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.

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Partnership working


The Citizens Advice service works in partnership with organisations and agencies from all sectors, at national and regional level, developing new and existing services. We are always striving to achieve more and recognise this is often best done by partnering with others.

National partnerships

By working with a range of national partners we can improve the lives of the most vulnerable groups in society. We work with partners from the public, private and third sectors to ensure our experience, and that of our clients, is used proactively to inform policy and practice for the better.

At a national level we work with organisations across a range of services including:

  • debt, money and financial advice
    • Money Guidance service funded by the Financial Services Authority and HM Treasury
    • generic financial advice in partnership with the Personal Finance Society
    • face-to-face debt advice as part of the Financial Inclusion Fund programme
    • financial capability as part of the Financial Skills for Life programme in partnership with Prudential Plc
  • developing financial capability volunteering through the Nationwide MoneyActive project
  • assisting lone parents as part of the Barclaycard Horizons project
  • benefits and money advice for serving and ex-service personnel, their partners and dependents as supported by the Royal British Legion and the RAF Benevolent Fund
  • supporting people affected by cancer with welfare advice in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support
  • the National Homelessness Advice Service in partnership with Shelter
  • community legal advice as part of the Community Legal Service
  • advice in prisons and probation settings
  • Working together for advice is a joint initiative between members of the Advice Services Alliance.
  • Advice changing young lives working with YouthNet to develop and improve advice to young people using Citizens Advice expertise, with funding from HBOS Foundation.

Regional and local partnerships

Bureaux belong to networks of statutory and third sector community agencies. The partnerships identify common goals and separate strengths, leading to work that delivers joined up, client-centred services for people locally or in the region.

These partnerships include: anti-poverty coalitions, new financial capability services in schools; working with health trusts and addiction centres; developing prisoner release advice services with Jobcentre Plus, or promoting advice services and support to employers around pre-retirement, health and absenteeism.

Information about how we develop partnerships and enhance our services by region can be found in the documents listed below. Please note that the named contacts within these leaflets are not able to give advice.

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Contact

We are thankful for the support we receive from companies, trusts, individuals and others. It enables us to develop innovative projects that make a difference to communities, and we always welcome new partners who can help us to build on our work.


Tansy and daughter

Helping people like Tansy improve their budgeting skills and stay out of debt.