Citizens Advice

The Citizens Advice service helps people resolve their legal, money and other problems by providing free, independent and confidential advice, and by influencing policymakers.

Every Citizens Advice Bureau is a registered charity reliant on trained volunteers and funds to provide these vital services for local communities.

Citizens Advice service strategy 2008 - 2011 cover


Citizens Advice service equality and diversity strategy

FAIR equality and diversity strategy 2008 - 2011

The FAIR strategy aims to:

  • develop and deliver discrimination advice services, from first point of contact to resolution, in partnership with others
  • to make equality and diversity part of all we do

To achieve those aims, its three priorities for action are to:

  • increase the availability and quality of discrimination advice and policy work
  • diversify our trustee boards and management, and increase their knowledge of equality, diversity and human rights issues
  • develop a common understanding of greatest need and ensurethis informs service and policy planning and delivery

The FAIR strategy applies to the work of bureaux and Citizens Advice in England and Wales. From 2009 as part of our commitment to good practice we will publish an annual equality action plan explaining what each part of Citizens Advice will do to implement FAIR. We will report on progress each year.


Equality Action Plan 2009/10

The 2009/10 Equality Action Plan sets out what Citizens Advice is doing to implement its FAIR equality and diversity strategy. To read the plan click Download fileEquality Action Plan 2009/10 (Microsoft Word 1.8mb)


Citizens Advice equality scheme 2005 - 2008

The equality scheme laid out what each part of the organisation would do to put FAIR into practice from 2005-2008. The review of the equality scheme highlights

the many areas where we made progress and those where we did not.

The Citizens Advice equality scheme review describes the progress we made on our equality objectives between 2005 - 2008.

Discrimination advice

For more information on our work to develop and deliver discrimination advice services: Challenging discrimination.


FAIR equality and diversity strategy 2004-2008

The 2004-2008 FAIR strategy is now completed. Some sections are still of particular relevance to the 2008-2011 strategy but are not repeated in it for sake of brevity. These are:

  • Section 2.1 - Which explains why treating people equally does not mean treating them the same
  • Section 3 - The moral, legal and business cases for equality
  • Section 6.4 - An explanation of our dual track approach to delivery that combines mainstreaming and specific work

Equality and diversity forum

Citizens Advice belongs to the Equality and diversity forum which is the network of national organisations committed to progress on age, disability, gender, race, religion and belief, sexual orientation and broader equality and human rights issues.