The Advice Dorset Partnership E news is published fortnightly on a Thursday, BUT if there is something urgent in-between we will send out a short supplementary edition.
As usual feel free to forward this email to colleagues and they can get in touch with us if they wish to go on the list. If you would like to send anything out via the bulletin, and for all other enquiries about the Advice Dorset Partnership, contact Caroline Buxton on her Citizens Advice Central Dorset email: mailto:[email protected]
You can view previous editions of the E news HERE
Jobs
Citizens Advice Central Dorset currently has two vacancies:
- Gillingham Foodbank Welfare Benefits and Debt caseworker: 10 Hours per week / 2 mornings a week. Salary: £14.11 per hour (£7,337 Actual / £27,148 FTE). Fixed term to November 2024. We are therefore looking for an experienced Welfare Benefits and Debt Caseworker who can provide a flexible approach to the needs of our clients and is able to deliver comprehensive advice through various channels mainly face to face, working at the Foodbank and our Gillingham Citizen Advice office. Closing date 16 February.
- Administrative Support Worker: 18.5 Hours per week (Flexible, including occasional evening work). Salary: £10.42 per hour (£10,024 Actual / £20,048 FTE). Location – flexible; permanent role. The role will support the recruitment and retention of volunteers, maintain resources across our premises to deliver our services and support the effective governance of the charity. Closing date 23 February.
Read more /application packs etc, here.
Ridgewater Energy – Administrator and Project Support: Ridgewater Energy develop and deliver energy efficiency and fuel poverty projects and are tendered to deliver assistance schemes across Dorset for the Local Authorities. We advise householders on saving energy in the home, the funding available to assist them and we also assist landlords in meeting their legislative obligations. Due to the energy crisis, rising fuel bills, expansion and additional contracts, we are looking for an energetic and motivated person to join our office bound Support Administration Team. The purpose of the role is to support the Managing Director with all aspects of running a busy energy advice and project delivery office.
This is a permanent full-time job based in Wimborne, salary range £23 – £24k. Read more on Reed here.
Information Updates
COST OF LIVING
Alternative Fuel Payment: Households who use alternative fuels such as biomass, liquified petroleum gas or heating oil will start to get their £200 payment from 6 February. Most households will get their payment automatically from their electricity supplier. Households without a domestic electricity supply will need to apply for the payment – we are waiting for details. The Govt’s guidance to suppliers is here.
ENERGY
Prepayment meters (PPMs): Grant Shapps has written to suppliers (HERE) asking them to:
- stop force fitting PPMs
- share data on how many warrants they’ve requested to force fit PPMs
Ofgem has published a blog explaining the actions they’ll take to tackle inappropriate energy supplier PPM practices. British Gas announced (HERE) they won’t remotely switch customers to prepayment unless the customer requests it. Stop press: read today’s BBC coverage of The Times investigation – British gas admits agents break into struggling customers’ homes – here.
Cold weather payments: Clients can check if the cold weather payments have been triggered in their area using the postcode checker on GOV.UK. – it does look as if DT and BH postcodes qualified again in the week of the 17 to 23 January. The payment of £25 usually shows on a bank statement as DWP CWP.
BENEFITS
Support for bereaved families to be extended: Bereaved cohabitees with dependent children will soon be eligible for additional financial support, following a successful debate in the House of Commons on 24 January 2023. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is in its final stages of extending Bereavement Support Payment and Widowed Parent’s Allowance to working age parents who were not married or in a civil partnership with their late partner. Some people may be eligible for backdated payments if their partner died before the law was changed. The DWP will publish more details on gov.uk soon, explaining the application window and how to claim. Read the Govt press release here.
UC – increase to Administrative Earnings Threshold: As previously reported, this increase will bring more claimants into the intensive (rather than light touch) work search regime. DWP Minister Guy Opperman siad; ‘We will communicate the rise in the AET to claimants through national press coverage. In addition, claimants impacted by the rise in the AET level will be contacted by the DWP through their universal credit journal. Our work coaches will then review and agree new claimant commitments, providing support and setting appropriate requirements to help claimants access opportunities to increase their earnings.’ Read more here.
EMPLOYMENT
When is there a right to pay? Some people may find they are sent home from work early because the workplace is shut due to bad weather. If workers have a contractual entitlement to wages, then provided they are ready, willing and able to work, they must be paid even if no work is done. Workers won’t have a contractual entitlement to wages in certain circumstances, for instance where the employer exercises a contractual right to put them on unpaid lay off, or where they work on genuine zero hours contracts. Even if there is a contractual right to wages, an employer giving the correct notice can lawfully require workers to take their paid holiday instead.
Discrimination: This is a complex area and cases often end up at the Employment Appeal Tribunal. For example a recent decided that a disabled worker being refused the option to work part-time was a failure to make reasonable adjustments. There’s information about the legal tests to use when working out if a client has a discrimination claim, on Adviser Online.
Dismissal cases: Under the Employment Rights Act 1996 it can be automatically unfair to dismiss when, in circumstances of danger which an employee reasonably believed to be ‘serious and imminent’, the employee left or refused to return to the workplace. Recent cases include:
- A claimant was dismissed for refusing to return to work due to concerns about Covid. He lost his claim for automatic unfair dismissal – on the particular facts that he had lacked a reasonable belief that there were circumstances of danger. This decision has now been upheld by the Court of Appeal, who said that it is enough for the employee to have a reasonable belief in the existence of the danger as well as in its seriousness and imminence, even if that belief was mistaken. Furthermore, while the perceived danger must arise in the workplace, it does not need to be present only at work- suggesting that it is possible to argue that Covid is a ‘circumstance of danger.
- A disabled claimant refused to comply with the employers ‘no mask, no entry’ policy during the pandemic. This policy was introduced following a risk assessment and was in line with local guidance at the time and reasonable adjustments were put in place for employees unable to comply with it, which the claimant didn’t cooperate with. The claims for failure to make reasonable adjustments and indirect discrimination failed. The policy disadvantaged the claimant but it was a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim, namely to protect the health and safety of the workforce. This is a first instance decision so it is not binding on other Tribunals.
HOUSING
New Fire Safety Regulations for multi-occupied residential buildings: The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 came into force in England on 23 January. They are intended to implement some of the recommendations made within Phase 1 of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. In all multi occupied residential buildings, a responsible person must provide residents with fire safety instructions and information on the importance of fire doors. In residential buildings over 11 metres, responsible persons will also be required to do regular checks of fire doors in the building, and there are additional requirements if a building is over 18 metres high. Read the guidance here.
TRAVEL
Airline / travel firms fail: Flybe went into administration on 28 January 2023. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has information for UK customers including:
- what to do if people have booked directly with an airline
- what to do if people have booked through an airline ticket agent
- scheduled airline failure insurance
The website also has a negative response letter. Some card providers will ask for this when people make section 75 or chargeback claims. It can also be used by people making claims against their travel insurer. Read more on teh CAA wesbite here.
Sublime Travel also ceased trading on 30 January. The CAA is collating information from the company and will update their webpage as soon as possible. In the meantime, people are being asked not to use claim forms from other failures as they can’t be accepted. More information on the ATOL website.
Bus fares: Over 130 bus operators outside of London are taking part in a scheme which caps a single bus fare at £2. The ‘Get Around for £2’ scheme runs until 31 March 2023. The press release is here and a list of operators in the South West here.
LOCAL NEWS
Energy & Money Saving Booklet: commissioned by BCP council and produced by Ridgewater energy there is lots of useful information, tips and links in this booklet. Paper copies are being printed.
Events
Citizens Advice’s next Cost of Living Briefing: Thursday 23 February 11.30 – 12.30 – register on eventbrite.
Awards for All workshop, Dorchester, 3 March, 10-12: Kirsty Main, Dorset Funding Officer for The National Lottery Community Fund, will be leading a workshop focused on the Fund’s small grant programme – Awards for All. The session will be interactive and provide an opportunity to understand more about the programme, tips on applying for funding and a chance to network with other local groups. The session is open to all but has been designed for community groups and their volunteers, trustees or staff who might be new to applying for grant funding or have limited experience. More information here.
DCA monthly networking – 15 February 10.30am: The theme is Knowing The Need – How to effectively engage with your community to improve sustainability and funding. More information here.
Report, research, blogs, consultations etc
Benefits – Challenge to £20 uplift fails: In 2020 the standard allowance of Universal Credit was increased by £20 in response to the pandemic, but the decision was made not to make similar changes to legacy benefits. A challenge to this decision has been making its way through the courts and has now been lost at the Court of Appeal. The Court acknowledged the hardships felt by those on legacy benefits, particularly due to the pandemic, but remarked that alleviating hardship was just one of many policy intents. There is a summary of the background and the judgement on rightsnet.
Citizens Advice blog – The year the cost-of-living crisis went from bad to worse: A senior data analyst writes: In 2022, we broke many unwelcome records for the number of people we’ve helped who are in crisis situations. We’ve helped over 200,000 people with crisis support — like food bank referrals or emergency charitable grants to help them get by. That’s nearly 50% higher than last year, more than twice as high as in 2020 and more than two and a half times higher than in 2019. Read more – plus a link to the recent data dashboards – here.
Consultation on Draft Code of Practice on dismissal and re-engagement: The Govt is taking action on the issue of unscrupulous employers that use the controversial practice of ‘fire and rehire’, and is seeking views on a draft statutory Code of Practice that sets out employers’ responsibilities when seeking to change employment terms and conditions, if there is the prospect of dismissal and re-engagement. It requires employers to consult staff and explore alternative options, without using the threat of dismissal to pressure employees to agree new terms. Read more here.
Citizens Advice blog on digital design: National Citizens Advice Policy Associate Rachel Coldicutt reflects on sharp practices along the ‘digital consumer journey’ that lock us into unwanted subscriptions, prompt unnecessary purchases, and make online gambling too easy. Read the blog here.
Funding news
Awards for All – workshop – see under Events, above.
CAN [BCP] Funding: Innovative funding from NHS Dorset means Community Action Network (CAN) is working with Citizens Advice BCP to provide food or energy vouchers to people in crisis, and grants to local charities and community groups to boost their support for communities across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole at this critical time.
Citizens Advice BCP will be managing the distribution of £200 supermarket or energy vouchers. CAN are facilitating grants of up to £10,000 to charities and community groups, enabling them to enhance their core work and / or boost a new project that supports people through this winter crisis.
To register your group to make referrals for the people you’re working with to Citizens Advice for the supermarket/energy vouchers, and find out how to apply for grant funding, go th the CAN website. Closing date 13 February.
Hays Travel Foundation: Hays strives to help and improve the communities where they work and live, and in 2015 created the Hays Travel Foundation. They have five main objectives with the main focus being on creating a brighter future for young people who need a bit of help to develop their potential. Local branches also have community partnerships. Read more here.
The BH Coastal Lottery gives small grants to community projects providing services within Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole. Projects must have strong volunteer / resident involvement. Constituted Voluntary and Community Organisations with an income of less than £60,000 per year can apply for grants. The minimum level of grant is £100, and the maximum is usually £1,000. However, for this round a maximum of £5,000 can be granted. Priority will be given to projects where a small grant will make a significant difference.
Check the criteria here. Closing date for applications is Sunday 26 February 2023.
Smart Energy Community Fund: Smart Energy GB, the national campaign for the smart meter rollout, launched the five-year Smart Energy GB in Communities Fund in May 2016 with the aim that every home in Britain would be offered a smart meter within five years at no additional cost. Funding is available to help engage people and communities across Britain with information about how to get and use smart meters.
In 2023, there are three funding streams, each targeting a specific audience:
- Grants for organisations reaching people who are in fuel poverty: £15,000 to £25,000
- Grants for organisations reaching people who are lacking basic digital skills: £10,000 to £15,000
- Grants for organisations reaching people who are carers: £7,000 to £10,000.
Read morer here. Closing date 12 February.
Hendy Foundation: The Hendy Foundation was set up in 2019, to provide grants to local projects, people, events and charitable organisations in the areas in which Hendy Group dealerships are located – which includes Dorset.
They support a range of charitable causes with an average grant is £1,000, although grants of up to £5,000 are available in exceptional circumstances. The next round is open for the month of February – read more here.