PM’s employment review. Modern economies and markets are always changing. They need flexible workers. Great for some. Others work long hours but still find it hard to get by. The prime minister knows what’s happening. Taking office in July Theresa May promised action to help those who are “just managing”. She has commissioned an independent review of the impact […]
Thursday 13 October. Volunteer Action Reigate & Banstead is holding a Volunteer Fair at Reigate College next week. At Citizens Advice Reigate & Banstead we’re looking forward to taking part. Right now we have several volunteer vacancies including: Admin and IT – helping our busy Redhill office each Wednesday, and Digital skills – offering flexible help to our […]
Citizens Advice Reigate & Banstead in September. Including Martin Lewis Fund award Mental health Letting problems Consumer service (poor)
SMEF success. “A new one-stop service for young people requiring mental health support.” That was the message from Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust at this week’s well-attended briefing about youth mental health in Black and Ethnic Minority Communities. Dr Phil Ferrira-Lay explained how the service would help tackle youth mental health, a major issue for BAME Communities which often goes undiagnosed. […]
£23 billion cost of poor products and service. Occasionally we’re all disappointed in the consumer choices we’ve made. But what is the total cost of this collective regret? Citizens Advice research* shows what’s going wrong, which sectors are worst and who’s getting hurt. The 2015 numbers are huge. Whether it’s cost to the economy (at least £22.9 billion) or number […]
Young adults increasingly affected. More and more young people desperate for somewhere to live are falling foul of the ‘pressure-cooker’ private rental market. Citizens Advice data* this week show the number of 17-24-year-olds asking for help more than doubled in a year. Along with many others in the fast-growing private rental sector, they are affected […]
Delay requested. The government wants to bring in Making Tax Digital reforms in 2017. It means the end of annual returns in favour of filing online each quarter. This is too soon for many self-employed and small business people. Now a committee of MPs has written to the Treasury showing why a delay is necessary. […]
No standard benefits. I’ve been working for about 18 months as a driver for a company that provides transport to hospitals. When I joined I had been unemployed for about 9 months so I was very keen to find work. When the company said I had to be self-employed I agreed although many of my […]
It’s a good life (or can be). Evening Standard feature 16 September highlights the ups and downsides of self-employment. ‘Self-employed are on the rise but pay the price in work rights.’ Long read but worth a look if only for realistic comments like: ‘The self-employed are entrepreneurs but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have ambitious […]
Perverse Independence Policy? We’ve been helping someone whose job is at risk. We often have to, unfortunately. But in more and more cases the risk seems linked to government policy. This person was required to have a Work Capability Assessment – a normal step in moving from Disability Living Allowance to Personal Independence Payment. The result […]