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Volunteer advisers – Level 2 at Lewes District Citizens Advice

Give advice on a range of areas including debt and benefits, relationships, consumer, housing , employment and immigration. Also we run campaigns to highlight unfair issues to policymakers.
Newhaven, Seaford and Lewes

What does the opportunity involve doing?

What will you do?

Complete an introduction to Citizens Advice and training for your role

talk to clients online using webchat and/or email or on the phone to explore what problems they want help with

find information about the clients’ problems and help them to understand their options

write a summary of the clients’ problems and what action you’ve taken

look out for problems that are common, or are unfair, and feed back to help Citizens Advice influence decision makers via an evidence form.

Some examples of what you could do: 

find the information online that explains how to apply for Council Tax Reduction in a client’s local area and explain it to them

identify what steps a client can take to resolve their problem with a second hand car

help a client find and understand what steps they can take to deal with their rent arrears

explain a client’s rights regarding redundancy

What's in it for you?

make a real difference to people’s lives 

learn about a range of issues such as benefits, debt, employment and housing

build on valuable skills such as communication, digital skills and explaining complex information 

increase your employability

work with a range of different people, independently and in a team.

have a positive impact in your community.

What induction, training and support is offered?

Extensive training programme and support is offered. We have a comprehensive training package which can be done online or in one of our offices. Newhaven is our main office and has the most space for new advisers. We run a Friday morning intensive 10 week course, for 1.5 hours, with additional training work to be completed during the week. Supported learning is offered, online or in person. A commitment of at least one day per week for a year following training is required.

What skills or qualities are needed?

You don’t need specific qualifications or skills but you’ll need to:

be friendly and approachable

be non-judgmental and respect views, values and cultures that are different to your own

have good listening skills

have good verbal and written communication skills and good spelling (or willingness to use spell checker)

have good IT skills. For remote working – a good wifi connection and a computer or laptop

be able to understand information and explain it to others

be willing to learn about and follow the Citizens Advice aims, principles and policies, including confidentiality and data protection

A positive attitude to self-development and assessment.

Ability to work as part of a team.

Ability to recognise your own limits and boundaries in the role.

Ongoing training development is expected, so you will need to give some additional time to updating your knowledge. Overall, we estimate about a day a week doing online training while a trainee, plus a weekly 1-2 hour training session via video link, which can be fitted in around your own commitments

More info
Date added

26th September 2022

Location

15-19 Chapel Street
Newhaven

Deadline for applications

1 Nov 2024

Categories

A campaigning group Disabled people Homeless people Older people Other groups People with drugs/alcohol problems People with health problems People with mental health problems Prisoners, offenders and their families

Activities

Advocacy/advice

Disabled access?

Yes

Expenses paid?

Yes

Childcare available?

No

Contact name

Heidi Green

Phone number

07596 075729