Adviser - Citizens Advice

Would you like to contribute to your local community and gain valuable experience in the voluntary sector?  We would like to hear from you.

Citizens Advice Runnymede and Spelthorne (CARS) provides valuable advice to over 4,000 people a year, helping them with over 12,000 different issues, including housing, debt, benefits, and employment. The majority of this impact has come from our wonderful volunteers.

We are looking for new Volunteer Advisers who will help Citizens Advice Runnymede and Spelthorne deliver our advice services to more people in our local community.  Working with our team of Advisers and Supervisors, the role will include the following:       

·       Complete an introduction to Citizens Advice and training for the Adviser role which will comprise of independent and group learning

·       Talk to clients over the phone or face to face (when this service resumes) to explore the issue

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

·       Support clients to take action to resolve their problems. This might include drafting or writing letters, making phone calls, or referring the client to another organisation

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

·       Look out for problems’ that are common, or are unfair, and write a short report about the problem or a letter to an elected official like an MP, AM or local councillor

What skills do I need?

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 excellent verbal and written communication skills

·       Have basic numeracy and IT skills

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

·       Be willing to undertake training in your role