Projects & Partnerships 21 November 2022
Partnering locally: Cost of living support and campaigns
As the cost of living crisis escalates, here some of the things that are happening across London locally through our partnership work.
Our GLA project
Under our GLA Partnership 18 local Citizens Advice are being funded to deliver additional community support through deployment of crisis prevention advisers and/or specialist caseworkers. The following local Citizens Advice are involved: Citizens Advice Lewisham, Citizens Advice Greenwich, Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth, Citizens Advice Southwark, Citizens Advice Harrow, Citizens Advice East End, Citizens Advice Westminster, Citizens Advice Barnet, Citizens Advice Hammersmith & Fulham, Citizens Advice Brent, Citizens Advice Croydon, Citizens Advice Hounslow, Citizens Advice Bromley, Citizens Advice Redbridge, Citizens Advice Haringey, Citizens Advice Enfield, Islington Citizens Advice, Citizens Advice Camden, Citizens Advice Barking & Dagenham. The project is managed by RCJ Advice, and supported by Citizens Advice Wandsworth in developing 'Advice First Aid' training across the partnership to support capacity-building with local community organisations and networks.
The project includes developing wider local partnerships with other London advice providers and facilitating warm referral pathways. Through our strategic partnership with the London Legal Support trust we are working with the following local agencies: Cambridge House Law Centre, Ealing Law Centre, Greenwich Housing Rights, Hammersmith & Fulham Law Centre, Harrow Law Centre, Island Advice Centre, Islington Law Centre, Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network, Mary Ward Legal Centre, Nucleus Legal Advice Centre, Southwark Law Centre, South West London Law Centres, Newham Tamil Welfare Association (Newham), University House Legal Advice Centre, Z2K
Local initiatives and campaigns
Across London boroughs local Citizens Advice are working hard to improve local awareness and provision, including working with local councils and partners. As always, the challenge is resource and capacity when all local services are over stretched and responding to increasing demand. Here are a just few examples of local work happening in London.
East London
- Working with the Council and health partners to develop a cost of living alliance in Barking and Dagenham
- Partnering with Waltham Forest to deliver part of the Household Support Fund
- Engaging with schools, housing associations and other community stakeholders with cost of workshops in Hackney, Tower Hamlets and other east London boroughs
North London
- Resource hub developed by Citizens Advice Haringey
- Expanded financial capability projects and resources in Camden
- A new cost of living advice project in Enfield supported by the British Gas Energy Trust
- A new web resource from Citizens Advice Barnet covering debt relief from energy bills and other essential spending
West London
- Joining the 'community solutions' hub in Hounslow, and taking part in cost of living marketplace events
- A cost of living toolkit developed by Citizens Advice Kingston
South London
- In Wandsworth CAW have launched a Cost of Living Project in partnership the Borough Council
- Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth (CAML) have been out and about across both boroughs, and have launched a cost of living fundraising campaign
- Citizens Advice Southwark have held a number of cost of living support roadshows across the borough
- Citizens Advice Sutton have produced an extensive impact report on how the cost of living crisis is affecting local clients