Staff in West Lothian’s Anti-Poverty Service (APS) helped residents in some of the county’s hardest-hit communities secure more that £2m in unclaimed benefits in the last year.
Chris Nelson from the service gave a breakdown of their performance both in the ward and across the county last year when he spoke to the Fauldhouse and Breich Valley Local Area Committee.
He told the meeting: “The Advice Shop has helped 1,282 customers to manage their money and to resolve benefit problems within the ward.
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“This resulted in 15,078 additional enquiries and contacts from these customers. As a result, customers have a better understanding of their situation and options available to them.
“The Advice Shop generated £2,254,899 in extra income and successfully managed £370,793 in debt within the Fauldhouse and The Breich Valley ward.”
He added: “Feedback shows this has a positive impact on individuals by increasing knowledge and understanding and ultimately improving the customer journey and empowering customers."
Across the county in 2021/22 the APS Advice Shops supported 13,433 individuals resulting in 155,374 additional enquiries and contacts from these customers, covering money and debt, energy, housing and welfare benefits.
This is a 54% increase compared to the 2020/21 figure for contacts and enquiries. The Advice Shop generated £28,126,573 in extra income and successfully managed £1,325,572 in debt.
The Advice Shop also helps with benefit appeals. Last year 109 appeals were lodged to help customers appeal a DWP benefit decision. Of that 84% of appeals had their decisions overturned. This is a 43% decrease in the number of appeals compared to the previous year.
A further 1,800 customers were provided energy advice to help improve household income and savings. This is a 5% increase from the previous year and amounted to £480,439.
A range of targeted support and campaigns has been delivered which includes increasing uptake in new Social Security Scotland payments and help and advice relating to energy.
Advisers were able to support customers to engage with charities and Third Sector organisations which have received additional, one-off funding to help the most vulnerable as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Service delivery continued to adjust throughout the pandemic. Further implementation of new digital outreach sessions has been matched with the re-introduction of face to face appointments.
Answering questions from the Provost, Councillor Cathy Muldoon Mr Nelson said the service staff had undergone training to update their knowledge as the new Social Security Scotland benefits had been rolled out. Training in benefit changes has also been offered to Third Sector groups as well as councillors.
Councillor Muldoon thanked Mr Nelson for the hard work the service staff had put in in the last year.
Councillor Pauline Clark said: “I’d like to echo Cathy’s comments about the work that you do. It’s absolutely fantastic if you look at the money that you have been able to get for people who might not have realised they have been entitled to.”
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