About Worcester Citizens Advice Bureau
The aims of the service
Worcester CAB aims:
To ensure that individuals do not suffer through lack of knowledge of their rights and responsibilities or of the services available; or through an inability to express their needs effectively.
The CAB aims to exercise a responsible influence on the development of social policies and services both locally and nationally.
The CAB in Worcester
Worcester Citizens Advice Bureau opened in 1975.
Previously the local council had offered an advice service at the Guildhall, but it was felt an independent service was urgently needed. Funding and premises were found, volunteers advertised for and, finally, Councillor Rowland Blackwell opened the new centre in Queen Elizabeth House on 3rd June 1975.
Twenty-two volunteer advisors squeezed into the cramped half-timbered building with two tiny interview rooms. At first the bureau was only open for 2 hours a day, but despite these limitations 500 enquiries were answered in the first month.
Over the next decade the CAB advice service grew in stature and reputation. By 1986, although there were still only 29 staff, the Bureau dealt with 14,838 enquires with a budget of £27,000.
Time to Move On
The move to St. Nicholas Church crypt was an exciting one. The Georgian church, which is now a café-bar, has been built on the site of the first church in Worcester. Before conversion, the crypt was only five feet high, it was filled with the grime of ages, with a vast oil tank taking up what was later the manager’s office. To make more head room the floor was dropped by three feet. The conversion to the crypt was completed by August 1988.
Calls to the Bureau increased rapidly, and became steadily more complex, as the general public became more aware of their rights, and laws became more intricate. By 2001 the bureau had a team of 64 volunteers and staff, and offered specialist as well as general advice on Welfare Benefits, Debt and Employment.
Onwards and Upwards
By the end of the 1990s the bureau had outgrown the crypt and needed to move again. This time the destination was a new purpose-built home in the Hopmarket, and this building remains the bureau’s current home.
The enquiries we deal with continue to reflect the problems that are facing our community. Those seeking advice are often anxious about their situations, whether they are facing unmanageable debts, disputes with neighbours or family members, or are simply unable to understand a form they need to complete to apply for benefits.
Thanks to the many people who volunteer with us, and who have volunteered over the last three decades, we are able to continue to open our doors and offer advice and support to all those people in the city who might be suffering due to a lack of knowledge or information.