DIAL Great Yarmouth

Are you passionate about making a difference, keen to work in a community setting and have a background of working with individuals with support needs?

If so, DIAL is seeking to recruit two posts to assist inidividuals with support needs to take control of their finances and benefits.

Benefit Support Worker

Salary £16,008

37 hours per week (job share considered)

To assess client entitlement to welfare benefits.  The successful applicant will have recent working knowledge of the welfare benefits system, be able to work with limited supervision and be willing to travel within the Borough.

Money & Debt Support Worker

Salary £16,008 per annum pro rata

18 hours per week

To assist individuals in developing action plans to take control of their finances.  The successful applicant will have experience of providing professional money and debt advice, managing a complex workload and be willing to travel within the Borough.

Both positions are funded through Working Neighbourhoods Fund and are fixed term contracts to end of March 2011.

Closing date for applications is Friday 13th November, with interviews held week commencing 23rd November 2009.

For more information, download a job description and person specification below.

Benefit Support Worker

Money & Debt Support Worker

Application for Employment Form (PDF)

For a WORD version of the application form please email info@dial-greatyarmouth.org.uk

For more information or an informal chat regarding these vacancies, please contact Sue Taylor (Project Coordinator) on 01493 856900 or email suetaylor@dial-greatyarmouth.org.uk

DIAL Great Yarmouth is seeking to recruit a volunteer Honorary Secretary to support the Managment Commitee.

Duties involve preparing agendas and paperwork, attendance at meetings to take minutes, preparation and distribution of minutes to members.  It is envisaged that this post will require approximately 5 hours per month, but this may be flexible and there may be the opportunity to work from home.

For further information and to apply please dowload the application pack, or alternativley contact Sue Taylor, Project Coordinator on 01493 856900.

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Learning Grants of up to £200 for Norfolk Carers aged 18 and over!

If you are a Carer living in Norfolk, aged over 18 and have been providing unpaid help and support for a year or more, to a relative, friend, partner or child who cannot manage because of disability, illness or frailty you may be able to obtain a grant of up to £200 in one year, to fund or part-fund Learning Course Fees.

Courses can be: distance learning, provided at a local college, adult education centre or other centre. They can be for just a half-day or day, several sessions, a term or year.

Learning Course fees could include:

Leisure courses / Sports & fitness / Complementary therapies / Academic courses /Employment-related courses / Training to help you continue in your caring role Condition specific training / Adult Education Courses

For more information, or if you would like to apply for a Carers Learning Grant, please contact: Jasmine Toombs, Carers Learning Grant Co-ordinator, Age Concern Norfolk, 300 St Faiths Road, Old Catton, Norwich, NR6 7BJ, Tel: 01603 787111 or Email: acn@acnorfolk.org.uk for an application form.

The Fire Service are able to offer free of charge free fitting of smoke alarms to households that don’t have any, or those that are old / not working properly etc.

They are also are able to fit for free special smoke alarms for the deaf which incorporate a flashing light and a vibrating pad which fits under the pillow whilst asleep.

Along with this service they will carry out a free home fire safety check of the house and pass on any relevant fire safety advice to the occupier.

To book an appointment for a free home fire risk check / smoke alarm fitting please call

Hayley Greener

Norfolk fire and rescue service

0800 91 78 137

Following a recent trustee meeting, the difficult decision has been made to cease our wheelchair and equipment hire service, with immediate effect.

Our wheelchair fleet will be offered for sale in the coming weeks- please contact the office or shop for further details.

Due to the huge increase in clients needing assistance with benefit claim forms we urgently need to recruit additional volunteers to cope with the demand.

Do you have experience or knowledge of disability benefits, either personally or professionally, or are you willing to learn?

Are you able to spare a minimum of 6 hours per week to assist disabled people and carers to complete benefit application forms such as Disability Living Allowance, Attendance Allowance and Carers Allowance?

For this volunteer role, you need to be a real “people person” and an active listener with good literacy skills. Full and comprehensive training is provided, and you would shadow an experienced advisor until confident and comfortable going solo. We also offer enhanced benefit training covering other benefits such as pension credit, income support, employment and support allowance etc..

You could be based either at our office in George Street, at our outreach clinic at the Norfolk Coastal Centre (both fully accessible centres) or seeing clients in their own homes (always accompanied by another volunteer).

This volunteer role is unpaid however DIAL can pay expenses for any out of pocket travel costs.

DIAL has a small and welcoming team of staff and volunteers, and we endeavour to meet the individual needs of our volunteers.

For more information please contact Sue Taylor, Project coordinator by telephoning 01493 856900 or email info@dial-greatyarmouth.org.uk. Alternatively, application forms can be downloaded from the volunteer page on our website.

More than 20% of the population of the Borough of Great Yarmouth have a long term illness, health problem or disability which limits daily activities or work. DIAL are aware that this proportion of the community face inequality, disadvantage and discrimination. Many are economically inactive and are on low, fixed incomes and most have additional costs directly related to their disability. These extra costs can lead to debt, which can have a significant affect on lives; the emotional and financial pressure of coping with debt has a deteriorating effect on the mental and physical health of many disabled people often leading to depression and anxiety. For many disabled people facing debt, there is a real need to have to reduce spending related to basic needs, such as food and heating and to cut back on items impacting on their quality of life, such as accessible transport and respite care. DIAL has responded to the growing number of local people facing this situation by employing a part time money and debt caseworker.

Stephen Bower, Money & Debt Caseworker, can provide a comprehensive money advice service, including assistance to clarify essential/non essential purchases and budgeting; information on methods of reducing monthly outgoings, to enable people to budget with fixed incomes; assistance with preparation of household budgets and formulation of a debt management plan if applicable; assistance to clients in dealing with banks and other institutions to manage and/or reduce financial liabilities.

For more information please telephone 01493 856900, to speak to Stephen directly or to book an appointment.

DIAL has registered with eBay to help raise additional funds.

If you use eBay to sell your unwanted items, you can now choose to donate a percentage (10-100%) of the final selling value direct to DIAL Great Yarmouth.

To find out more visit our fundraising page now.

The next meeting of the Great Yarmouth Disability Forum will be on

Tuesday 14th October

Cobholm & Lichfield Health and Resource Centre

1.45pm for a 2pm start

All welcome!