Citizens Advice in Hampshire needs donations to train more volunteers as demand soars

Citizens Advice Gosport has seen a ‘huge surge’ in the number of people requesting help with their household bills - and while staff and volunteers are working tirelessly, funds are needed to recruit and train more volunteers.

On average, in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, it costs £970 a year to recruit and train a volunteer adviser, according to the charity.

Meanwhile, the total value of volunteers to the county in the last financial year was £4.8m, with the Gosport branch handling almost 11,000 cases in the past year.

Valerie Kelly, chief officer at Citizens Advice Gosport, said: ‘We have an incredible team of volunteers who freely give their time and skills to ensure people in Gosport can get support in their time of need. In this jubilee year, we are particularly pleased to have been supporting Gosport residents for over eighty years.

‘I’m particularly proud of the immense dedication they’ve shown during the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, when demand for our help is so high.

‘As a charity, we desperately need donations to recruit and train more volunteer advisers to help us to help more people in our local community. Please consider donating what you can to sponsor a volunteer.’

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Anyone interested in finding out more about volunteering with Citizens Advice Gosport is asked to contact Georgina at [email protected] or to give her a call on (023) 9252 0112.