HMRC Grant In Aid Programme: Funded Organisations and Projects 2009 – 2010
170 Community Project - £16,200
Year 1 of a two year project, increasing the capacity to help clients in Lewisham communities, with their finances and potential take-up of HMRC products. Offering morning drop-in sessions and pre-booked advice appointments. Supporting members of vulnerable groups to reduce their debts, claim benefits and other entitlements. Advising clients on their responsibilities and when and how to engage with government agencies.
Action for Blind People - £29,974
Commencement of a two year project, maximising Tax Credit and benefit income for blind and partially sighted people by providing detailed information, specialist advice and support on tax credits including entitlements and calculations. Enhancing Actions National helpline team on complex welfare rights enquiries. Providing Tax Credit specific, publications for visually impaired people. Supporting Blind Persons Tax Allowance claims and Business Advisors on Self Assessment and Company Tax Returns.
Action Group – Phase 1 - £19,043
The last year of a three year project in Scotland that helps people with learning disabilities and other support needs. Assisting clients and their carers to secure their correct entitlement and ensure that their responsibilities are met in full. They provide one to one service advice, practical assistance and advocacy on complex questions relating to primarily to tax credits. They deliver training courses to non-specialist professionals to help them support people with learning disabilities.
The Action Group - Phase 2 – 12,026
First years of a two year project for a new Scotland wide project. They will design and deliver free training programmes for organisations that support those who need help into employment. In addition a project worker will directly assist people who need help, within the Lothian area, with complex HMRC queries.
Advice NI - £29,820
A project to enhance knowledge, skills and confidence in the 4 key HMRC products - Child Benefit, Child Trust Fund, Tax Credits and National Minimum Wage across Northern Ireland. This will be done for advisors, Third Sector employees, hard to reach and vulnerable customers via training events, an online multi-lingual interactive e-learning resource and public information kiosks with interactive tools, advice and information points for all segments of the community.
Afro-British Support Services – £19,385
First year of a two year project delivering one-to-one support to their target group – refugees and new communities facing multiple barriers to access HMRC resources; including lone parents, disabled and families. They will provide multi-lingual outreach surgeries in premises of community organisations and Children’s Centres where clients are most concentrated.
Age Concern England - £54,528
A project building on the existing Older Person’s National Tax Advice Project (ONTAP) in partnership with Tax Help for Older People (TOP). Aimed at pre- pensioners and pensioners. Updating printed material and extending the reach of information delivery and advice, specifically related to taxation issues, via publications, web based local advisor resource, training and outreach support.
Age Concern Manchester - £40,270
A project to provide tax and benefit assistance and to increase awareness of HMRC products with older people in target groups in Manchester, via talks presentations and training. Channelling individual queries to their Advice team, with complex cases being referred to their colleagues at TOPs. (Tax Help for Older People), and complex debt queries to their Citizen Advice Bureaux specialist team colleagues.
Airdrie CAB - £39,921
Year one of a two year ‘money wise’ project. Leading on behalf of Lanarkshire CAB and Credit Union Alliance, They will work together to tackle financial exclusion across North and South Lanarkshire, identifying triggers that suggest a person needs financial support and advise as their financial situation or lifestyle is leading them into potentially serious debt. Client referral to this service will also be extended to the Housing and Council Tax sections of both local authorities, promoting HMRC products and wider financial issues.
Angus CAB - £44,492
A project producing guidance on claiming HMRC allowances, credits and state benefits, and advising customers about the responsibilities and actions they need to take as claimants. Offering outreach activities to maximise uptake of Working and Child Tax Credits. Helping improve customer understanding and engagement with their financial responsibilities, helping them to manage and reduce their debts. Provision of telephone help-lines and use of CAB’s computerised information system including electronic benefit checks.
Building Block Solutions - £19,001
Second of a three year project aimed at a diverse group of clients in North Nottinghamshire and North East Derbyshire. Focusing particularly on adults with mental health issues, older people living on their own and other vulnerable groups. The project provides outreach services offering specialist support to maximise income, covering Tax Credits, Child Trust Fund, Child Benefit, National Minimum Wage and TaxBack. The project also involves training others to become Money Health Check workers.
CAB West Lindsey - £19,088
Year two of a two year project to engage with individuals from hard to reach and low income groups to enable them to understand and increase the up-take of Tax Credits and Child Trust Funds. Working with community organisations through a district wide partnership, to improve their understanding of a full range of HMRC products.
Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Sector Organisations (CEMVO) - £50,000
A nationwide two year project aimed at BME groups using press, radio and community events to raise awareness across HMRC products. Training staff to deliver on-line filing for customers, customer support about HMRC products to hard to reach groups, improving the customer experience and increasing the number of customers able to get the right entitlements and pay the right amount of tax.
Child Poverty Action Group - £90,000
Second of a three year funded project providing specialist tax credit advice, information and support service to the VCS delivering customer support for hard to reach groups. Resulting in an increased take up of tax credits, Child Benefit and other HMRC products. Key Customer Groups are BMEs, Migrant workers, Low income and one parent families and disabled groups.
Citizens Advice England and Wales - £165,000
Year two of a three year project which, through specific outreach and customer support, will increase the effective take-up of tax credits, Child Trust Fund and other HMRC products by hard-to-reach and low take-up customer groups, particularly: migrant workers, BME communities, gypsy and traveller families and low income families. Bureaux will be skilled up to undertake innovative approaches to these groups, delivering holistic advice to increase understanding of HMRC products, claims and payments and improve the customer experience.
Citizen Advice Trafford - £13,607
First of a two year project enabling people to manage current and future potential financial situations via the delivery of financial capability workshops and monthly outreach sessions to support single parents and people with mental health issues. Providing advice on debt management, lifelong financial management skills and income maximisation. Increasing access to accurate timely money advice and regular claimant support.
City and Hackney Carers Centre - £19,758
Year two of a three year project providing advice, advocacy and support to a multi-cultural group of parent carers, primarily from black and minority ethnic backgrounds, on Tax Credits, Child Benefit and Child Trust Funds in a London Borough. The project offers one to one advice and information sessions, outreach group sessions and promotion and training to a wider audience than those individuals registered with them.
Clydebank Independent Resource Centre - £8,000
First of a two year project offering a range of support services including money/debt advice, welfare rights and training to improve the standard of living of those in greatest need, alleviating poverty in Clydebank, and providing advice to ensure long term financial security. Aiding vulnerable groups worst affected by multiple deprivation from a central base and by offering home visits and outreach sessions. Raising awareness of benefit/tax credit entitlement, best practice and guidance.
Commonside Community Development Trust - £19,997
Year two of a three year project (Step Forward: Financial Inclusion) supporting parents, older people and others in London Boroughs to enable them to access HMRC products such as tax credits and other services and so to improve their lives. Their main activities will be through Parents Programme outreach workers who will support clients through structured programmes and activities that address local skills shortages and worklessness. They will contribute to Parents' Employability and Financial Inclusion initiatives.
Confederation of Bangladeshi Organisations - £20,000
Second year of a project expanding the relationship and involvement between service users and HMRC in accessing HMRC products and services across the Sandwell Borough. Providing information, prevention and practical support on obligations, entitlements and HMRC products, to the hardest to reach customers. Support will include centre based services and outreach provisions at various community facilities and workshops.
Contact a Family - £35,000
Second of a three year funding for a collaborative project with the Family Fund, to support families with disabled children across the UK on Child and Working Tax Credits, Child Trust Fund and other HMRC products. Providing direct advice via their free phone helpline and producing new information material such as direct payments guides.
Corby Borough of Welfare Rights and CAB - £19,875
First of a two year funded project providing advice to Corby Borough residents on income maximisation and benefit take-up including sessions on Tax Credits, debt advice and one to one financial capability and understanding. Based in Corby’s 4 Children’s Centre, the project will target lone parents, low income families and new migrant families arriving in the area.
Croxteth and Gilmore Community Federation - £18,644
Commencement of a two year project (Back to Work - benefits project) providing education and awareness, information and advice sessions to vulnerable groups, their service providers, and carers, on Working Tax Credits, back to work benefits, Child Benefit and Tax Credits, financial inclusion and debt management. Services will be held at locations throughout Liverpool. Increasing access to education, information and advice via drop in sessions, telephone, appointments, home visits and advisor training.
Deafinitions - £30,000
Organisation that supports the very hard to reach group of Deaf, British Sign Language users. A one year project which will produce a deaf-friendly DVD which provides a guide to Tax credits and is accessible for the Deaf community nationwide.
Disability Alliance – £76,000
An organisation who provides information and advice to those customers on low incomes and with disabilities and provides second tier support to VCS organisations across the UK. Running a specialist telephone advice service about tax credits and other HMRC products, updating their self-help guides; expanding the content of their website to cover a more comprehensive range of information about HMRC products, updating and reorganising their Disability Rights Handbook with dedicated sections about tax credits and tax issues.
Disability Information Bureau and Dial House Chester - £43,350
Commencement of a two year project, between these two organisations, to increase Tax Credit take up aimed at people with disabilities and older people (families /carers). Providing daily drop in and appointment advice sessions at a fully accessible Disability Rights Centre in Macclesfield, to help with form completion and complex enquiries. Through ‘benefit and finance entitlement checks’, highlight unclaimed entitlements, support applications, and help people make informed decisions in response to life events. Providing ‘better off’ in work calculations and developing clients capability to liaise effectively with HMRC with outreach work and presentations.
East Thames Group - £25,000
Year two of a three year project supporting welfare benefits awareness, access
and advice programme to benefit customers of the East Thames group and people
in their local communities in East London and Essex. Delivered
through monthly income maximisation surgeries, tax credits awareness programme,
intensive one to one support and advocacy, and capacity building training
programmes to third sector organisations.
Fair Limited - £15,000
Second year of a two year project working with key local voluntary organisations in Edinburgh to target people with learning disabilities, their carers and families to help them with take up of tax credits and other HMRC products. Delivered through workplace contact and employment support agencies, home visits, dealing with daily enquiries to help people complete claim forms including representation and advocacy.
Gingerbread - £135,000
First year of a two year programme to assist lone/single parents with HMRC products. They propose to run enhanced training courses for Third Sector advisors on tax credits but with additional information on Child Trust fund and child benefits. Additionally they provide e- bulletins to support those who work with lone parents and they also produce free tax credit factsheets for lone parents focusing on particular situations - firstly addressing working 16 hour plus and secondly during maternity or adoption periods. They also provide a specialist advise through a dedicated advice worker on tax credit issues.
Gingerbread NI - £30,000
Final year of a two year funded project for a comprehensive take up service to lone parents in Northern Ireland on the full range of HMRC products and services. Delivered by way of their Free phone Advice Helpline, giving advice by email and by developing HMRC information on their website; delivering talks and presentations to lone parents, VCS organisations and health and social care professionals.
Hibbert Community Regeneration Centre - £19,150
Year one of a two year project to deliver Basic Tax Credit workshops, surgeries and training courses to members of the local and BME communities and workers from community organisations, who work and live in Bolton. The Tax Credit workshops will be run from various centres across Bolton, and additionally there will be advice surgeries for enquiries. Workshops directly to groups of local women, Asian women and women from other BME communities in their homes. Topics including: in work and work permits, National Minimum Wage, Self Employment, Paying Income Tax – PAYE, sick pay and benefits, opening a bank account , working cash in hand and benefit fraud.
Law Centre (Northern Ireland) - £1750
Second of a three year project production of a CD-ROM containing details of key Social Security Benefits, including working and child tax credits, including a separate sections on recovery of overpayments, annual renewal, child care rules and how to do a Tax Credit calculation. The CD-ROM will be distributed to Law Centres 450 member organisations, such as local CAB, independent advice agencies, libraries and other community based organisations. The material will also go on the Law Centres website. Funding will be matched by the Social Security Agency (SSA).
Life Academy – £44,000
A training and support project to develop VCS advisors understanding of HMRC products and wider financial issues, effectively supporting their end customers including vulnerable people. Engaging with VCS groups and delivering 18 workshops. Updating the ‘Taxation at Retirement’ workbook for customers and advisors. Utilise the electronic support network to provide ongoing support.
Luton Rights - £20,000
Final year of a two year project that will target Black and Minority Ethnic communities and Migrant Workers in Luton through a community outreach programme to improve the awareness and take up of HMRC products. It will include providing one to one advice and support to individuals and awareness raising training to a number of voluntary community groups.
Manchester Citizen Advice Bureau - £19,527
First of a two year project of targeted work that engages with individuals from hard to reach groups and/or low income groups across Manchester, enabling clients to understand how HMRC products directly affect them. Providing training and support to professionals from other agencies and third party partners, to provide understanding of HMRC products. Delivering awareness training to parents, carers, pensioners and pre-pensioners in the community, highlighting entitlements and responsibilities.
Migrants Resource Centre - £45,000
Second of a three year 'Better Off' project that comprises workshops, weekly outreach advice sessions in the most deprived inner city areas in London and awareness raising trough community media with a special focus on Black and Minority Ethnic groups and New European Union member states migrant workers. Aimed at improving the access, understanding and take up of a wide range of HMRC products.
Moray Citizens Advice Bureau in partnership with Nairn CAB - £38,875
Commencement of a two year ‘Review the Revenue’ project. Working in liaison with Credit Unions and two new probationary CABs in Aberdeenshire, developing knowledge and understanding of the full range of HMRC and other financial products to vulnerable groups and advisors, building knowledge of confidence. Client focused advice on life transition stages including benefits/tax credits, and how to budget their income effectively. Raising awareness and support access to benefits and their rights and responsibilities.
National Association of CAB - £85,000
First of a two year project to roll out developed training to CAB advisors in particular respect to Tax Credits, nationally to both bureaux, a wide range of VCS organisations and community groups. Encouraging local advisors to network their experience and community insights, broadening understanding and local knowledge, making better co-operative work possible. New and upgraded information and resources will be available on-line to support 450 bureaux and 720 other VCS organisations.
North Liverpool Citizen Advice Bureau - £20,045
Commencement of a two year project to promote the take-up of HMRC products, particularly Tax Credits and Child Tax Fund, amongst low income communities. delivering awareness workshops to 200 frontline staff and volunteers from over 20 intermediary organisations working closely with target groups. Providing intensive training to enable CAB staff and volunteers across North Liverpool to deliver in depth advice and assistance on HMRC products, linking with existing financial skills training and debt advice provision, and establishing an effective referral system between frontline work and North Liverpool CAB.
Oxford Community Work Agency - £4,810
The first of two years funding for a project whose objectives are to train, inform and raise awareness of HMRC products and to help customers throughout Oxfordshire. Activities will include front line advice and training for advisors.
Redbridge & Waltham Forest African Communities Forum Ltd - £20,000
A project to promote comprehensive advice, information, advocacy and representation on Tax Credit’s and other HMRC products to local ethnic minorities, and other vulnerable groups newly arrived in North East London, from Africa and Eastern Europe. Offering community and office based outreach sessions, appointments and training workshops to aid pensioners, low income and one-parent families. Maximising HMRC product take-up and building confidence in VCS organisations frontline work.
Royal National Institute of Blind People - £47,620
A project to develop understanding of the specific needs of customers with sight loss and then deliver HMRC awareness and advice services, targeting people who lose their sight by providing customer and family support. From lessons learnt they will work with the network of national and local organisations to provide guidance and advice to enable similar support for HMRC products.
Saffron Resource Centre - £ 17,415
A programme to promote increase awareness and tax credit take-up for local residents. Service users mainly come from areas of high socio-economic deprivation and have a wide range of issues associated with this, including poverty, unemployment, ill-health and low educational attainment. This will be achieved through 8 Tax Credit sessions for community workers, 8 Tax Credit awareness presentation sessions to residents in community locations. Support on applications and ongoing claims and ‘better off’ calculations. Publicity alerting vulnerable local residents of take-up campaign, supported by website providing HMRC product information and campaign news.
Sandwell Asian Family Support Service - £20,657
The second of a three year funded project to provide a liaison and outreach service for South Asian families who have a child or young person with a disability. Supporting families to access and support about HMRC products resulting in an improved customer experience and an increased number of customers getting the right entitlements and paying the right amount of tax.
Sangam Association of Asian Women - £28,200
The final year of a two year funded project to raise awareness of HMRC products and services to improve take up of Tax Credits and Child Benefit by BME groups and to gain a better understanding of their needs. Promoting HMRC services within the wider community and reaching members of BME groups through Outreach Advice Surgeries, access to information and individual One to One support for clients with language needs to fill in application forms and dealing with overpayments.
Southall Community Alliance - £8,760
A project involving collaboration between Southall based Black Minority Ethnic and Refugee (BMER) community groups working with the local Indian, Somali Pakistani, Russian and Afghan communities. Involving training advisers from ethnic minority communities as ‘champions’ to assist and advise on HMRC products, concentrating on Tax Credits. Working with voluntary sector groups to arrange Tax Credit sessions for residents, who because of language or cultural barriers have not been able to access them. Promoting HMRC products through Westside Community Radio Station using common community languages.
Surrey Welfare Rights - £ 16,594
Year one of a two year project ensuring children in low0income families, whether working families or not, have better access to advice and support in taking-up HMRC products. Families in the identified groups, such as families with a disabled parent and black and minority ethnic families, will benefit from community based awareness raising sessions to increase tax credit take-up and their responsibilities. One to one advice on debts and benefit checks to ensure income maximisation. Widening involvement in the Child Poverty Campaign and build capacity across the Third Sector through 8 training courses each year.
TaxAid UK - £62,500
First year of a two year project to improve compliance through increased awareness and willingness to meet tax responsibilities and complement the FSA Money Guidance Pilot in the North East & North West. Delivering tax awareness training in the context of Financial Capability and understanding of changes to tax regulations to the front line advisors of vulnerable groups and those reaching life stages or sudden life changes. Developing downloadable fact-sheets on specific issues to support their 3 workshops and conferences.
TaxAid UK - £135,000
The second of a three year funded project to provide Helpline advice nationally for all HMRC target groups, responding to all tax related problems, including HMRC administered benefits whilst specialising in tax debt. Providing dedicated Specialist Tax advice to VCS advice organisations serving all HMRC target groups. Face to Face and Outreach tax advice provision, includes the availability of casework to resolve complex and long standing HMRC cases, especially related to tax debt. Also provide training to generalist helpline advisers, who currently engage in advising callers with a non HMRC debt problems, to routinely include questions to identify a potential tax implication to their debt situation.
Tax Help for Older People - £80,000
Final year of a two year funding program supporting the operation of a national call centre dealing with tax enquiries for low income pensioners and pre pensioners by providing a network of volunteer professional advisers across the UK to assist older people, free of charge, on low incomes fulfill their obligations, maintain their contact with HMRC and improve their understanding of the tax system.
Warwickshire Welfare Rights - £30,425
First year of a two year extended program developing training/talks to raise awareness and take-up of HMRC benefits across Warwickshire for voluntary agencies and local Authority staff working in the Health Sector, who are in contact with those in need of advise because of disability, caring or childcare commitments, cannot easily access services. Raising understanding of in work benefits and help counter adverse press they have had.
Wirral Multicultural Organisation - £21,000
Year one of a two year project supporting vulnerable people from the BME community where English is not their first language, to improve understanding and take-up of CTC & WTC via one-to-one sessions. Delivering 4 quarterly workshops to individuals giving advice and guidance on HMRC products, and 4 quarterly workshops for small businesses owned or managed by people from the BME community, raising awareness of tax liabilities and payments. Providing 50 business outreach visits to increase compliance and help with payment of self assessed tax.
