The work of staff at volunteers providing a vital service to Moray residents are being praised by local politicians.
Citizens Advice Scotland is celebrating its 75th anniversary – and to mark the occasion Angus Robertson MP has sent a personal message to the Moray branch thanking them for the “huge difference” they make to the lives of many in the region.
The Moray CAB services are delivered by a dedicated group of staff who are supported by around 25 volunteers, giving up their time to support local people who may be struggling to deal with a broad range of issues.
In Moray the bureau has seen increasing numbers of people seeking assistance with a range of issues related to welfare changes which are having a major impact of their lives.
More than 330,000 people were helped by Citizens Advice Scotland over the last year – almost one in every 13 adult in Scotland – while clients gained £125million as a result of the excellent advice they received.
Although CAB volunteers are equipped to help with queries as diverse as education and NHS concerns, over 64% of their recent work is concentrated on helping people with their benefits, tax credits and national insurance or debt.
Citizens Advice Scotland Chief Executive Margaret Lynch commented: “It’s really gratifying to see the work of Citizens Advice Bureaux celebrated like this.
“I see day in day out people coming to the Citizens Advice service in Scotland looking for advice, and overall our services advised on over 1million issues last year.
“We are able to help people enormously, sometimes simply by signposting them on to the right place, and other times by helping them in times of desperation and crisis. For 75 years we have provided that help and been a port of call in stormy times.”
Moray’s MP Angus Robertson said: “Moray CAB does a fantastic job helping thousands of people in Moray every year.
“The specialist advice and support that the CAB staff and volunteers provide people with is second to none and is invaluable in improving people’s lives, helping them to deal with complex and challenging issues.
“Everyone involved in the CAB in Moray whether, staff, volunteers or board members can be very proud of the service that they provide to our community.”