How Citizens Advice Guildford & Ash campaigns for change

We record your problems and use this information to campaign for change. Citizens Advice regularly publishes reports, briefings, responses to consultations and parliamentary briefings on a huge range of issues. Citizens Advice Guildford & Ash contributes to many of these initiatives through the evidence we send to Citizens Advice. It is often the weight of evidence from real people and their problems that will make Government and other organisations change their policies.

In Guildford & Ash, we work to change things that operate unfairly and to stop changes that will make life more difficult for people. We use our knowledge of what happens to our clients to try to ensure that any changes made will improve matters for everyone – not just those who have asked us for help.

We do this through our contacts with MPs, councillors, and local and national government officials among others. We may write letters or produce reports, depending on the problem. We often work with other Citizens Advice Bureaux to influence change locally.

How you can campaign for change

• Take part in any surveys we are running.
• Check this website and Citizens Advice to complete any online surveys that apply to you and to get information about our current and recent campaigns.
• If you are visiting the Bureau our Receptionist will tell you if we need your help with a survey and you may be asked to complete one while you are waiting.
• Tell your adviser if you believe you have been treated unfairly or have been discriminated against in any way. Sometimes there will be nothing we can do even though the treatment seems to be wrong. But we can tell people who may be able to change things and it may lead to changes in the future.
• Tell your adviser if you would like to take part in any action to get things changed – this might include writing to your MP, local councillor or other organisation.
• Tell your adviser if you would be willing to take part in any publicity about your problem – both local and national. Newspapers, radio and television programmes and news items always like to use real people and problems in their stories.