1. ASTF Update to CAW Board July 2015

2. ASTF Project The project is now in its final four months and as such is reaching a critical point in terms of delivery of key items. The availability of money from the ASTF budget will expire at the end of October 2015. The budget position has been circulated to Board Members as a separate document.

3. ASTF Update: Social prescription We are in discussion with GPs and the CCGs to establish a pilot project on advice provision in GP surgeries in Godalming, Cranleigh and Haslemere. The aim is to compare & evaluate 3 channels which could deliver a comprehensive I&A service and provide information on support services available locally. The 3 channels are:  Touch screen terminals: a self help option providing access to Advice Guide and local providers.  Appointments for patients with an adviser located in the surgery.  Using a telephone installed by the CAW at the surgery to gain access to an adviser at our virtual call centre.

4. ASTF Update: social prescription con’t In support of this a touch screen information terminal will be placed in 3 pilot GP surgeries, being Godalming, Cranleigh and Haslemere. Patients with conditions such as low level depression and anxiety will be referred to the terminals by clinicians. The terminals will be configured to allow people who have the ability and inclination, to self-help via sources on the Web or Adviser.Net. (Over 50% of people seeking CAB advice don’t proceed beyond Assisted information).

5. ASTF Update: social prescription con’t The terminals will have a telephone link to AdviceLine and other information giving organisations for people who find they need assistance after preliminary self-help. The use of terminals will be compared with the Outreach approach being adopted by the Guildford ASTF project.

6. ASTF Update: Touch Screen Terminals In June a tender was released for the provision of the touch screen information terminals and the associated software and installation. The tender was won by Third Sector IT, who are now building the software installation and hardware. Site surveys to ensure the right amount of power and data provision are taking place between 20 July and 3 August.

7. ASTF Update: touch screen terminals con’t: During August the “build” of the content on the screens will take place and be confirmed with the GPs. Installation of the terminals will take place in the first week of September. If VoIP goes ahead (details to follow later in the presentation), telephone handsets will also be fitted to the units. The GP surgery staff will be trained in their use.

8. ASTF Update: VoIP In June we also released a tender for a VoIP system. This tender has not yet been awarded, pending the views of the Board as to whether or not to proceed with the strategy of VoIP. VoIP is a Provision of a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony solution, which will reduce telephony costs and offer a range of soft benefits. It will also offer an opportunity for us to “host” other local organisations that are interested in VOIP.

9. ASTF Update: VoIP con’t A robust review of the proposals to strip out any “gold plating” and unnecessary specification indicates that the investment cost is likely to be approximately £28,000, exclusive of maintenance costs. Across the four Waverley bureaux, such an installation would save approximately £2000 pa in call and maintenance costs. The system requires “tenants” to achieve payback on the initial investment. The investment would additionally equip CAW with robust hardware and software that will take new software updates as telephony functionality changes over time. The system has a potential lifespan of up to 10 years.

10. ASTF Update: VoIP con’t Additional benefits will include:  Complete flexibility for staff and volunteers to “sign in” and use any ‘phone at any bureau.  Volunteers and staff can work from home or any outreach site by logging their own phone onto the main system. Chelmsford Citizens Advice is currently piloting a project in which disabled volunteers work from home using their own telephone logged into the CAW system.  Technical resilience in that if one bureau has a telephony failure, calls will automatically route via the other bureaux.  Free non Premium calls from the information terminals in the GP surgeries.

11. ASTF Update: VoIP con’t Income raising opportunity with VoIP:  With a VoIP system, Waverley could “host” other organisations to offset the Lottery funded investment. Hosting means that CAW would support another organisation’s telephony through the CAW system. A robust firewall would protect both parties’ data and security.  The hosted organisation would benefit from free calls (except Premium) and the resilience of our switch.  A Case exercise with a local company with an annual phone bill of £5000 shows that the company would move to free calls and enhanced resilience for an initial outlay of approximately £2000 and an ongoing annual cost of approximately £1000. We are now going to look at how we share the pricing.

12. ASTF Update: VoIP con’t The Board is asked to determine whether or not CAW should move its telephony over to a VoIP solution using ASTF funding, noting that other ASTF projects have done this. As Chair of the Lottery Board, Paul Rees represents the ASTF Board.

13. ASTF Update: Training A series of training sessions between May and September have been arranged and booked for paid staff and volunteers of both CAW and ASTF partners. These support the key topics in the CAW Business Plan and are proving to be very popular. We have created in the region of 300 training places. This is key to the ASTF Outcome of upskilling generalist advisers.

14. ASTF Update: Cash Confidence The Cash Confidence workstream of the project has undertaken a pilot to integrate Cash Confidence training into CAW’s debt advice process. 11 people have attended 1 to 1 sessions. This represents one per week. Whilst these numbers do not appear high, it should be noted that this is only a pilot. Feedback from clients in the pilot is very positive, so following liaison with Fiona and Sally, the integration will be become “business as usual” after the project. This workstream is also working with the Letting With Confidence project.

15. ASTF Update: Network links The project is working to create a web site which enables clients to search for advice by keyword across a number of providers in Waverley. Each provider’s own web site will have a link to this new project site as a virtual network of partners. The web site is being designed and will be live in September.

16. ASTF Update: Sustainability The project is about to work with John Moxon to assist in strengthening links with the community. This will include identifying how we build and sustain links with other local organisations (Rotary, Lions, local business etc) that can provide financial support.