Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

[EXC]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Yep, with no mention of 2012/2013 so will we just go through this again next year ?

That precise question was put to Mark Hoban in today's Moneybox.

It's the first item on the programme BBC iPlayer - Money Box: 12/02/2011

They also interview someone from Which? about the credit card charge super complaint.

[Amethyst]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Thanks EXC got it on now. Some good questions from Paul there and some pants answers from Mark Hoban. Interesting from the stoke cab lady but bit rushed.

Absolutely ridiculous state of affairs for the gov't to put advisors in this position.

Haven't had full reply for the FOI yet ref CFEB...only confirmation it was being looked at.

The 12 months will be sorting out the social levy, forum/online/telephone etc advice replacing a lot of face to face.

[Angry Cat]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Or its been sitting there and planned all along so Vince can come riding out on his white horse and save the day....but then I'm very cynical.

Some, have raised an eyebrow or two about Prince Vince...strategies.

[Latch Key Kid]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Hi

This is good news in my opinion -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2...nment-reverses

An extract below -

The move to continue funding, which will be announced by business secretary Vince Cable on Saturday, should go some way to abating concerns that fee charging debt advice services will fill the gap, selling expensive and often inappropriate financial products such as individual voluntary arrangements to those who can least afford them.

"Last week, a fee charging firm called Debt Free Direct sent out a press release claiming to offer free advice. Its director and insolvency practitioner, Nicola Teader, said: "There is absolutely no need for debtors to go it alone, just because funding has been withdrawn from the Citizens Advice network. We ourselves provide free advice, which can arm someone in debt with all the knowledge they need to decide on the course of action they can take."

"We only charge a fee if we administer a debt management plan, individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) or procedure."

I wonder, before this somewhat premature comment was made, if Nicola had read the recent OFT and Financial Ombudsman Service Reports?

Perhaps Nicola or any other representitives of fee charging debt management or IVA companies with similar opinions would now like to come on this open forum to debate and voice their views.

[ed.]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

My question judging by the news I watched....

27 million = 500 advisors?

They aren't on 50K a year, where is the wastage?

[Latch Key Kid]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

That precise question was put to Mark Hoban in today's Moneybox.

It's the first item on the programme BBC iPlayer - Money Box: 12/02/2011

They also interview someone from Which? about the credit card charge super complaint.

Hi EXC

Listening to Mr Hoban it was clear to me that the whole issue had not been thought through properly (out of touch if you like) and that they were very nearly caught out in an embarrassing way.

The nonchalant way that he just dismissed the fact that advisers had been given notice and some actually had already left their posts beggared belief.

Make no mistake this is a spectacular eleventh hour U Turn and a victory for common sense if nothing else.

It will be much harder for the powers to be to pull another stunt like this in the future.

[Latch Key Kid]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Thanks EXC got it on now. Some good questions from Paul there and some pants answers from Mark Hoban. Interesting from the stoke cab lady but bit rushed.

Absolutely ridiculous state of affairs for the gov't to put advisors in this position.

Haven't had full reply for the FOI yet ref CFEB...only confirmation it was being looked at.

The 12 months will be sorting out the social levy, forum/online/telephone etc advice replacing a lot of face to face.

Hi Amethyst

Totally agree with you here

In my opinion (and this whole sorry episode confirms it more than ever for me) there will always be a need for face to face advisers.

The online self help tools and telephone advice definitely have their place as does financial capability information and training but these will never fully replace the face to face adviser / negotiator.

There is already an abundance of self help materials (including financial healthchecks) available on the internet. Some of these are very useful however on many occasions they eventually refer the user with serious debt problems on for further advice (to the CAB for example).

Have a look on the current CFEB website for examples of this, there is even a Financial Health Check 'already' on there.

12 months gives breathing space (also saves face maybe) for all concerned and when the dust from this near debacle eventually settles I believe that the face to face debt advice provision will become more recognised for the essential and important role it plays and will continue well beyond (sincerely hope so anyway).

Who knows, there may also be a few more surprises ahead in the coming months.

PS - Amethyst - the support on here has been superb x

[EXC]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Hi EXC

Listening to Mr Hoban it was clear to me that the whole issue had not been thought through properly (out of touch if you like) and that they were very nearly caught out in an embarrassing way.

You're not wrong there.

As recently as last week Hoban hadn't a clue as to what was going on:


House of Commons Written Answer: Financial Inclusion Fund
Dr Julian Huppert (Lib Dem: Cambridge) asked HMT what has been given to extending the Financial Inclusion Fund debt advice service beyond the end of March 2011. Responding, Mark Hoban stated:

''The Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF) has always been due to close in March 2011. However, the Government have not yet taken a decision on the future of the projects currently funded from the FIF, including the face-to-face debt advice service.''

''The Government remain committed to helping poorer households to access appropriate financial services, to improve their financial resilience and to avoid falling into unsustainable levels of debt.''

[leclerc]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Julian Huppert is my local MP so if you need any questions asked to him with regards to this then give me a shout and I can do so

[Amethyst]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Still hope for me getting a job when my degree finishes then (thats my selfish view) I was getting a little worried I was trying to get myself in to an area which was going to fall away and be forced to work for some money grabbing DMC.

Ed. ''Wastage'' will be training, where they work from, insurances, stationery, expenses etc. I think we went through the additional expenses on top of staff wages early on in the thread.

Sad that they have lost advisors already over this who will need replacing and the replacements training etc for a year long contract with uncertainty at the end of it.

The future will be interesting. WIll let you all know if anything vaguely interesting comes from this FOI.

[Nibbler]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Still hope for me getting a job when my degree finishes then (thats my selfish view) I was getting a little worried I was trying to get myself in to an area which was going to fall away and be forced to work for some money grabbing DMC.

What degree Amethyst?

I was sorta thinking of it as a direction change. My degree/postgrad stuff has no relation whatsoever.

[Amethyst]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Advice work at staffs xx

[Nibbler]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Advice work at staffs xx

Excellent. I really hope that works out with something long term. If you invest even a 10th of the effort that you have here, you deserve to make a big go of that.

[Amethyst]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

Thank you I hope so too. I wanted to volunteer for CAB to gain experience face to face and basically help them out, but sadly got turned down due to LB being a conflict of interests. That's what spurred me on to do this degree as unfortunately any experience and skills I have picked up from here can;t be used in applications for work or even for volunteering.

What do you have a degree in and what area are you working in? To see if you want to move over to advice work I really would recommend some time volunteering at CAB if you can fit it in your day, as they do need people and it gives a very good insight into how the advice sector works and is tied by red tape lol. Even going along for a 'taster' interview is an interesting and useful experience.

[Amethyst]

Re: Citizens Advice staff facing redundancies

14 February 2011
Citizens Advice Chief Executive, Gillian Guy said:

"We warmly welcome the Government's commitment to provide an extra £27 million for face-to-face debt advice* as replacement for the Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF), due to end in March. Our FIF-funded specialist money advisers have helped over 77,000 people with debt problems over the last year, so this is good for our clients, many of whom come from the most vulnerable, financially excluded groups who are difficult to reach through other non-face-to-face means.

"The extension of funding is a clear recognition that the project was providing excellent value for money. Over the last 5 years, Citizens Advice has managed to invest a total of £87 million through FIF in advising clients with a combined total debt of approximately £1.2 billion.

"This announcement will, of course, be highly welcomed by the debt advisers themselves, who were facing redundancy, and who can now continue to help their clients with their money problems.

"Of course, Local Citizens Advice Bureaux will also be buoyed by this announcement; many were having to plan not only for the end of the Financial Inclusion Fund but also for likely cuts in their core funding from Local Authorities and Legal Aid funding from the Ministry of Justice. We therefore appreciate and support the Secretary of State for Business Vince Cable's call for other funding streams to support face-to-face debt advice.

"We wait to see the full details of the Government's proposals and will comment more fully at that time."

*These services will partly be run through Citizens Advice Bureaux but also advice agencies across England and Wales


Citizens Advice response to the Government announcement on face-to-face debt advice funding