Harrogate and Craven's Citizens Advice prepare for 'calm before the storm' of furlough ending

People across Harrogate and the Craven District are being encouraged to reach out if they’ve been furloughed from work; particularly with the scheme ending in a few weeks.

The district's Citizens Advice has set up a dedicated helpline to for those who might need to claim benefits or manage their money during the coronavirus crisis.

Edward Pickering, Chief Officer at the Harrogate and Craven branch, said: "It's about maximising people's income. We're all suffering under difficult circumstances at the moment and this dedicated service will hopefully relieve that burden and take that worry off their minds.

"For some people their circumstances have changed so drastically over the last few months. Some people have never had to deal with the benefits system are having to get quite deeply in it in.

"We even have advisors who struggle with the logistics, so for the general public it can be really daunting."

The team are preparing for an influx in people needing support over the next few weeks as the scheme draws to a close; with people needing advice on redundancy and being out of work.

Mr Pickering, said: "We know it's going to be coming, because a lot of people will be returning to the prospect of not having a job or a completely different job. This idea of not being at work is quite alien so we're going to be there to offer that support and tell them what their rights are."

From August, employers have been paying National Insurance and pension contributions; 10% of pay from September and rising to 20% in October.

For the first few weeks, those who were placed on furlough were not allowed to work, but they were allowed to return part-time from July.

Some 8.4 million workers were having 80% of their salaries paid for by the government - up to £2,500 a month - under the scheme, which was originally intended to last until the end of July.