How to get advice

Click on any of the links below to go through to the national Citizens Advice website for more information on a range of subjects.

NORTHAMPTON

OPENING HOURS (Face to Face Drop - In and appointments are currently suspended due to Coronavirus guidance)

Tel: 03444 111 444

EMAIL US

SERVICES OFFERED

• General advice and information

• Referrals to:

  • ​Specialist Advice (benefits, debt and employment)

  • Specialist Housing Advice – funded by Legal Aid

  • Pensions Guidance

  • Services for people affected by Cancer (funded by Macmillan)

  • Pro Bono Solicitor Services

  • Volunteering Opportunities

Initial face to face advice services in Northampton (for clients visiting us for the first time or not with a pre booked appointment) are only available from our suite of interview rooms in Northampton Borough Council’s One Stop Shop (Guildhall Building)

WELLINGBOROUGH

OPENING HOURS (Face to Face Drop - In and appointments are currently suspended due to Coronavirus guidance)

Tel: 03444 111 444

EMAIL US

SERVICES OFFERED

• General advice and information

• Referrals to:

  • ​Specialist Advice (benefits, debt and employment)

  • Specialist Housing Advice – funded by Legal Aid

  • Pensions Guidance

  • Services for people affected by Cancer (funded by Macmillan)

  • Pro Bono Solicitor Services

  • Volunteering Opportunities

SOUTH NORTHANTS

OPENING HOURS (Face to Face appointments currently suspended due to Coronavirus guidance)

Tel: 0300 323 0074

SERVICES OFFERED

• General advice and information

• Referrals to:​​

  • Specialist Advice (benefits, debt and employment)

  • Specialist Housing Advice – funded by Legal Aid

  • Pensions Guidance

  • Services for people affected by Cancer (funded by Macmillan)

  • Pro Bono Solicitor Services

  • Volunteering Opportunities

Note: Monday and Thursday appointments are available to clients accessing services directly through the Forum building or by referral from South Northamptonshire Council. It may be possible on these days for clients to be seen if they “drop in” but this will be subject to demand on the service.

PENSION WISE

A free and impartial government service about your defined contribution pension options

Pension Wise is a free and impartial government service about the different ways you can take money from your pension.

People approaching retirement with a defined contribution pension pot will be able to get help from Pension Wise and Central and East Northamptonshire CAB is one of 50 delivery centres that offer Pension Wise appointments at 500 locations across England and Wales. Our locations are to the right of this page.
You can book an appointment – a 45-minute conversation between you and a Pension Wise guidance specialist.
You’ll get guidance on:

• your pension options

• tax

• which options might be suitable for you

• what you can do next

Appointments are over the phone or face to face. At the end you get a summary of the pension options and possible next steps. To book an appointment you should be 50 years old or over and have a defined contribution pension.

Pension Wise guidance specialists are impartial – they don’t recommend any products or companies and won’t tell you how to invest your money.
Citizens Advice Central and East Northants offers appointments in Northampton, Wellingborough, Corby, Kettering, Bedford, Towcester and Daventry.

For more information visit the Pension Wise website or phone 0800 138 3944(or +44 20 3733 3495 if you’re outside the UK) to book an appointment.

MACMILLAN SERVICES

Macmillan funded services for people affected by cancer

We are proud to be providing services in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support to deliver a countywide specialist advice service for people affected by cancer.

​If you are affected by cancer as a patient, family member or carer, medical treatment is probably your number one priority. But you may also have other practical concerns about money, employment, housing or something else large or small.
Our financial wellbeing service, funded by  Macmillan Cancer Support  offers an advice service specially designed to meet the advice needs of those affected by cancer.

Whether its claiming benefits, or rearranging your finances to deal with a loss of income, our practical, expert help is available to you.

Appointments are available in a range of settings - including hospitals and other outreach locations.
In the first instance - call our Macmillan specific telephone service on 01604 235086 or ask your health professional to make a referral

SPECIALIST LEGAL AID SERVICES

We have a Legal Aid contract in Housing, for clients requiring specialist help who are financially eligible for legal aid, and where the matter is within scope of legal aid, as defined by the Legal Aid Agency.  We often offer this service as an outcome from our general advice services although you can also contact us direct. We also receive professional referrals. 

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Legal aid services are available if all of the following apply:

• you have a low income or receive certain benefits

• you don't have much money in savings, investments or property (in November 2016, the savings limit was £8,000)

• your housing issue is covered by legal aid

• you have a good chance of winning the case

Legal aid is only available for specific types of case, for example if:

• you want to challenge the council's decision if you are homeless and the council has refused to help you

• you want to take court action because you're being evicted

• your landlord is refusing to deal with serious disrepair that puts your health or safety at risk

• the council or your landlord has taken action against you for antisocial behaviour

• a private landlord is  harassing you or threatening to evict you illegally

HELP TO CLAIM UNIVERSAL SUPPORT

​On 1 October 2018 the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) announced it will fund Citizens Advice, to provide a new Universal Credit Help to Claim service from April 2019. We are creating a brand new partnership between DWP, Citizens Advice and Central and East Northamptonshire Citizens Advice to deliver Help to Claim. The Help to Claim service offers tailored, practical support to help people make a Universal Credit claim and receive their first full correct payment on time. It is now available online, over the phone and face to face.

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