June 2008 - John Lewis presents cheque to Bureau

Partners at John Lewis, Watford raised £2275 through table tops events, raffles and perfumery sales.
Helen Faint, Dept. Manager, Decorative Accessories at John Lewis presented the cheque to Dr Shamim Jagot, Bureau Manager. Wendy Ray, Events and Marketing Manager, John Lewis and Stephen Moore, Chairman, Trustee Board, Watford CAB were also present at the handover.

June 2008 - Volunteers' Week event

Volunteers and paid staff got together for a tow-path walk along the Grand Union canal and then enjoyed a pub meal at Hunton Bridge to mark Volunteers' Week.

May 2008 - "Awards for All" win for Watford CAB

Watford Citizens Advice Bureau is celebrating today after receiving a grant of £9,438 from the Big Lottery’s “Awards for All” programme. 

Later this year Watford CAB is looking at implementing a gateway system in order to address the increasing demand on its services. Although the Bureau has been able to secure funding to convert the reception area it had no funds for desktop computers, cabling and furniture. This Big Lottery grant will allow the Bureau to successfully implement the proposed new service.

April 2008 - Bureau Prepares for New System

Watford CAB is looking at implementing a gateway system in order to address the increasing demand on its services.

In preparation for the introduction of the Gateway system Watford CAB is looking to recruit and train new receptionists/advice assistants. This role will focus on front-line customer service. Besides explaining the new system and procedures to the clients they will also input client details on the computer.  Receptionists will provide information as they do now and encourage the use of self-help materials e.g. Free access to advice on Internet (www.adviceguide.org.uk), hand out information Fact Sheets and leaflets.

Anyone interested in this new volunteer role is advised to write to the Manager at Watford Citizens Advice Bureau, St Mary’s Churchyard, High Street, Watford WD17 2BE or email the manager on bureau@watfordcab.org.uk.

January 2008 - Launch of Herts. CABs website

The ten CABs in Hertfordshire have jointly launched a new website which gives details of opening hours, location, etc.

November 2007 - Annual General Meeting

Sue Wigley, Director, Central Area, Citizens Advice was the guest speaker at the AGM on 15th November. She talked about the changing environment and the challenges ahead for Bureaux.

November 2007 - Debt 

July 2007 - Friday closure continues

The Trustees have agreed to keep the Bureau closed on Fridays until the Service Review Group reports its findings later this year.

June 2007 - Volunteers' Week Event

Every year, volunteers are thanked for their dedication and commitment to the Bureau. This year, the event was a walk along a towpath to the Three Horseshoes pub in Bourne End.

June 2007 - Herts CABx Managers' Away Day

Strategy and Future of CABx in Hertfordshire were menu of the day in Codicote.

March 2007- CLS Quality Mark renewed

The Legal Services Commission has renewed the award of a Quality Mark in the General Help Level with Casework in Debt to the Watford CAB. This follows the Citizens Advice audit which resulted in renewal of Watford CAB’s membership.

March 2007 - Charging Orders

We report a worrying trend that certain creditors are using Charging Orders to cover comparatively small debts.

It is the Bureau’s experience that District Judges grant charging orders as a matter of course and opposing these leads to increased legal costs. The Bureau currently has 8 clients with Charging Orders, with debts varying between £2,127 and £35,000. More and more credit card companies are taking this route of securing their money. The advice to anyone in debt would be to seek professional help as soon as possible. 

February 2007 - Scams

February is Scams awareness month and Watford CAB is supporting the OFT’s awareness campaign to highlight the techniques used by scammers to con UK consumers out of £3.5billion each year.

Clients often visit the Bureau when they receive letters stating that they have won a foreign sweepstake or lottery (which they had not entered). They are told to discard the notice. CAB re-iterates the OFT message to stop, think and be sceptical. If something sounds too good to be true it probably is.

For further information on scams visit www.oft.gov.uk/Consumer/Scams/default.htm, www.consumerdirect.gov.uk or phone Consumer Direct on 08454 04 05 06

January 2007 - Change in Opening Hours

Watford CAB has started to undertake a comprehensive review of its services, and in order to facilitate this process the Trustee Board have agreed to a temporary change in opening times for the Bureau. From the week commencing Monday 12th February 2007 the Bureau is to close on Fridays for a limited period. This is a short-term interim measure which will remain in force pending the outcome of the Review which is due for completion in May 2007.

The Bureau will be open for face-to-face drop-in advice from 10am to 4pm on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. Telephone advice is available on 01923 234949 on Tuesday between 1pm and 4pm. Telephone advice should also be available between 10am and 4pm on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday but this will be dependent on the number of volunteer advisers on hand.

December 2006 - Christmas Closure

The Watford Citizens Advice Bureau will close at 4pm on Friday 22nd December, and re-open at 10am on Wednesday, 3rd January 2007. Useful websites for help include http://www.adviceguide.co.uk and http://www.cls-direct.org.uk

November 2006 - Domestic Violence - Support Agencies

November 2006 - Annual General Meeting

Due to unforeseen circumstances there has been a change of venue. Watford CAB’s Annual General Meeting  is now to be held  in the Main Hall, Beechen Grove Baptist Church, Clarendon Road, Watford, WD17 1JJ at 7.30 p.m. on Thursday 16th November 2006.  
John Humphreys, Director of Human Resource, Citizens Advice will be the guest speaker.

September 2006

The aims of Advice Week this year are threefold:

1. Raising awareness that each Bureau is a charity.

2. Raising funds

3. Encouraging volunteers (particularly fundraising volunteers) to come forward, Watford CAB held an outreach at ASDA as part of Advice Week.

 Photo shows the bureau's display in reception to celebrate Advice Week.

Photo shows a volunteer at the CAB stall in Asda.

September 2006

Scaffolding has gone up around the Advice Centre whilst decoration work is carried out. Relate, Watford Citizens Advice Bureau and Signpost, the three agencies in the Centre are working as normal.

June 2006 – Volunteers' Week Event
 
Watford CAB would not exist without volunteers and every year the Bureau thanks them for their dedication, commitment and service. During Volunteer’s Week this year the volunteer trustees, advisers, admin/receptionists and project workers were treated to a wine-tasting session.

May 2006 - Bullying survey
All clients visiting or telephoning the Watford CAB in week beginning 15/05/06 were asked to complete a survey on bullying. Of 62 clients who answered the survey, 18 (29%) had children of school age, and of these, 5 (28%) had children who had been bullied at school. These were children from the age group of 4-18.

April 2006 – Quiz night raises over £380
 
A grand sum of £384.51 was raised for the charity, Watford CAB. The funds are to be used to buy a computer for the CAB's reception area. Other fundraising events are planned for the future as the bureau is very short of funds.

April 2006 – Benefit success
Watford CAB helped clients claim over £260,000 in benefits in 2005/2006. The CAB’s Disability Specialist was able to help clients claim £169,293 in Disability Living Allowance, £63,094 in Attendance Allowance, £20,241 in Pension Credit, £3974 in Incapacity Benefit and £4742 in Carer’s Allowance. This amount does not include the many claims made by volunteer generalist advisers on behalf of clients re. Tax Credits, Income Support, Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit.

April 2006 – Need for employment specialist support 
Watford CAB is seeking external funding to fill the demand for an employment specialist. Pilot project showed that clients benefit greatly when Bureau has a specialist caseworker who is available to negotiate on behalf of clients.

April 2006 – Watford CAB at the Colosseum
The Watford CAB was one of the advice agencies present at the very well attended and very successful day long event organised by the Watford Senior Citizens Forum.
Leaflets and information on benefits, consumer issues and how to access advice on the Internet were handed out.

April 2006 - Your Rights Week Event 
 
Age Concern event to encourage older people to claim their entitlements. CAB had a stall at the Exchange Road Club. Last year (05/06) the Watford CAB helped clients claim over £230,000 in disability benefits (including Disability Living Allowance & Attendance Allowance). 

March 2006 - Watford CAB at the Harlequin
 
The Watford CAB held a display at the Harlequin Centre to coincide with the Bus Permit Renewal Programme. 72% of those visiting stall were female, 85% were in the 60 to 80 age group and 7% said they had a disability. The photo below shows two Watford CAB volunteers at the stall.

March 2006 - Bureau participates in Fairtrade Fortnight
 
Fairtrade aims to support farmers in developing countries by giving them a fair price for their produce. Watford CAB held a display to publicise the event (see photo).

March 2006 - Benefits - Specialist Support
 
Watford Citizens Advice Bureau is campaigning to get the Legal Services Commission to review its decision to axe funding for specialist legal support services. The Bureau has written to the local MP and to the LSC.

February 2006 - Benefits - Can you claim it?
 
This is the title of Watford CAB’s latest campaign. The CAB wants to know if you are missing out on the benefits you may be entitled to. Advisers at the CAB will be able to help clients find out more.

January 2006 - Tuesday Closure

The Trustees of the Watford Citizens Advice Bureau decided to continue the Tuesday morning closure (which was introduced last September) for drop-in service. This is to allow management to plan for the Citizens Advice audit and to plan for future developement.

December 2005 - Christmas Closure

The Watford Citizens Advice Bureau will close at 4pm on Friday 23rd December, and re-open at 10am on Wednesday, 4th January 2006. Useful websites for help include http://www.adviceguide.co.uk and http://www.cls-direct.org.uk

December 2005 - CAB warning on Christmas spending

Watford Citizens Advice Bureau is advising clients to spend wisely. The Bureau is currently dealing with over £4.2 million pounds worth of debt for 145 clients. Over 44% of the debt is owed on credit cards. Bank loans, which are usually at more favourable rates than credit cards, make up nearly 27% of debts. The average amount owed is £29,534 per client.

November 2005 - Annual General Meeting

Claire Ward, MP for Watford, and Dorothy Thornhill, elected mayor of Watford joined volunteer advisers and other guests at the AGM. Guest speaker Bengie Warden talked about managing change and the challenges ahead for the CAB.

October 2005 - Consumer Direct Publicity at Watford CAB



September 2005 - West Watford Rainbow Festival

Watford CAB held a stall at the festival. Those visiting the stall were able to take away many useful leaflets including “How can I manage my money better” and “20 things you should know about the Citizens Advice service”. The bi-lingual and equal ops poster display illustrated that the CAB was there for all sections of the community. Volunteer trustee and adviser packs were handed out.

August 2005 - Bureau announces new opening times

In preparation for a major service development, the Watford Citizens Advice Bureau will be closing on Tuesday mornings. The telephone advice being provided on a Tuesday afternoon, on 01923 234949, will continue. This is only a temporary measure and the Bureau will revert to its normal opening hours as soon as possible. The new opening hours will come into effect from Tuesday 6th September 2005.

August 2005 - Bureau receives 'Big Lottery' grant

Watford CAB was this week celebrating after receiving a grant of more than £46 000, over 3 years. The grant is to be used to pay for interpreter salary costs and towards care fees. The bureau is looking at diversifying both its service and its volunteer workforce. The grant will enable clients to get access to both a sign-language interpreter and language interpreters at no cost to themselves. Those interested in volunteering, who have caring responsibilities, will now be able to volunteer for the bureau because costs towards caring can be paid from the grant.

July 2005 - Debt cases overwhelm advisers The two part-time money adviers now have the maximum number of clients (186) with debts totalling over £4.8million. They have temporarily stopped taking on any more new cases. Clients are being seen by generalist advisers who are helping them with income & expenditure sheets and working out pro rata payments for creditors. Clients are also being referred to the Natioanl Debtline and CLS Debt Helpline.

June 2005 - Watford CAB thanks volunteers

Volunteers’ week is held every year when organisations recognise and publicise the hard work that volunteers engage in. Watford CAB is no exception. An event was held at the Bounty in Bourne End on Monday 13th June 2005. A fun quiz took place and every volunteer was presented with a certificate.



Dr. Shamim Jagot, Manager of the Watford CAB said “we value our volunteers everyday but this is an opportunity for us to thank them for all the hard work they put into the Bureau. The Bureau would not exist without our volunteers and Watford would be that much poorer without a local CAB”. He thanked the volunteers for their dedication and commitment.

June 2005 - Your listening bureau

Despite excellent feedback from clients (98.7% said that they would use the Watford CAB again) the Watford CAB has listened to clients’ comments during the recent feedback exercise. The Bureau is now going to be offering a very limited number of evening appointments. This is to allow people who are in work or have other responsibilities during the bureau’s normal opening hours, to be able to access advice and information.

The Bureau also offers appointments for form-filling, with a BSL interpreter and with a Pahari and Urdu interpreter. The aim is to provide as effective a service as possible to the diverse community in Watford, with the limited resources that the Bureau has available.

May 2005 - Client Satisfaction Survey

Feedback from clients using the Bureau over the past four weeks shows that:

• - 90.1% of the clients were happy with the Bureau’s opening hours.
• - 95.2% were either very satisfied or satisfied with the way they were received at reception.
• - 96.7% were satisfied (of whom 79.6% very satisfied) that the adviser understood their problem and provided good advice.
• - 88.9% were satisfied with the outcome of the interview.
• - 98.7% said that they would use the Watford CAB again
• - 98% said that they would recommend the services of Watford CAB to someone else in need of advice.
• - 99.3% said that they were treated fairly at all times by the Bureau.

April 2005 - Watford CAB seeks feedback

Watford CAB is asking Watford residents to comment on the service it provides. Clients are being asked to comment on what they like at present and what they would like the service to provide in future.

Dr Shamim Jagot, Manager, Watford CAB said that he would like as many people as possible to partake in this exercise so that the future of the service can be shaped to the needs of the people.

Feedback can be provided by sending an email to: manager@watfordcab.freeserve.co.uk, or by sending a postcard to the following freepost address: The Manager, Watford CAB, Freepost ANG 9766, Watford WD17 2BE.

March 2005 - Appeal for Trustee Board Members

There are currently an insufficient number of members on the Trustee Board and the Bureau is on the lookout for volunteers experienced in Health & Safety, Company and Employment Law and Project Management. The Trustee Board oversees the general management of the Bureau and meets six times a year. The Trustee Board provides the strategic direction for Bureau services taking into account the needs of the local community and the available staffing and monetary resources.

February 2005 - Special General Meeting

Members of Watford CAB held a Special General Meeting to approve a resolution to give the Trustee Board powers to allow the Bureau to be incorporated. At present, members of the Trustee Board have unlimited liability for the debts of the Bureau. Incorporation will provide considerable protection against most liabilities for members of the Trustee Board.

January 2005 - Overpayments of Tax Credits

Watford CAB echoes the call made by Citizens Advice, which is asking for a review of Inland Revenue decisions to claw back tens of thousands of overpayments of tax credits.

An example of the Inland Revenue's failure to respond to changes in circumstances leading to an overpayment was when a client's partner lost his job and they informed the Inland Revenue giving them this new information. Two months later, nothing had been done. The client approached the CAB, who complained. Still nothing was done. When the Watford CAB contacted Inland Revenue they were told that there was a fault that needed to be remedied with their software and they could not identify in advance the cases which were affected but there were many. Another month later still nothing had been done. The CAB then asked for the client's payments to be made weekly and the client has been paid weekly since November. If it had not been for the CAB the client would have lost out on an extra £50 per week.

December 2004 - Bureau closes in rememberance of John Blakesley

Watford CAB will be closed on Friday 17th December from 1.00 p.m. onwards to allow staff to attend the funeral of John Blakesley. John was the Bureau Support Worker at the Bureau and was involved with book-keeping, social policy issues, statistical recording and information technology. He will be very much missed by his friends and colleagues. The funeral is to be held at the West Herts Crematorium at 2p.m.

November 2004 - MP and Chairman of Council praise CAB at AGM

Watford CAB held their Annual General Meeting on Thursday 11th November 2004. The guest speaker was Sarah Pickup, Director of Adult Care Services, Hertfordshire County Council. Cllr. Robert Gordon, welcoming everyone to the Council Chambers said that the people of Watford held the local CAB in high regard. He paid tribute to the staff and volunteers and acknowledged that their client satisfaction figures were a huge achievement.
Stephen Moore, Chairman of the Watford CAB Trustee Board, said that the Bureau was looking at extending its membership and he invited interested individuals and organisations to apply to become members of the Watford CAB. He also indicated that the bureau was looking at becoming incorporated into a limited company in the very near future.
Dr Shamim Jagot, Manager of Watford CAB gave an account of the year's highlights. He thanked all the volunteers and paid staff for their continued commitment and dedication to the Bureau.



October 2004

Watford CAB, in partnership with Hertfordshire County Council’s Sensory Services, has arranged for a special drop-in session for Deaf people seeking help.
On Monday, a specialist social worker, who uses British Sign Language (BSL), visited the CAB premises in High Street and saw some members of Hertfordshire’s Deaf Community at Watford CAB premises. Comments from users included "be worth to encourage more hearing impaired clients to use the CAB service". The next surgery is to be held on a monthly basis and the next one will be on Monday 22nd November 2004 between 1p.m. and 4p.m.

September 2004 - Advice Week 2004

Four of Hertfordshire's CABx, including Watford CAB held an outreach at Asda to celebrate Advice Week. The purpose of Advice Week is to raise awareness, in communities, of the work of the CAB. It is also and ideal opportunity to recruit volunteers. Many people are not aware that CABx are charities and welcome donations. Councillor Gordon, Chairman of Watford Council, visited the Asda outreach.



August 2004 - Number of Bankruptcies on the Increase

Debt and Bankrupcy have increased significantly in the past two years. The Watford CAB's money advisors currently have 195 cases with a total debt of over £4 100 000. Since January 2004, the CAB money advice team have helped 24 clients with the bankruptcy process. Interest rates are rising and it is vital for people seek informed advice from the CAB if they are worried that they cannot manage their money effectively.

June 2004 - Lloyds TSB Foundation Grant

The Lloyds TSB Foundation has given the Watford CAB a one0off grant of £5000 The money is to be used at outreach to help clients who are in debt and to help outreach clients claim their benefit entitlement.

June 2004 - Watford CAB Celebrates Volunteers’ Week

Volunteers’ week is held every year when organisations recognise and publicise the hard work that volunteers engage in. Watford CAB is no different. All the generalist advisers are volunteers. They are professional and have all undergone a year - long training program. Furthermore they have chosen to regularly give at least eight hours of their time a week to the CAB. Some of the admin/reception staff are volunteers. Although some Management Committee members represent various organisations in Watford, others are volunteers.

Dr. Shamim Jagot, Manager of the Watford CAB said that volunteers are the backbone of the CAB service and that the Bureau could not exist without volunteers. He thanked all the volunteers for their dedication and commitment.

The Volunteers’ event was good opportunity for the volunteers to get together and was held on Monday 7th June. It started with a treasure hunt along the High Street and ended with a meal at the Vernon’s Edward suite at the YMCA. Fun and games ended with volunteers being presented with prizes.



June 2004 - Awards for All Grant

Watford CAB has been awarded a grant of £4992. This will allow a specialist money advice caseworker to continue outreach work in West Watford. The money advisor will visit the West Watford Community Centre on a weekly basis. April 2004 - Free solicitors surgeries restart at the Watford Citizens Advice Bureau

The surgeries will be held every second Tuesday, from 6pm to 8pm, at the bureau's office in St Mary's Churchyard off Watford High Street.

Local solicitors participating in the scheme specialise in employment and family/relationship issues.

Due to a reduction in the number of local law firms offering legal aid, the frequency of the surgeries has been cut back to a fortnightly service. Dr Shamim Jagot, manager of Watford Cab, said: "We are very grateful to those solicitors who are giving up their time to offer advice for our clients."

March 2004 - Low-income homes are missing out through shortage of solicitors

Only 2 practices in Watford are offering Legal Aid advice on family issues and none offer Legal Aid advice on employment. Together with other CABx, Watford CAB is calling on the government to take fresh look at the Community Legal Service. We believe the LSC should take a more flexible aproach to contracting and delivery of legal advice.

January 2004 - Volunteer adviser retires after 20 years

Nancy Nielsen was given a farewell party by her colleagues and friends. Watford MP Claire Ward, the Chairman of the Watford Council, Councillor Ellie Burtonshaw and past managers of the bureau attended the function. Current and past advisers were there to wish her well and presented her with a certificate and gifts.



January 2004 - Watford CAB reports increase in debt problems

Watford CAB has reported a steady increase in the number of new debt problems. There has been a substantial increase in the number of new consumer credit debt problems, including unsecured loans, overdrafts and credit cards. The growth in the number of enquiries is almost purely related to consumer credit. For clients using services of money advisers at the Watford CAB, 28% of the total debt is to due credit cards and a further 15% is for bank loans and overdrafts.

The Watford CAB Money advisers have 179 clients at present. They owe a total of £3,614,000.00, making an average of £20,194 per client. One of the main reasons for the clients getting into debt is change of circumstances. Over 40% of the clients are in full time employment. Loss of a job, decrease in hours, redundancy and illness all lead to a decrease in income.

December 2003 - Money Advice Outreach in West Watford

Thanks to a grant from the Single Regeneration Budget, the Bureau is now able to offer money advice sessions in West Watford. Residents with multiple debt problems can now be seen at the West Watford Community Association, 15 Harwoods Road, Watford, by prior appointment.

November 2003 - Watford CAB Annual General Meeting

Watford CAB held their 64th Annual General Meeting at the Town Hall on 6th November 2003. Mrs Eryl McNally, Member of the European Parliament for the East Region, was the guest speaker at the meeting. Mrs McNally speaking about volunteering stated that this country would come to a standstill if it wasn't for the volunteers. She congratulated the Watford CAB on an excellent year's work. Mrs McNally also talked about her work as a MEP and how people find it harder to relate to their representatives, now that with the new system of electing MEPs, there are 8 MEPS representing six counties.

Dr Shamim Jagot, Manager of the Watford CAB highlighted the Bureau's achievements in the last year when he presented his Annual Report. Advisers saw 9212 clients, dealing with 13848 issues in 2002-03. Issues raised included Benefits 31%, Consumer & Debt 20%, Employment 9%, Housing 8% Legal 8% and Family/Personal 6%. Dr Jagot thanked all the staff for their commitment and dedication. He said that Watford CAB would not be able to provide a service to Watford Citizens without the dedicated band of volunteers.

Dr Jagot ended by challenging everyone attending the meeting to find one volunteer for the CAB in the next year. His vision was that all Watford citizens should have access to the CAB service even in GP surgeries, health clinics, community centres, mosques, gurdwaras and temples. He also wanted the Bureau to be involved in preventative measures e.g. financial literacy in schools and colleges.

The Watford Council Chairman, Councillor Ellie Burtenshaw is shown below, talking to the Watford CAB Management Committee Chairman, Mr. Stephen Moore.



September 2003 - Watford CAB awarded CLS Quality Mark

The Legal Services Commission has confirmed the award of a Quality Mark in the General Help Level with Casework in Debt to the Watford CAB.

Watford Mayor Dorothy Thornhill congratulated the organisation on their achievement. She said that people seeking information or help know that an organisation displaying the Quality Mark will provide a quality assured service. She was aware of the difficulties the Bureau was currently facing with the shortage of volunteer advisers and said that to have achieved the award in such circumstances was very commendable. She encouraged Watford citizens to volunteer for organisations such as the Watford CAB. Although the training is long, the skills people gain are very useful and can lead to employment.

Manager of the Watford CAB, Dr Shamim Jagot praised his staff for their dedication and commitment which had allowed the Bureau to achieve this high standard.



September 2003 - Mayor Congratulates Watford CAB

Watford Mayor Dorothy Thornhill paid a visit to the town's Citizens Advice Bureau to launch their website. The website was being launched during Advice Week. Advice Week is an annual campaign to raise the profile of the CAB service and takes place locally, regionally and nationally. As part of Advice Week Watford Bureau together with other Hertfordshire Bureaux held a very successful outreach advice service at Asda at the dome roundabout.

This year the theme was "Help at the heart of your community" and the emphasis was firmly on volunteer recruitment. Over 80% of CAB staff and all generalist advisers are volunteers. Dr Shamim Jagot, manager of Watford CAB said, " we hope to highlight the fact that we need more volunteers to keep the services running".

The Mayor said that the CAB service helped people to exercise their rights and she fully endorsed their volunteer recruitment campaign. Volunteers gain a lot out of the training programme, which is well recognised in the commercial sector and many volunteers go on to find jobs.



August 2003 - Watford CAB recieves important new grant

Watford CAB received a significant boost to its work in helping local people in Watford. The group has been awarded a grant of £9900 for a project to encourage volunteering and recruitment from the ethnic minority communities in Watford. The money is coming from the Key Fund, an initiative of the European Social Fund, which aims to help those who for any reason are disadvantaged in the labour market. The Fund is managed locally by the Hertfordshire Community Foundation.

Dr Shamim Jagot, Manager of Watford CAB said "we are delighted to receive this grant. I am hoping that by recruiting a recruitment officer/co-ordinator we will be able to open up opportunities for volunteering from within the ethnic minority communities." He stated that " promotion of a volunteering culture and recruitment/training of advisers within these communities will ensure that CAB advisers are more representative of the ethnic minority groups within the local area" He hoped that the project would empower these individuals to support their communities.

July 2003 - Watford CAB at the Rainbow Festival

Watford CAB had a stall at the Rainbow Festival held in Cassiobury Park, Watford.

The aim of the Watford CAB presence at the Festival was four fold - to inform, to educate, to publicise and to recruit volunteers. Posters and leaflets were on hand to inform the public the work of CABx. Information packs were available for those who showed an interest in volunteering. Advisers explained their roles within Watford CAB.

Everyone visiting the CAB stall was encouraged to fill in a questionnaire "How much do you know about the Watford CAB?" Results of this show that 77% were aware where the CAB was situated, 87% were aware that we offered a free, confidential, impartial and independent service. Only 44% were aware of our opening hours. 49% did not know that we had advisers who spoke different languages (currently French, Gujerati, Kucchie, Swedish and Urdu). 77% were aware of our specialist workers -consumer, money and disability outreach specialists and our weekly solicitor's evening. There was prize in this category - the £20 Virgin Megastores voucher went to Veronica Lewington of Watford. A consumer leaflet, "Bank Accounts - a few bits of financial fun" was handed out was handed to test visitors knowledge of financial terminology and understanding.

Younger visitors were encouraged to fill in a General Knowledge Quiz. This quiz consisted of 10 questions about the age that young people could engage in various activities e.g. enter a pub, babysit, open a bank account, buy a lottery ticket etc. The main aim of the quiz was to make people, especially the younger generation aware of their rights. Entries to the CAB Quiz were entered into a draw. The lucky winner of this Quiz was Abigail Wareham of Garston, who received a £20 GAME voucher. Dr Shamim Jagot, Manager of Watford CAB expressed thanks to both GAME and Virgin Megastores for donating the vouchers.




June 2003 - Watford CAB awarded Investors in People

Watford MP Clare Ward congratulated Watford CAB on the achievement of being awarded the Investors in People (IIP). The IIP standard is a demanding one and the Bureau has had to undergo a rigorous review. Evidence provided to the assessors showed that the Bureau met all of the twelve standards that underpin the Standard. Manager Shamim Jagot said that he was glad that the Bureau's investment in its staff was recognised, as the bureau was continually improving and positive about change.



June 2003 - Watford CAB thanks volunteers

Volunteers' week is held every year when organisations recognise and publicise the hard work that volunteers engage in. Watford CAB is no exception. Volunteers at Watford CAB include admin and reception staff, advisers and management committee members.

An event was held at the Cheslyn Hall on Monday 9th June 2003. A fun quiz took place and after the prizes every volunteer was presented with a certificate.

Dr. Shamim Jagot, Manager of the Watford CAB said "we value our volunteers everyday but this is an opportunity for us to thank them for all the hard work they put into the Bureau. The Bureau could not exist without volunteers and Watford would be that much poorer without a local CAB". He thanked the volunteers for their dedication and commitment.