Moving on from a year in lockdown

 


Laura Hyde, CEO of Citizens Advice East Herts, looks back at a year in lockdown and how our charity has adapted to meet changing needs






On 23rd March last year the country went into lockdown and we moved to providing our free advice service remotely. Over a year on we’re still here and helping but as the country starts to ‘unlock’ now feels like a good time to reflect on how we’ve adapted as well as some of our plans for the future.  

How we’ve adapted

Citizens Advice was founded the day after World War II broke out to help people with problems ranging from evacuation to rations. Our Ware branch opened shortly after in 1940. As a service and as an organisation, we’ve come a long way in our 81-year history but the issues we’re helping with remain much the same –trying to ensure people have enough food to eat, money to live on and a secure roof over their heads.


Covid-19 has caused huge upheaval and change for all of us but if you’re young, BAME, in insecure work or private rented housing, you’re far more likely to have suffered financially due to the crisis. This is reflected in the large increase in demand for our free advice service locally and nationally.

Since 23rd March 2020 to end March 2021 we supported over 8,840 people with free and confidential advice – mainly by phone, email and webchat. This short video tells our story in numbers. 

Here are just some of the ways we adapted to make sure we could keep helping:

  • We introduced a local ‘Messageline phone service so people can now call at any time of day or night and an experienced adviser will call them back. We’ve helped over 2,000 people through this since we launched it last March.
  • We expanded our Facebook coverage to include advice via Facebook Messenger. This has enabled us to help more people, including many where English is not the first language. 
  • We introduced video advice, using the system that many GP surgeries use (‘Attend Anywhere’). This has proved really popular and has helped provide a more personal touch where needed.  
  • We’ve developedbitesize’ advice videos to help tackle common issues, and introduced a 'benefits calculator' to help people see where they might be able to claim additional support. 
  • We also invested in our local online profile, sharing relevant advice in local groups on Facebook and making it easier for people to access advice in their home. On average our social media content now reaches over 8,000 people each month.

Citizens Advice is one of the most recognisable organisations in the country and is often the place people turn to when they need support. We worked with our partners to ensure people had access to the help they needed, whether that be food parcels, shopping and prescriptions, specialist mental health or employment support. Building on this we’ve recently launched a new online referral tool called ‘Frontline’ to provide a “one front door” service for residents to access advice and support — whatever their issue. 

Things have changed

For many years, our most significant enquiry area has been Benefit & Tax Credits, consistently accounting for a large proportion of queries across all our channels.

Over the pandemic, we saw a 100% increase in the number of enquiries relating to employment, with people coming to us with queries relating to furlough and job security.

"I was shielding and unable to work due to my health condition. My employer had put me on sick pay, and I could not manage financially on £95.85 per week. I received a leaflet through my door with the number for Citizens Advice, so I called to see if there was anything I could do. They told me that I was eligible for furlough and could increase my weekly income by around £150." (Client) 

We’ve also seen a big increase (62%) in people coming to us for help with housing issues, mainly linked to the private rented sector.


Our clients have also changed — people who have never had to seek advice from Citizens Advice have found themselves needing help finding a way forward.

“We’ve spoken to people who’ve never used Citizens Advice before, never claimed benefits, and have had a steady income for years. Suddenly, they feel as if the rug’s been pulled from under them and don’t know what to do. We’re here to listen, support and then help them find a way forward, and it’s always rewarding when you hear the relief in someone’s voice at the end of a call.” (Adviser)


As an organisation, we have a team of over 70 volunteers and employ a small team of paid staff. Despite all the personal and professional challenges Covid19 has presented, they have all worked tirelessly to ensure our services are accessible and that we are there for those who need us.

Moving forward

As we begin to plan for a ‘new normal’ we’re working with our partners to embed the lessons from our new ways of working and make sure we continue to meet the changing needs of our community.

For many people, their problems might be only just beginning as they struggle with the knock-on effects of the pandemic — especially as the support measures put in place by the government start to be withdrawn.

Four advice areas we are expecting to see clients need more support are:

·        Personal debt — as the full effects of personal finances becomes clearer. Those who have fallen behind on their payments will start receiving demand letters.

·        Housing and homelessness — Research from Citizens Advice shows that over half a million people in private rented housing were behind on their rent in January. Many will be forced to leave their homes when the current protections for tenants come to an end.

·        Employment — as restrictions ease and businesses reopen, the full extent of their financial situation will be realised, and redundancies might be needed to ensure businesses are viable into the future. Residents will need support to navigate the confusing processes around redundancy, ensuring any processes are fair.

·        Benefits and Universal Credit — the prospect of rising unemployment in particular sectors like travel and tourism means that more people will need to apply for benefits like Universal Credit or New Style Job Seekers Allowance.

We're committed to providing independent and trusted advice to help people find a way forward.

This means not going back to how things used to be, where people had to ‘drop in’ and wait (sometimes for over an hour) to see an adviser. Instead we want to build on the progress we’ve made in developing our phone and online platforms, keeping face to face advice for those who need it the most.

In person advice will be focussed on those who are digitally excluded, unable to use the phone due to a condition, disability or impairment or for people with limited English, for example. Advice appointments will be offered in a range of locations to suit the individual, such as family and community centres, food banks etc. We’ll also be piloting ‘free phones’ and public access computers in a range of locations so that more people can connect with us remotely.

Just as we’ve always been, we’ll continue to be here for those who need us, working in partnership with others and fundraising to be able to provide this free advice service.

Citizens Advice East Herts is an independent registered charity and part of the Citizens Advice network (England and Wales). To find out more about our work or how to support it please see our website.  

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