IW Citizens Advice Bureau

1.1 The Council funds the I.W. Citizens’ Advice Bureau (CAB) by means of a three year Service Level Agreement (SLA). The current Agreement expires on 31^st March next and this report considers a new draft SLA for the period 2003/2006. A copy of the SLA will be placed in the Members room for information.

2.1 Citizens’ Advice Bureaux provide free, confidential and independent generalist information, advice and services to the public, operating to national standards. The I.W. branch provides services covering a range of subject areas, including:

Provision of specialist debt counselling and Welfare Benefits Unit/employment advice and representation services.

Regrettably, funding for the Unit providing this last service is to cease on 31^st October this year and despite exploring a number of options, the CAB is unable to identify alternative sources and the Unit will close. The CAB’s clients will still have their problems fully assessed by the generalist advisers who, if the difficulty is beyond their capability to resolve, will refer the client to the appropriate specialist agency.

2.2 National standards regulating the quality of service provision are applied and monitored by the National Association of Citizens’ Advice Bureaux (NACAB). To ensure that high standards of professionalism are maintained, a Membership Review is undertaken every 3 years by the a NACAB National Audit Team. The Team evaluates management and financial structures and systems and also undertakes a full audit on the process and quality of advice provided.

Additionally, in the two years between each NACAB Membership Review, the Bureau is audited by staff from the Legal Services Commission.

2.3 In terms of value to the community, the CAB’s activities within their Welfare Benefit & Employment Unit have succeeded in establishing additional entitlement to benefits for Island clients of over £500,000 since April 2000, and over £1.6m since the project commenced in 1996. This not only pulls fresh money into the Island but also applies it to those most vulnerable members of our community. Their two Debt Units have dealt with over £18m of debt for each year of their current SLA, and make a significant impact in protecting individuals and families from the effect of accumulated debt while improving their skills for managing financial issues in the future.

In addition, each year the CAB have been directly involved in saving more than 250 families from potential repossession of their homes.

While it is difficult to be exact in quantifying the benefits in financial terms for the Council that accrue from these activities, it is likely that they exceed by a comfortable margin the cost of the funding being sought by the CAB within the new SLA.

3.1 NACAB Partnerships allow for joint funding in support of the CAB’s services or projects over a period of time, usually three years to match the term of the SLA. In the early years of the partnership the greater part of the funding is undertaken by NACAB via money sourced from government but this tapers off until towards the end of the agreement most of the cost falls to the council. At the end of the arrangement the total annual amount funded is then to be provided on an ongoing basis by the council. For example:

Essentially, this means that NACAB offer matched funding of 50% averaged over three years. The Council has entered into such an arrangement twice before and is currently in the final year of the current agreement.

3.2 The I.W.CAB’s Development Plan, attached at Appendix A, sets out their requirements for additional funding for the new SLA, which amount to £18,600 per annum. NACAB have agreed to offer the Council a partnership agreement to cover this cost on the basis described above.

4.1 There are two funding options for members to consider. The first allows for the continuation of the current level of funding, plus an adjustment for inflation and the assumption of the final amount of the existing NACAB agreement to which the Council has already committed:

4.2 The second option includes the NACAB Partnership Agreement for additional funding of £18,600:

5.1 There is budget provision earmarked for Option 1. However, the additional sum requested in Option 2 will require a further provision to be secured of £4,650 in 2003/04, with obligations to identify a further £9,300 in 2004/05, £13,950 in 2005/06 and £18,600 for each year thereafter.

6.1 A recommendation is made to the Executive by the Resources Select Committee to adopt Option 2. However, the additional sum required for the increase in expenditure would need to be considered as part of the Council’s annual budget process alongside all other growth bids. The recommendation suggested below, therefore, proposes the approval of Option 1 and submits Option 2 to this procedure.

RECOMMENDATION

That Option 1 be approved and that the additional sum required for Option 2 be considered as part of the Council’s annual budget process.

Draft Service Level Agreement 2003/06 between the Isle of Wight Council and the I.W. CAB.

	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4 & after
I.W. Council	25%	50%	75%	100%
NACAB	75%	50%	25%	nil

CAB OPTION 1	2003/04	2004/05	2005/06
IWC Funding	£125,028	£125,028*	£125,028*

CAB OPTION 2	2003/04	2004/05	2005/06
New NACAB Partnership NACAB contribution IWC contribution	£13,950 £4,650	£9,300 £9,300	£4,650 £13,950
IWC Base Funding	£125,028	£125,028*	£125,028*
Total IWC Funding	£129,678	£134,328*	£138,978*
TOTAL Overall	£143,628	£143,628*	£143,628*