Award-winning Banbury charity celebrates seven-year anniversary with council grant

The centre, based on Cherwell Business Village, offers help to people living in Oxfordshire, South Northants, Warwickshire, and Buckinghamshire.

From helping people fill out benefit forms to offering career advice and connecting people to debt advice services, the charity looks to support the community in a range of ways.

The charity was founded by Andy Willis, a holder of a British Citizen Award and Honorary Masters Degree from The Open University, and is completely run by dedicated volunteers.

The centre is currently expanding its services to meet the needs of the community and, as such, has been awarded a Council Priority Grant by Councillor Mark Cherry.

Andy Willis, BCAv, said: "The charity is very grateful for the support of Councillors who have provided financial assistance to the advice centre over the years, and we wish to thank them all.

"Cllr Cherry has acknowledged the need for our services in the local community and has shown great commitment to the needs of Banbury residents through supporting our charity.

"The charity receives no guaranteed ongoing long-term funding and relies on donations from the public or businesses and grants from housing associations, trusts, and foundations. Most grants are for a year at a time, so we do ask businesses and residents to consider making donations to keep the service running."

As part of the centre’s expansion, they are currently looking for qualified benefit advisers to join the team as volunteers. If you are interested, please contact the charity at 01295 279988 or email [email protected].

For more information, visit www.banburyshirecitizenproject.org.uk/