Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth

What Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth does

Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth (CAML) is a registered charity (No. 1046018) and company limited by guarantee (No. 02914384), founded in 1939 as one of the first Citizens Advice services in England. It is the leading advice charity serving residents of the London Boroughs of Merton and Lambeth, delivering free, independent, impartial and confidential advice on welfare benefits, debt and budgeting, housing, immigration, and emergency support including food bank referrals. Delivery is multi-channel: three offices (Mitcham, Morden, Kennington), two freephone Advicelines, an online contact form, and outreach at libraries, medical centres, and Children's Centres. The organisation is governed by a Board of Trustees and operationally led by CEO Simon Shimmens (appointed February 2024) with a Deputy CEO and three senior managers, supported by approximately 40 paid staff and 30 volunteers.

The core technology stack is the national Citizens Advice Casebook database for client case management, with cloud infrastructure hosted by 1st IT. There is no proprietary product platform; revenue-generating and service-delivery assets are predominantly human (trained advisers and volunteers) and physical (office locations, outreach venues). Specialist service lines include the Merton Disability Welfare Service, Merton Cost of Living outreach, Energy Boost Merton (with Thinking Works), Lambeth Children's Centres advice, and a Wimbledon Guild partnership embedding a dedicated adviser. Additional income streams include venue hire at the Mitcham office and donations processed via CAF Donate, Benevity, JustGiving, and Crowdfunder.

The revenue model is grant- and contract-funded rather than commercial. The majority of funding comes from local authority commissioning (Merton Council and Lambeth Council), supplemented by grants from the Greater London Authority, Wimbledon Foundation, Trust for London, and Walcot Foundation, alongside donations and minor venue hire income. In FY24/25, CAML supported over 24,000 individuals, generated over £4m in financial gains for clients, and reported a wider social return of £13.03 per £1 invested. The organisation is part of the national Citizens Advice network of 240+ local charities but operates as an autonomous local entity.

Name

Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth

Legal name

Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth

Website

https://caml.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1939

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth is a registered charity providing free, independent, impartial, and confidential advice on welfare benefits, debt, housing, immigration, and emergency support to residents of the London Boroughs of Merton and Lambeth through offices, freephone Advicelines, and community outreach.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Advice Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (62419), Social Assistance (624), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (62412)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Assistance & Benefits Navigation Services (BPAGAEAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Affordable Housing & Community Development (Housing, Community Land Trusts) (BPAGALAC), Mortgage Delinquency & Foreclosure Prevention Counseling (FSAEAFAF), Housing Counseling, Foreclosure Prevention & Loss Mitigation Programs (FSALAKAM)

Keywords

• Free legal advice
• Welfare benefits advice
• Debt counseling services
• Housing advice support
• Immigration advice services

Headquarters

HQ city

Morden

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Local Authority Funding: Majority of funds come from local authorities (Merton Council and Lambeth Council) through commissioning and contracts
2. Grants and Funder Support: Funding from Greater London Authority, Wimbledon Foundation, Trust for London, Walcot Foundation
3. Donations: Direct donations, monthly giving, sponsored challenges, and corporate matching through platforms like Benevity, JustGiving, Crowdfunder
4. Venue Hire: Mitcham office rooms available for hire including reception, training room, and interview rooms

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth (CAML) provides free, independent, impartial and confidential advice services to residents of the London Boroughs of Merton and Lambeth. Core offerings cover welfare benefits, debt and budgeting, housing, immigration, employment, and emergency support including food bank referrals. Services are delivered through face-to-face offices, two freephone Advicelines, outreach venues, online contact forms, and self-help resources.

Product overview

Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth (CAML) is a single-site advice charity offering a unified service portfolio rather than a modular platform. The core offering comprises free, independent, impartial, and confidential advice services delivered through multiple channels: face-to-face at offices in Mitcham, Morden, and Kennington; via two freephone Advicelines (Merton and Lambeth); through outreach services at libraries, medical centres, and community venues; and online through a contact form and self-help resources. Specialist services include the Merton Disability Welfare Service, Merton Cost of Living Service, Energy Boost Merton (partnered with Thinking Works), Lambeth Children's Centres advice, and the Wimbledon Guild partnership. Supporting services include Research and Campaigns advocacy work, venue hire at the Mitcham office, and donation/fundraising acceptance through third-party platforms. The advice services are coordinated across approximately 40 staff and 30 volunteers, with operations supported by the national Citizens Advice Casebook database and 1st IT cloud infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Generalist Advice Service Provides free, independent, impartial, and confidential generalist advice covering welfare benefits, debt and budgeting, housing, immigration, employment, family matters, and consumer issues through drop-in sessions and pre-booked appointments for Merton and Lambeth residents.
• Merton Adviceline Freephone telephone advice line (0808 278 7831) for Merton residents providing access to advice services Monday to Friday 10am-4pm.
• Lambeth Adviceline Freephone telephone advice line (0800 254 0298) for Lambeth residents providing access to advice services Monday to Friday 10am-4pm.
• Merton Disability Welfare Service Specialist welfare benefits advice and support service for disabled people and those with long-term health conditions in Merton, covering Attendance Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, and Disability Living Allowance.
• Merton Cost of Living Service Outreach advice service providing debt, budgeting, welfare benefits support, and information on Merton and Government cost of living support at various library and medical centre locations across Merton.
• Energy Boost Merton Energy advice project in partnership with Thinking Works, providing advice on understanding bills, energy provider disputes, meters and tariffs, energy grants, and energy saving for individuals under 50 and vulnerable families in Merton.
• Lambeth Children's Centres Advice Service Advice service delivered through Children's Centres across Lambeth, supporting families with young children with benefits, debt, housing, and other advice issues through appointments made by Children's Centre teams.
• Wimbledon Guild Partnership Partnership with Wimbledon Guild providing a dedicated adviser based in their office for Wimbledon Guild clients on welfare benefits, debt, housing, and employment queries.
• Research and Campaigns Policy research and campaigning work that collects evidence of issues affecting clients, presses for change at local, London, and national levels, and aims to improve policies and practices affecting people's lives.
• Venue Hire Meeting and event space hire service at the Mitcham office, offering up to 6 rooms including reception, training room, and interview rooms available for hire to external organisations.
• Self-help Resources Online self-help resources providing information and guidance on benefits, work, debt and money, consumer issues, housing, family matters, law and courts, immigration, and health topics.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 24,000 individuals supported in FY 24/25
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Merton CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor local authority funder and commissioner of advice services. Provides core funding for CAML's operations in Merton borough including support for cost of living services.
• Lambeth CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor local authority funder and commissioner of advice services. Provides core funding for CAML's operations in Lambeth borough.
• Wimbledon GuildcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with dedicated CAML adviser based in Wimbledon Guild office advising their clients on welfare benefits, debt, housing and employment queries.
• Twin GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership with award-winning training provider to empower communities through combined expertise in training and CAML's trusted local presence for residents of Merton and Lambeth.
• Thinking WorkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew not-for-profit partner for Energy Boost Merton project providing energy advice to under 50s and vulnerable families. Two-year partnership starting July 2026.
• Colliers Wood LibraryminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOutreach venue partner providing space for CAML's Merton Cost of Living drop-in advice sessions.
• Lambeth Children's CentresminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCAML advisers based in Children's Centres across Lambeth Monday to Friday supporting families with advice on benefits, debt, housing and other issues.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Citizens Advice: The national umbrella charity of which CAML is a member of 240+ local offices. Operates the shared Casebook system, national campaigns, and consumer-facing digital tools, providing the brand and infrastructure that CAML relies on and partially competes with for unrestricted donations.
• StepChange Debt Charity: UK's largest dedicated debt advice charity, providing structured debt-management plans and free advice. CAML handles debt queries locally and refers complex cases to StepChange, making it both a partner and a partial substitute.
• Shelter: National housing and homelessness charity overlapping with CAML's housing-advice work, including homelessness prevention and tenancy issues. A broader specialist incumbent CAML refers clients to for cases beyond its scope.
• Law Centres Network: Federation of local Law Centres providing free legal advice on welfare benefits, housing, and immigration — overlapping with CAML's regulated immigration (OISC) and welfare-rights work and a likely referral partner for cases requiring legal representation.

Direct peers

• Money Wellness: Free debt-advice provider operating nationally with online and telephone channels comparable to CAML's Advicelines. Direct peer in digital-first debt-counselling delivery.
• Christians Against Poverty: UK debt-advice charity with a comparable free, local-client model and trained-adviser delivery — direct peer in the debt-advice niche where CAML achieves its £4m+ annual client financial outcomes.
• Citizens Advice Wandsworth: A directly comparable neighbouring London Citizens Advice local charity serving a single borough with the same advice mix (welfare benefits, debt, housing, immigration). Closest functional peer in terms of scale, scope, and funding model.
• Toynbee Hall: East London advice and social-action charity with an integrated advice, debt, and welfare-benefits service mix. Comparable in scale, community-embedded delivery model, and funder base.
• Age UK Merton: Local Age UK branch covering the same Merton geography, delivering overlapping welfare-benefits and information services for older residents — the demographic most reliant on CAML's disability and pension advice.
• Citizens Advice Lambeth (sister local office distinction): Within the CAML organisation itself, services are borough-segmented; comparable Lambeth-only advice charities in neighbouring boroughs operate with the same remit, providing a benchmark for CAML's Lambeth-side delivery.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CAMertonLambeth
• Facebookfacebook.com/CAMertonLambeth
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/citizens-advice-merton-and-lambeth

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Citizens Advice Merton and Lambeth