Support for parents and carers of school-aged children

The Schools Family Advice outreach service builds on a pilot which has been delivered by our Citizens Advice Cardiff and Vale colleagues and is now being rolled out across the South Wales network.

The Wellbeing of Wales national indicator report states that: “children are consistently the age group most likely to be in relative income poverty.” Across South Wales, 31% of children live in poverty, which is above the national average. Over 45% of children in poverty come from single-parent families. 45% of children say they worry about having enough to eat.

Chief Executive Ashley Comley said schools are ideal locations for providing accessible and stigma-free support as they are often the first point of contact for struggling families.

He said: “Our advisers can carry out benefit checks to make sure that people are receiving all the financial support they are entitled to. They can help families with debt and provide financial capability advice to give them the tools to manage their finances better in the future. As well as providing advice and support on other issues such as housing, employment and more.

“The service is targeted at those who need us most, provided in a way that allows for interventions as early as possible and provides a holistic approach that gives us the best chance of achieving positive outcomes with our clients.”

To speak with one of our advisers email schools@cacbg.org.uk.