7:55am Tuesday 18th November 2008
By Richard Harris
ADVICE is available to people worried about the cost of Christmas or numerous other issues at a special day organised by City of York Council.
The council has teamed up with the city’s Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) to hold a dedicated advice day, where a host of organisations will be on hand under one roof to talk to people about problems, worries or queries that they may have.
The organisations will include York Credit Union, York and District MIND, Future Prospects, York Independent Domestic Abuse Service, Age Concern, Trading Standards, Consumer Direct, Patient Advice and Liaison Service, York LINK and the council’s homeless prevention team.
They will all be on hand today at the city’s Guildhall, between 10am and 4pm.
Andrea MacCartney, the financial inclusion community outreach worker at the CAB, said: “The run-up to Christmas is often a difficult time for people, with the arrival of colder weather and extra financial pressures, but the economic climate is making things even more difficult this year.
“We hope that the advice event will help residents realise that help and support is available, and would encourage as many people as possible to attend.”
Mike Horncastle, the manager of York Credit Union, said people should be aware of how much they were spending and what bills were expected to come in this Christmas.
He said: “This year particularly people have to be very aware of how much things are costing and how much they are spending. Often what people do is be very careful throughout the year, but as Christmas approaches any budgeting goes out of the window as everybody wants to have a good time.
“There’s nothing wrong with this, but people have to be aware that the cost of utilities and energy is going to have an effect on how much they can spend.”
Mr Horncastle said anyone wanting to open a Financial Services savings-protected account for Christmas next year should contact the credit union.
People can call into the advice day with a specific question, or simply use the event to find out what kind of help and support is available.
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