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Addressing poverty on a community level

A blog by Carol Shreeve, Chief Executive Officer of North Yorkshire Citizens Advice and Law Centre

For an organisation like ours, which operates at both a very local and county level, one of the standout aspects of the British Gas Energy Trust roundtable on disadvantaged communities was the vast array of organisations present, representing various types and sizes.

From national organisations such as Penny Walster, Director of Programmes and Partnerships at the Big Issue Group, who spoke movingly about their work, to local organisations with deep connections to grassroots communities like Citizens Advice Hartlepool. A key takeaway was the consistency in the messages from both the main speakers and participants. This demonstrated that through these projects, we are developing effective approaches and making progress in addressing poverty at a community level.

Denise Irving, CEO of Citizens Advice Sunderland, shared an inspiring account of how they have tackled severe economic disadvantage in their community through partnerships with other agencies. Many agreed that collaborative working, gathering evidence, and early intervention, while viewing fuel poverty as part of the broader poverty picture, are the way forward.

Jabeer Butt, CEO of the Race Equality Foundation, highlighted the disproportionate impact of fuel poverty on individuals from Black, Romani and ethnically diverse backgrounds. While we often hear about excess winter deaths among older people, less attention is given to individuals with disabilities or from different ethnic backgrounds, whose rates are also higher than the general population. This underscores the need for targeted public health measures and projects to address this specific need.

It was when Fiona Cameron, Conduct, Risk and Customer Vulnerability Director at British Gas, spoke that the most passionate and heated debate unfolded, focusing on how our disadvantaged communities, in all their diversity, are coping with debt, reliance on food banks, and the Household Support Fund. There was consensus that to avoid short-term, ‘sticking-plaster’ solutions, benefit rates need to increase, particularly for disadvantaged clients and those in work. Additionally, advice must be offered at the earliest opportunity, in formats that suit clients. For disadvantaged clients facing digital exclusion, this often means face-to-face support.

We found comfort, community, and hope in each other’s work and left feeling positive about tackling disadvantage together.

To read more about the roundtables, please click here.