'Staggering' gains as clients seek help from Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) amid growing cost of living crisis and soaring energy bills
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Clients gaining from help from the Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) network are on average £4400 better off, new figures reveal.
The life-changing impact of its network of bureaux – which includes an office in Inverness – has been highlighted amid the growing cost of living crisis and soaring energy bills.
The newly-published report reveals that since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 about one in five people seeking advice from CAS have made some sort of gain.
The average financial value of these gains is over £4400 which includes direct cash in people’s pockets and benefits in kind such as free school uniforms.
It does not include debt advice which can help people by reducing their repayments, or people who have benefited from understanding and enforcing their rights in a non-financial sense.
The figure has been revealed ahead of new council administrations being formed in the coming weeks, and also shows that the network is worth £245 million in net benefits to Scottish society.
CAS chief executive Derek Mitchell described the average gains as “simply staggering”.
“As the country faces the worst cost of living crisis in living memory, the Citizens Advice network is here to help with free, impartial and confidential advice and information,” he said.
“CABs across the country are essential community services, delivering life-changing results for the people they help.”
The report also reveals around four in 10 cases dealt with by CABs involve clients needing multiple types of advice.
Mr Mitchell warned people were going to struggle in the months ahead and it was important to understand that the challenges people faced would be complex.
“While the soaring cost of energy is driving this crisis, costs are going up everywhere, and met with flat or falling incomes at the same time, people won’t just need help with one issue but will be dealing with multiple problems,” he said.
“That’s where CABs excel. They are a wraparound service and deal with the person’s full range of issues.
“They don’t just try and solve one problem and ignore the rest.
“People can get advice in a way that suits them best – be that in person, over the phone or online.
“Giving people that choice is vital, some people just want a phone number to ring or clear advice to read, but for vulnerable clients and complex cases there’s no substitute for face-to-face advice.”
The CAS is also using pioneering AI technology to ensure when people phone a single entry point they are routed to their local CAB.
Call the helpline free on 0800 028 1456, or go to www.cas.org.uk.
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