Community Law Service

23 Sep Don’t wait until crisis hits – Northamptonshire charity launches ‘Sort It Sooner’ campaign

Posted at 15:10h in Latest News by
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Don’t wait until crisis hits – that’s the message from a leading charity in Northamptonshire whose new campaign ‘Sort It Sooner’ has been launched this month.

Community Law Service, which provides free specialist housing, benefits, debt, energy and immigration advice, has launched the campaign in a bid to stop as many people across Northamptonshire as possible from spiralling into crisis. The charity is concerned that too many more people are struggling in silence and is urging people to get in touch as soon as a problem arises – whether it is housing related, about benefits and debt, related to an immigration matter or related to energy bills.

The charity’s CEO Sarah Hayle explained: “We see this pattern across all our services – people waiting until they’re at breaking point before reaching out for help. By then, their debt levels have escalated, their health and wellbeing have been impacted, and what could have been resolved quickly has become a complex, time-consuming crisis.”

The charity’s ‘Sort It Sooner’ campaign is all about encouraging people to reach out for help as soon as financial difficulties emerge.

“The situations we deal with are complex and multi-faceted,” said Sarah. “Getting our support earlier will not only provide earlier relief for individuals, it also reduces the time it takes to resolve issues, allowing us to help more people. Most importantly, it also prevents unnecessary stress and hardship.

“Many of our clients have never been in financial difficulty before. Some are embarrassed to ask for help but we want to help and all our services are free so we are urging people to get in touch.”

Community Law Service supported 19,570 people in 2023-24, with nearly three quarters reporting that the assistance helped improve their health or prevent their health from deteriorating.

The charity’s key areas for support are:

  • Benefits advice – helping people secure the welfare benefits they’re entitled to
  • Fuel poverty advice – providing emergency credit and energy efficiency support
  • Debt advice – reducing debt levels and negotiating payment plans
  • Housing advice – helping people keep their homes and address arrears
  • Immigration advice – ensuring secure status for work and community participation

The charity is asking local organisations, community groups, and residents to support its #SortItSooner campaign by sharing information about the free services available.

“We want to reach people before they reach crisis point,” added Sarah. “We are here to help you keep your home, to get the benefits you are entitled to, to support you with your debt. Don’t leave it too late.  You may have lost your job, received an unexpected bill, suffered a bereavement, be going through a break-up, or simply seen your bills spiral. This is the time to get in touch, not when bailiffs are at the door or eviction is imminent.”

Community Law Service, which supports people across Northamptonshire, regularly sees cases where early intervention could have prevented months of stress and escalating problems. In their housing work for example, 90% of the people they have helped in court had never sought advice from the charity before arriving at their court hearing.

With current waiting times varying from 10 days for housing advice to 5 weeks for benefits advice, the message is clear: the sooner you sort it, the better the outcome.

The charity runs a host of outreach events across the county which means people may be able to see an adviser sooner and bypass waiting lists. Outreach events are listed on the charity’s website with updates and events also on their Facebook page: www.facebook.com/CommunityLawNN

Follow the campaign on social media using #SortItSooner and help spread the message that early advice saves stress, money, and hardship.

 

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