6.2 The profile of CAB clients has not changed with most coming from the same six wards in Bedford town. These coincide with the areas of greatest deprivation. The typical client is likely to be: a white British man or woman of working age (most likely 25 – 40yrs) with no disability or long-term health issue, single, with or without children and living in rented accommodation within the town of Bedford. He/She is unlikely to be in full-time employment and will have a monthly income of £600-£700 6.3 Benefits and Debt continue to be the main issues CAB is presented with. However the type of has changed within these: Personal Independence Payments (PIP) and Council Tax Reductions for those in work have seen the biggest increase. Employment Support Allowance and Housing Benefit continue to be a major area of concern for people. In Debt there has been a rise in rent arrears to Housing Associations and Council Tax. It is likely that the increasing focus on Benefits in the workload is due to the changes in the Benefit system, notably the introduction of PIP, the Benefits Cap and the “Bedroom Tax”. It is possible that these developments are also causing the changes in the pattern of Debt 6.4 The wider introduction of Universal Credit during the course of 2017 or may not cause an increase in cases but there are suggestions that it will shift the balance of work with an increasing need to help people manage their claims, possibly as an on-going requirement. 6.5 There are indications that homelessness is on the increase with a significant number of people being accommodated in one way or another by family and friends rather than going into hostels, B&Bs or sleeping rough. 6.6 The overall picture is that there is a body of Bedford’s citizens struggling to cope on a low income. Not all of these are entirely dependent upon benefits, some will be in part-time and/or low-paid employment. Although this group does not appear to be getting larger, the increase in Benefits Issues and the shift in patterns of Debt, suggests that they are finding it harder to cope.
APPENDIX A: TABLES OF DATA Table 1 CAB Workload: Contacts by Nature of Contact Enquiry Contacts By Work type 2014 2016 Client Party Total Client Third Party Total Face to Face 2,955 76 3,031 1,679 21 1,700 Phone call 3,900 1,889 5,789 4,406 1,179 5,585 Letter 12,314 2,704 15,018 17,403 412 17,815 149 133 282 91 87 178 Total 19,318 4,802 24,120 23,579 1,699 25,278 Gateway and Daysheet Contacts by channel 2014 2016 Gateway Daysheet Total Gateway Daysheet Total Face to Face 4,715 167 4,882 2,994 1,553 4,547 Adviceline Phone 76 3 79 30 17 47 Telephone 312 1 313 1,481 124 1,605 Letter/Mail 8 0 8 4 0 4 Email 1,114 14 1,128 658 25 683 Total 6,225 185 6,410 5,167 1,719 6,886 Table 2: CAB Workload: Contacts by Channel Total Contacts by channel 2014 2016 Client Third Party Casework Prep Total Client Party Casework Prep Total Face to Face 7,837 76 11 7,924 6,226 21 4 6,251 Adviceline Phone 79 0 0 79 47 0 0 47 Telephone 4,213 1,889 8 6,110 6,011 1,179 203 7,393 Letter/Mail 12,322 2,704 732 15,758 17,407 412 759 18,578 Email 1,277 133 67 1,477 774 87 2 863 Total 25,728 4,802 818 31,348 30,465 1,699 968 33,132 % of All 82.07 15.32 2.61 100.00 91.95 5.13 2.92 100.00 Table 3: Clients Seen Client Numbers % of All Clients 2014 Clients 2016 % 2014 % 2016 Clients with a new gateway or enquiry 6,562 4,925 93% 71% Clients helped with ongoing enquiries 327 317 5% 5% Daysheet records (proxy for a client) 185 1,719 3% 25% Total clients seen in the period 7,074 6,961 100% 100%
Unknown/withheld 1,456 2,870 Not recorded/not applicable 1 1 Total 7,074 100% 6,961 100% Nature of Disability Clients % Clients % Cognitive Impairment 12 1% 9 1% Deaf 3 0% 4 0% Hearing Impairment 20 2% 23 2% Learning Difficulty 85 7% 65 6% Mental Health 277 22% 231 22% Physical Impairment (non-sensory) 282 23% 287 27% Visual Impairment 27 2% 24 2% Long-Term Health Condition 289 23% 227 21% Multiple Impairments 55 4% 57 5% Disability or Type Not Given 202 16% 147 14% Not recorded/not applicable 5,822 5,887 Total 7,074 100% 6,961 100% 7: Clients by Ethnic Origin Clients 2014 Clients 2016 Ethnic Origin No % No % Asian or Asian British - Bangladeshi 187 3% 134 3% Asian or Asian British - Chinese 17 0% 12 0% Asian or Asian British - Indian 323 5% 266 6% or Asian British - Other 87 1% 56 1% Asian or Asian British - Pakistani 180 3% 116 3% Black or Black British - African 302 5% 242 5% Black or Black British - Caribbean 293 5% 186 4% Black or Black British - Other 84 1% 76 2% Mixed - Other 79 1% 31 1% Mixed - White & Asian 38 1% 35 1% Mixed - White & Black African 46 1% 32 1% Mixed - White & Black Caribbean 145 2% 107 2% - British 3,624 56% 2,452 54% White - English 107 2% 59 1% White - Irish 79 1% 37 1% - Northern Irish 3 0% 0 0% White - Scottish 7 0% 8 0% White - Welsh 1 0% 1 0% White - Other 803 12% 641 14% White - Gypsy or Irish Traveller 7 0% 0 0% Other - Any Other 71 1% 63 1% Other - Arab 8 0% 7 0% Declined to Reply 63 49