Welcome to this week’s E News on the Citizens Advice Dorset website. Just a reminder that the Advice Dorset Partnership is a network of organisations providing advice and support to residents of Dorset and Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole. It is managed by Citizens Advice and is open to any organisation which provides information, advice and support/guidance to local residents.
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.
Please can you now subscribe to the newsletter (it is still FREE but you will get an automatic notification when it is published) – and do encourage colleagues to subscribe too. The Subscribe option is at the bottom of this page!
If you would like to send anything out via the bulletin, and for all other enquiries about the Advice Dorset Partnership, contact Caroline Buxton at Citizens Advice Central Dorset: [email protected]
Information updates
COST OF LIVING
March Factsheet
2025 MARCH Cost-of-Living-Crisis-factsheet:
Energy price cap: Ofgem has announced the energy price cap for 1 April to 30 June 2025. From 1 April a household with typical consumption on dual electricity and gas will pay:
- £1,849 – direct debit
- £1,969 – standard credit (on receipt of their bill)
- £1,803 – prepayment meter
Prices are worked out per unit of energy used over a year. If consumers use more they will pay more. The exact rate and standing charge will depend on the region where the consumer lives. Read more om the Ofgem website. In the light of this various organisations are providing more advice on saving money on energy bills, including…….
- How to save money on bills – information from the Energy Saving Trust, here.
- Citizens Advice information here for reducing a central heating boiler’s flow temperature, and for setting a boiler’s water heating controls.
- Locally, Ridgewater Energy is opening the SGN Dorset Help for Warmth scheme. For those eligible, this offers a free home visit where an expert will provide comprehensive tailored advice, support and resources to help people keep warm, safe, healthy and live independently. Read more here.
EMPLOYMENT
Holiday and Holiday Pay queries: With the financial year (and often the ‘holiday year’) about to end, here are some common issues:
Do employees accrue holiday entitlement during their notice period? Under the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR), employees working during their notice periods continue to accrue statutory holiday entitlement which must be paid when employment ends. For the accrual of contractual holiday entitlement (beyond the statutory minimum), payment on termination is determined by the contract or workplace rules. Where no workplace policy or rules exist, contractual holiday entitlement is calculated using the WTR, to the end of employment.
What’s rolled-up holiday pay? Rolled-up holiday pay means that an employer works out the value of holiday pay entitlement earned in each pay period, and adds this to each pay packet. The result is that when staff take annual leave they won’t receive any pay for that absence. Before the WTR amendments in April 2024 rolled-up holiday pay was unlawful. Since then, and for workers satisfying the definition of irregular hours or part years workers (for other workers this remains unlawful), employers can use rolled-up holiday pay by adding 12.07% of relevant earnings during a pay period. This is only allowed for leave years that commenced on or after 1 April 2024, and workers must still be given the opportunity to take their statutory leave. More guidance form the Govt here.
Can employees take annual leave during sickness absence? Under the WTR, employees are entitled to book annual leave during sickness absence and receive their normal pay. This can be useful if they’ve used up their contractual or statutory sick pay. The WTR prevents employers from insisting employees take annual leave instead of sick leave. More info on taking sick leave here.
Can employees carry forward unused statutory leave? Under the Working Times Regulations the entitlement to 5.6 weeks leave, broken down into:
- 4 weeks under Regulation 13 (derived from EU law)
- an extra 1.6 weeks under Regulation 13A
The WTR provides that workers can carry forward:
- their full 5.6 weeks holiday entitlement into the next leave year if they’re unable to take it due to being on family leave; and
- their 4 weeks entitlement, to be used within 18 months of the end of the leave year in which it accrued, if they can’t take it because of long-term sickness absence.
Holiday entitlement is calculated differently for irregular hours and part-year workers with holiday years starting on or after 1 April 2024. These workers can carry over their full holiday entitlement (5.6 weeks) if they have been unable to take it due to family leave, sickness absence or employer failures as set out above. Red more here.
OTHER
Debt scams warning – what do to if you get a debt demand: Which? have published an article – here – on how to check if an unexpected payment demand is genuine
Increase to court and tribunal fees: From 1 April 2025, the Ministry of Justice will be increasing court and tribunal fees. This includes an increase in divorce fees from £593 to £612 and child arrangement order application fees from £255 to £263, as well as fees for most other family applications. For other procedures, the N244 application goes up from £303 to £313, and a PARV order application goes up from £308 to £318. Clients on low incomes may get help with fees – read more here.
IMMIGRATION
Debt and immigration applications: This Adviser Online article looks at NHS charges and the effect of NHS debts on immigration applications, covering: who is chargeable for NHS care, how to deal with an NHS debt – particularly when there is destitution, and the effect of an NHS debt on future immigration applications.
Events and Training
Ramadan Mubarak 2025: Many of our communities will celebrate Ramadan from Saturday, March 1st, for 29 or 30 days. Ramadan is a holy month for Muslims and a time of fasting, prayer, reflection, and charitable giving. From the perspective of colleagues who may be observing Ramadan, there are various useful websites, for example, NHS guidance for supporting the workforce – here.
International Women’s Day – March 8: IWD is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality. IWD has occurred for well over a century, with the first IWD gathering in 1911 supported by over a million people. Today, IWD belongs to all groups collectively everywhere. IWD is not country, group or organization specific. Read more here
Citizens Advice Data Insights: February’s briefing was on debt; links to the recording – and for previous sessions – are here.The next event is scheduled for Tuesday 29th April 2-3pm and will focus on child poverty,
Let’s Talk SEND session: Dorset Council are running this session on 13 March, at 11:30am (online). Join for a comprehensive discussion featuring speakers from mainstream education, special schools, and learning centres. Book here.
Suicide Awareness training: This Suicide Awareness training is a short, free, online course that can be taken by anyone who wants to learn basic suicide awareness and prevention skills. It is provide by ZSA – the Zero Suicide Alliance – more info here.
Dementia Awareness Sessions; Free training available in Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole, and East Dorset, delivered by PramaLife. More info here.
Reports, research etc
Health and Disability Benefit review: This Govt review is expected to start soon. Citizens Advice fear that potential changes are likely to make benefit rules stricter or reduce the money people get. But this approach will push many disabled people — and their families — into poverty. Read the blog here.
Frozen in place – Why the Government needs to move quicker to address energy affordability: This new Citizens Advice report is based on a recent poll, and finds that 3 in 10 (30%) said that they find it difficult to afford their energy bills, 1 in 10 respondents owed money to their energy supplier, and nearly two thirds (63%) of people in energy debt said that they had had to ration their energy, including switching off or turning down their heating or water in the past year as a result of their debt. Read more here.
Government response to Grenfell Tower Inquiry phase 2 report: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has published its response to the recommendations contained within the Grenfell Tower public inquiry phase 2 report. Of the 58 recommendations the government has accepted 49 in full, and 9 in principle. The government has explained that these recommendations will require further consideration, such as public consultation. Some of the key reforms to be implemented include: establishing a single regulator to oversee certain safety functions of the construction industry, and improving oversight of the testing, certification, manufacture and use of construction products. Read more here.
Disappearing rural banks – parliamentary debate: Recent discussions in the House of Commons have brought to light the severe implications of bank closures in rural areas. Led by Simon Hoare, MP for North Dorset, a debate on bank closures in rural areas highlighted the disproportionate hardship these closures inflict on rural communities compared to urban settings. The dialogue underscored the need for a “rural-proofing” approach to banking services, acknowledging that rural and urban areas face vastly different challenges. Read more on RSN Online – here.
Funding news
The National Lottery: Reaching Communities is The National Lottery Community Fund’s programme for community-led projects over £20,001. Applicants have until 31st March 2025 to complete any applications or apply under the existing criteria. From 1 April, the programme will focus on investing in places, people and communities who experience poverty, disadvantage and discrimination. You can read more on TNL’s vision from 2025 here.
If you are based in Dorset (including BCP) and unsure whether to wait or apply now, email [email protected] with a paragraph describing your project and a link to your website.
