News Articles

The last 22 months have been extremely difficult for many families in Northern Ireland so Advice NI’s Benefits services is needed now more than ever. The team have dealt with more than 7,500 enquires since April this year alone. 

Department for Infrastructure publish Blue Badge ‘Assessment’ criteria used in applications for the Blue Badge which are 'Discretionary' in nature and do not fall within 'Automatic' entitlement.

Advice NI highlights that 116,000 households in receipt of Universal Credit face poverty and hardship if the Government presses ahead with plans to cut £20 per week from October 2021.

Advice NI are now offering tribunal representation for those living in the Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council Area.

The first three months of 2019 have seen a huge amount of change for Advice NI and the rest of the year looks set for much more to come.

Leading advice sector organisations in Northern Ireland are today calling for renewed focus on protecting social security claimants from the harshest elements of ongoing welfare reform.

Aimed at older peoples’ groups Northern Ireland wide, ‘Managing Your Money Better’ talks are funded by Comic Relief and delivered by Outreach Worker John Bradbury.

The talks are free, last about 45 minutes and cover a range of topics including: budgeting, maximising your income, dealing with debt, saving, borrowing and credit and avoiding scams.

‘I also give people some additional information, benefits information and contact details within Advice NI for further free advice.

‘So far, we have reached over 1,000 people with almost half living in rural isolated areas. The talks are aimed primarily at people over sixty and over 350 people reached are aged over 75.

‘I usually find people are most interested  in benefits uptake and avoiding scams. As an organisation, we are delighted to provide as much help and information as possible,’ added John.

So far, community groups, womens’ groups and churches have been amongst the venues visited.

More talks are planned for late Autumn to Winter. If you would like a contact, please contact John – ‘john@adviceni.net.’