WHITEHILL and Bordon's Citizens' Advice Bureau has received an increase in council funding.
The CAB annual report for 2003/2004 indicates that it has received an increase in council donations of close to £1,000, from £77,833 in 2003 to £78,746 in 2004.
There has been a reduction in collection box donations in the last 12 months from £3,479 to £1,096.
The bureau has had an 18 per cent rise in the number of inquirys receives. The largest increase area was in benefits, because of the new tax credits legislation which came into effect last year.
CAB specialists dealt with a million pounds worth of debt inquiries during the year, including 24 bankruptcy cases.
The bureau will be running a new project in the coming 12 months, along with Alton and Petersfield CABs, which will increase the capacity for debt advice. The primary objective of the pilot scheme, backed by funding from the Community Partnership, is to prevent homelessness.
The Whitehill and Bordon bureau was specifically mentioned by local MP James Arbuthnot, at a high profile Westminster debate, as an excellent example of debt advising.
The CAB's service level agreement with East Hampshire District Council finishes in 2005 and it has already begun talks with them concerning future funding. It also benefits from the backing of the national lottery which provides the organisation with £12,000 a year, but that support ends next March.
The result of a new application to the Community Fund will not be known until December, but CAB representatives believe the chances of further backing are 50-50 at best.
Chairman John Page was disappointed with the area of finance reporting. He felt that over the past year there had been difficulties producing financial information on time. Therefore a new treasurer has been appointed to take the burden from the staff enabling them fully concentrate on customer service issues.
The bureau has increased the number of staff by two in the last 12 months. Diana Wilson, manager of Whitehill and Bordon CAB, feels that there is great team spirit and work ethic within the organisation.
She said: "The increased pressure on both our volunteer advisers and specialists has been quite substantial.
"We all owe them a debt of gratitude for their continued hard work, loyalty and commitment both to the bureau and its clients."
Mr Page believes that the CAB have had a good year. He said: "It has been a thoroughly sound and positive year for us with excellent service to our users remaining our prime objective at all times."
"We look forward to further development as we seek to concentrate our efforts to those who need local citizens advice."