In court advice service welcomes Minister for Victims and Community Safety, Kirsten Oswald
Minister for Victims and Community Safety, Kirsten Oswald MSP visited East Ayrshire recently to meet the team behind the In Court Advice Service (ICA), which is based at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court.
The ICA, which is funded through the Scottish Legal Aid Board and administered by the Council’s Welfare Rights Service was established to provide advice and representation for people who are facing court proceedings primarily due to rent arrears or mortgage arrears and face the threat of eviction or mortgage repossession.
Two Welfare Rights Officers cover the geographical area connected to Kilmarnock Sheriff Court, which includes North Ayrshire. Their work is focused on ensuring that clients stay in their tenancy and can support clients before a court action starts or a decree for eviction has been granted. This work focuses on improving the lives of clients by assessing their income position and ensuring that any income if maximised in terms of benefits.
Councillor Jim McMahon, East Ayrshire Council’s Spokesperson for Housing, Transport and Communities, who was joined at the visit by the Leader of the Council, Councillor Douglas Reid, David Mitchell, Depute Chief Executive, Blair Millar, Head of Housing and Communities, and the ICA team. He said: “I was very pleased to welcome Kirsten Oswald, Minister for Victims and Community Safety to East Ayrshire to discuss the In Court Advice Service (ICA). The two Welfare Rights Officers provide a valuable service to people who are at risk of losing their tenancy. They provide advice and can also provide representation to clients in court.
“Working closely with partner organisations including the Citizens Advice Bureau, the team assist individuals and families to get to the root cause of rent arrears. Often clients have a variety of debt and by working in partnership with CAB, the team have achieved debt solutions for example sequestrations or trust deeds.
“The Council has formed a new Welfare Rights Service that has merged the Financial Inclusion and Universal Credit Support Team within Housing and Communities. The ICA team, which sits within the Welfare Rights Service, is focused on providing representation and advice services to people who are facing court action for mortgage repossession or repossession of tenancy to ensure that people avoid homelessness; and ensuring that by working with colleagues people have access to debt and money advice services to help resolve debt issues that may have an impact on being able to stay within their home.”
Minister for Victims and Community Safety Kirsten Oswald said: "I was pleased to meet the team behind the In Court Advice Service and hear first-hand about the important work they do to support people facing court proceedings as a result of rent or mortgage arrears, and the threat of eviction or repossession. Their expertise helps ensure people can access advice and support at an early stage, often preventing problems from becoming more serious. Through partnership working, the service is helping ensure that people can access the advice and support they need when they need it most."
When someone with mortgage arrears contacts ICA, the team can connect them with the Ayrshire Homelessness and Prevention (AHAP) service, which is jointly run by Community Housing Advocacy Project (CHAP) and Govan Law Centre, funded by Scottish Legal Aid Board.