Citizens Advice expands volunteer hub

A County Durham advice charity is increasing its capacity to support local residents by creating new space for volunteer training and community services.

Citizens Advice County Durham has opened a new training room at its Spennymoor headquarters after securing a £1670 grant from the Banks Group’s Banks Community Fund.

The funding allowed the charity to carry out internal alterations and safely access the building’s cellar, freeing up space previously used for storage.

Officials say the new facility will enable Citizens Advice County Durham to train up to 16 additional volunteers as demand for its services continues to rise.

The organisation also plans to use the space to provide digital skills and inclusion training to help residents access support and essential services more easily.

Alongside the refurbishment works, the grant funded the purchase of two A3 scanners for volunteers assisting local people.

Jeanette Bovo, data and funding coordinator at Citizens Advice County Durham, said: “The demand for the support and services we provide is getting ever greater, so we’ve been looking at how we can bring more volunteers into the organisation to help us meet this local need. 

“Providing proper training is an essential part of equipping with the skills required to join our team, but we’ve been limited by the amounts of physical space we have available in which we can deliver it.

“The internal changes we’ve made have allowed us to relocate our storage area downstairs and have opened us a lot of new space in which we can provide training for our volunteers in a comfortable, welcoming environment.

“Increasing our capacity will mean our clients will be able to get the help they need more quickly, while our volunteers will have a better experience as they get fully up to speed.

“Our long-term aim is to create a proper workshop hub in Spennymoor that will help us deliver a wider range of community services, and the support we’ve had from the Banks Group has set us on our way towards achieving this goal.”

Citizens Advice County Durham supported almost 4500 people during its last financial year through its offices, outreach sessions and community activities across the county.

Kate Culverhouse, community relations manager at the Banks Group, whose community funds are independently managed by Point North, added: “Citizens Advice County Durham provides invaluable support and advise to thousands of local people and makes a huge difference to the quality of life that they’re able to enjoy.

“Bringing more volunteers into the organisation will help them achieve even more and we’ve very pleased to be helping them take this refurbishment project forward.”

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