CITIZENS ADVICE SURREY HEATH

What CITIZENS ADVICE SURREY HEATH does

Citizens Advice Surrey Heath is a registered charity (charity number 1118181) and company limited by guarantee operating from Surrey Heath House, Knoll Road, Camberley, Surrey, GU15 3HD. The organisation provides free, confidential, and impartial advice to residents of the Surrey Heath borough on a defined set of issues: welfare benefits, housing, debt, employment, relationships, consumer problems, immigration, and energy costs. Its origins trace to 1939 as one of the original wartime Citizens Advice Bureaux; the current bureau was re-established in 1960 and rebranded from Camberley Citizens Advice to Citizens Advice Surrey Heath in 2019 to reflect borough-wide coverage. The paid team of 5 staff is supplemented by trained volunteer advisers, with volunteer hours valued at approximately £280,000 per year to the local community. Annual reach is approximately 4,500 clients across roughly 16,000 advice issues.

Service delivery runs across multiple channels: face-to-face appointments at the Camberley HQ, the freephone Surrey Adviceline, online webchat, email advice, and outreach appointments at community venues, hospitals, and hospices across Surrey Heath. The technology backbone is the national Casebook case management system used to securely store client information, complemented by the Elemental Social Prescribing System for the social prescribing pathway. The organisation is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN617536) and operates under the Advice Quality Standards accreditation through its membership agreement with national Citizens Advice.

The business model is non-commercial: all advice is provided free at the point of use, with no fee streams. Income derives from a mix of grants from local authorities (Surrey Heath Borough Council, Surrey County Council), charitable trusts (National Lottery Community Fund, Frimley Fuel Allotments, Community Foundation for Surrey), corporate donors (S C Johnson), individual donations, legacies and bequests, and fundraising events. The organisation states that it is not government-funded and must generate at least 50% of income from fundraising and non-government sources. Beyond core generalist advice, Citizens Advice Surrey Heath operates specialist services including the Surrey Macmillan Service (advice for people affected by cancer, delivered in hospital and hospice settings), the Social Prescribing Service (in partnership with Surrey Heath Borough Council and Surrey Heath Primary Care Network), the Energy Advice Programme, and the Universal Credit Help to Claim service. Customer segments served include the general Surrey Heath public, people affected by cancer, and clients referred via the Social Prescribing Service.

Name

CITIZENS ADVICE SURREY HEATH

Legal name

Citizens Advice Surrey Heath

Website

https://citizensadvicesurreyheath.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1960

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Citizens Advice Surrey Heath is a registered charity in Camberley, UK, providing free, impartial advice to Surrey Heath residents on welfare benefits, debt, housing, employment, consumer, and immigration issues. It delivers services via in-person, telephone, webchat, and outreach channels, plus specialised cancer and social prescribing programmes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Advisory Services

NAICS

Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Assistance & Benefits Navigation Services (BPAGAEAK)

Keywords

• Free legal advice
• Welfare benefits advice
• Debt counselling services
• Housing advice
• Charitable advisory services

Headquarters

HQ city

Camberley

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Grants and Donations: Citizens Advice Surrey Heath is funded by grants from local authorities, charitable trusts, businesses, and individual donations. Major funders include Surrey Heath Borough Council, Surrey County Council, National Lottery Community Fund, Frimley Fuel Allotments, Community Foundation for Surrey, S C Johnson, and personal donations from clients and supporters.
2. Fundraising Events: Revenue generated from events such as annual quiz nights, golf days, and twilight runway challenges. The organisation also participates in the Surrey Heath Lottery where 50p from every £1 ticket sold goes to good causes.
3. Legacies and Bequests: Gifts left to the charity in Wills, which are an increasingly important part of income for the charity to ensure long-term sustainability.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Citizens Advice Surrey Heath provides free, confidential, impartial advice to residents of Surrey Heath on welfare benefits, debt, housing, employment, relationships, consumer issues, and immigration. Services are delivered face-to-face at the Camberley office, via the Surrey Adviceline, online webchat, email, and outreach appointments across the borough. Specialised programmes include the Surrey Macmillan Service for cancer patients, the Energy Advice Programme, Universal Credit Help to Claim, and the Social Prescribing Service.

Product overview

Citizens Advice Surrey Heath offers a unified advice service providing free, confidential, impartial advice to residents of Surrey Heath. The core offering consists of generalist advice covering benefits, housing, debt, employment, relationships, consumer issues, and immigration, delivered through multiple channels including in-person, telephone, email, and webchat. The service portfolio includes specialized offerings: the Surrey Macmillan Service provides cancer-specific advice; the Social Prescribing Service connects patients to community resources; the Energy Advice Programme addresses fuel poverty; and Universal Credit Help to Claim supports benefit applications. Outreach appointments extend service availability across the borough.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Citizens Advice Surrey Heath General Advice Service Free, confidential advice service covering welfare benefits, housing, debt, employment, relationships, consumer issues, and immigration for Surrey Heath residents, delivered in-person, by telephone, email, and webchat.
• Surrey Macmillan Service Specialist advice service for people affected by cancer who are resident in or being treated in Surrey, providing welfare benefit applications, money matters, employment issues, housing, charitable grants and travel assistance, delivered face-to-face, via telephone helpline, email and letters at hospitals and hospices.
• Social Prescribing Service Service connecting individuals with medical and social needs to community groups, activities and services, delivered in partnership with Surrey Heath Borough Council and Surrey Heath Primary Care Network using the Elemental Social Prescribing System.
• Energy Advice Programme Specialist energy advice for clients in fuel poverty or at risk, helping with tariffs, bills, switching suppliers, energy efficiency measures, and benefit entitlement checks, including help applying for Frimley Fuel Allotments assistance.
• Universal Credit Help to Claim Digital support and independent advice for making Universal Credit applications, including account setup, claim submission, evidence requirements, and personal budgeting.
• Outreach Appointments Face-to-face advice appointments available across Surrey Heath at venues including Surrey Heath House, Chobham Village Hall and hospital Macmillan Centres, providing debt management and benefits assistance.

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Surrey Heath Borough CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor funder providing financial support to Citizens Advice Surrey Heath. Provides premises at Surrey Heath House. Refers clients to the service and collaborates on community initiatives including the Social Prescribing Service and Surrey Heath Community Providers network.
• Surrey County CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor funder providing financial support. Works with Citizens Advice on initiatives including Surrey Crisis Fund for emergency assistance and Everyday Essentials E-Voucher Scheme.
• Macmillan Cancer SupportcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunding partner for the Surrey Macmillan Service which provides dedicated advice for people affected by cancer. Service includes caseworkers providing specialist advice face-to-face, via telephone helpline, email and letters at hospitals and hospices throughout Surrey.
• Surrey Heath Community ProviderscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Social Prescribing Service delivery. An alliance of community organisations working with Citizens Advice and Surrey Heath Borough Council on health and social care integration.
• Surrey Heath Primary Care NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare partner in the Social Prescribing Service. Works with Citizens Advice to provide integrated health and social care support referrals.
• NHS Surrey Heath Clinical Commissioning GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare commissioner and partner in the Surrey Heath Integrated Care Partnership. Shares data under Data Sharing Agreement for coordinated care delivery.
• Frimley Park HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHospital outreach location for the Surrey Macmillan Service where Citizens Advice advisers provide specialist advice to cancer patients.
• Citizens Advice NationalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational umbrella organisation providing membership, quality standards, Casebook case management system, training resources, and national media/press support. Citizens Advice Surrey Heath is a local member bureau.
• Surrey Heath Integrated Care PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIntegrated care partnership including NHS Surrey Heath CCG, Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Surrey County Council Adult Social Care, Virgin Care Services Ltd, Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust, and others. Data Sharing Agreement in place for coordinated care delivery.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Macmillan Cancer Support: National cancer charity that funds the Surrey Macmillan Service delivered operationally by Citizens Advice Surrey Heath. Overlapping in the welfare benefits/financial advice for cancer patients in Surrey, and the primary grant funder for the charity's specialist cancer advice programme.

Direct peers

• Citizens Advice Hampshire: Sister Citizens Advice bureau referenced explicitly via the [email protected] email in the company data as the operational partner for the Surrey Macmillan Service. Same advice categories, volunteer-driven delivery model, FCA authorisation, and AQS accreditation, operating across a different county.
• StepChange Debt Charity: UK's largest specialist debt advice charity providing free, FCA-authorised debt advice online and by phone. Directly comparable in core service (debt and benefits navigation), regulatory authorisation, and free-to-client model, though national in scale rather than hyper-local.
• Christians Against Poverty: UK debt advice charity offering free, FCA-authorised debt counselling via a volunteer-driven model that closely mirrors Citizens Advice Surrey Heath's structure and delivery philosophy. Overlapping client base and service categories make it a strong direct comparable.
• Citizens Advice: National umbrella organisation under which Citizens Advice Surrey Heath operates as a local member bureau. Provides shared Casebook case management, AQS quality standards, training, and national press reach, with overlapping advice categories (benefits, debt, housing, employment, immigration). Operates the digital/webchat channels that compete with the local bureau.

Others

• Money Advice Trust: UK charity providing infrastructure, training, and quality standards for free-to-client debt advice (parent of National Debtline and Business Debtline). An enabler/standards-setter for the debt advice sector rather than a direct service competitor, analogous to the role of National Citizens Advice for this bureau.
• Toynbee Hall: Historic London-based advice and poverty-action charity providing free, impartial advice on welfare benefits, debt, housing, and employment. Comparable in service mix and free-to-client charitable model, though operating at a different geography and scale.

Broad incumbents

• Age UK: National charity providing advice and information (including benefits, debt, housing, care) primarily to older people, with local branches including Age UK Surrey. Overlapping advice categories and beneficiary demographic but with a narrower age-focused mission and broader national brand footprint.

Emerging players

• Shelter: National housing and homelessness advice charity providing specialist advice on the same housing/homelessness prevention topics that Citizens Advice Surrey Heath covers. Overlapping client base on housing issues but with a singular focus that differs from the multi-category local bureau model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/camberleycab
• Facebookfacebook.com/SurreyHeathCAB
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/citizens-advice-surrey-heath

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 SURREY HEATH