Cambridge & District CAB co-host Bank of England event

L-R: Sue Wigley, Citizens Advice; Dr David Livesey; Rachel Talbot, CEO Cambridge CAB; Phil Eckersley and Tim Pike, Bank of England

On 19 August the Bank of England held an event at Downing College to present the results of its latest Quarterly Inflation Report to representatives from businesses, charities and public sector organisations across the Eastern region. Cambridge & District Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) had been invited to co-host the event, with their Chairman, Dr David Livesey, giving a presentation on ‘The Social Consequences of the Recession’ for the East of England.  Using evidence collected from the CAB database on recent advice trends, Dr. Livesey reported that during Q1 2010/11, a total of 69,983 people in our region consulted a CAB, with enquiries numbering over 208,899.  Debt and Benefits were the largest advice categories, as was to be expected, followed by Employment and Housing.

Looking forward to the coming months, Dr. Livesey commented, “Since double-dip or not the recession will involve further losses of employment arising from cuts in public expenditure all over the UK. Public sector and other employers will need to support those being made redundant over the next year or so with appropriate advice. Currently we are working with a public agency advising their staff on their future options given that the government has announced the closure of the agency.”

Cambridge CAB is currently working on designing a package for employers to be able to advise their employees when faced with redundancy about how to deal with debt, mortgage or rent support schemes, and most importantly strategies for getting back into work.  Rachel Talbot, CEO of the Bureau, adds, “With the current emphasis on assisted return to work, there will be an increase in those who are using a combination of income from employment and benefits to manage their lives.  We are well placed to offer professional advice on these issues and want to work with employers to achieve results.”