Sunday.
Barry Taylor, Chair of Trustees at Citizens Advice Gateshead, said:
"The relationship we have with Gateshead Council is critical to the development of better services for Gateshead residents. We can act as a trusted voice for the residents and a respected partner with the council. Working together for the people of Gateshead, we're constantly innovating together to find new ways of delivering support, and we look forward to continuing this pathway into the future, to make sure everyone gets the help they so desperately need."
Councillor Maria Hall, added:
"The role of CAG in supporting the wellbeing of Gateshead's residents cannot be understated, and with the council forging an ever-closer relationship with them, we can make sure we're providing a comprehensive and joined up service provision that is willing and ready to support those in need.
"The impact of the funding we provide has been remarkable, and I'm so pleased we've been able to support the introduction of a broad of service developments that are making a real difference to local residents. Long may it continue."
If you are experiencing issues relating to benefits, financial hardship, employment, housing, health, discrimination, legal, relationships, crisis support, or anything in between and you think CAG may be able to help, you can call them on 0808 278 7902, or drop-in to one of the convenient locality hubs. Further information can be found on the Citizens Advice Gateshead website (opens new window).
