Jonathan Boyd on ensuring there are no obstacles when it comes to receiving support

English, Gaelic and Welsh are the top three languages spoken in the UK. And at Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) we pride ourselves on providing free, advice for everyone.  

Whether it’s through an external interpreter or volunteers that speak a specific language, we do all we can to ensure the advice we give can be accessed by anyone living in Scotland, despite their preferred method of communication.  

And now that includes 117,300 people in Scotland who use British Sign Language (BSL) and are looking for advice around new changes to their benefit entitlement. 

Thousands of people seek advice from us on a variety of issues including debt, energy, housing and relationships. But the most common area of support we give to those that come through our CAB doors every day is around benefits.  

The UK Government recently introduced a process called managed migration, where legacy benefits are being transferred across to Universal Credit (UC). This impacts thousands of people across Scotland, including those who are claiming Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).  

People claiming ESA will soon be contacted via letter by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) advising of the migration of benefits. 

Helpfully, our Help to Claim service is a helpline that’s been designed specifically for people who need advice making the switch to UC. The service helps people confirm eligibility of payments, provide step-by-step support to complete a UC claim, prepare for job centre appointments, and support to ensure receipt and correct first full payment.  

But with any change often comes fear. We know from speaking to people seeking advice from their local CABs that there’s a great deal of anxiety around the changes to their benefit.  

For many, visiting their local CAB for one-on-one advice or phoning us can solve their problems with the changes. But what about those who use BSL as their main language?  

To ensure support is available to everyone at such a crucial time, our Help to Claim service now offers a Video Relay Service (VRS), giving one-to-one communication with a BSL interpreter. There’s no appointment needed, and the service can be accessed via our website. The user simply clicks the link and will be directed to a BSL user who can access all the Help to Claim advice available.   

Like all the advice we provide, VRS is free, impartial and confidential.  

Taking that first step and asking for advice can be a daunting prospect for some people, let alone having to navigate communication barriers. And in all the work we do at CAS and across our network and the services we provide, we strive to make sure nobody is left out.  

This vital service now has three different ways to get in touch and it's important to know that whatever way people communicate, they will receive the same level of advice across the board.  

For more information, people can call our national helpline on 0800 0232581, go to our website: https://www.cas.org.uk/helptoclaim where we have a webchat service, or access our British Sign Language (BSL) service by going to: https://www.cas.org.uk/british-sign-language-service-universal-credit. General advice and support can also be accessed by visiting one of the 59 local CABs across Scotland.  

Jonathan Boyd is a project engagement officer at Citizens Advice Scotland.

This column was first published in the Herald www.theherald.co.uk