Service Information
Financial support
Financial and debt support for people with cancer
Being diagnosed with cancer is a difficult time. As well as coping with the treatment, cancer can affect work, your income and increase your costs.
However, there is a lot of help available. These agencies can offer advice and support.
Macmillan Benefits Advice
The Macmillan Cancer Support charity have a benefits team who offer advice, support and information about your finances and entitlement to benefits.
Macmillan Cancer Support website (Opens in a new window).
Age UK
Age UK provides independent, impartial and expert information, for those receiving a state pension, on a variety of topics including benefits, legal advice, heating costs and more. You can contact them via telephone, their website or face-to-face in local communities.
Tel:0800 678 1602 (National number)
Tel: 01206 368 420 (Age UK Colchester)
Tel: 01255 473 346 (Age UK Tendring)
Age UK website (Opens in a new window).
Christians Against Poverty
Christians Against Poverty helps people find a practical, lasting solution to debt and poverty via a network of local Christian churches.
Tel:0800 328 0006
Email Christians Against Poverty.
Christians Against Poverty website (Opens in a new window).
Citizens Advice
Citizens Advice offers FREE confidential, independent and impartial advice – online, over the phone and in person – through a network of independent charities.
Tel:03444 111 444 (National Advice Line)
Citizens Advice website (Opens in a new window).
Citizens Advice has branches in Colchester, Maldon, Tendring (Clacton and Harwich)
Find your nearest Citizens Advice branch (Opens in a new window).
Colchester Borough Council
Colchester Borough Council (including the library and community hub) has financial information and advice for Colchester borough residents only.
Tel:01206 282 600 (General Colchester Housing Benefit and Council Tax office Advice Line)
Colchester Borough Council website (Opens in a new window).
People living in Colchester can also access benefit advice via the hub at Colchester Library. A drop-in service is available there between 9am-5pm (Monday to Friday).
Tel:01206 505 855
Email the Colchester Borough Council benefits advice team.
Library hub at Colchester Library (Opens in a new window).
For specific help with Universal Credit, please contact Jobcentre Plus
Debt Advice Foundation
The Debt Advice Foundation is a national debt advice and education charity offering free, confidential support and advice to anyone worried about loans, credit and debt.
Tel:0800 043 4050
Debt Advice Foundation website (Opens in a new window).
Essential Living Fund
The Essential Living Fund offers support for those in crisis. Provides small financial grants, furniture, food vouchers and white goods. There are eligibility criteria.
Tel:0300 790 0124
Essential Living Fund website (Opens in a new window).
Essex Connects (online only)
Essex Connects is an online forum to find local activities and to help you to get in touch with hundreds of local charities, voluntary groups, and community sector services, based in Braintree, Chelmsford, Colchester, Tendring, Maldon, Uttlesford, Epping, Harlow, Basildon, Billericay and Wickford.
Essex Connects website (Opens in a new window).
Essex Outreach Support (via Peabody)
The Peabody Essex Outreach Support service offers short-term support to people over the age of 16, living within the Essex area, who are experiencing a range of problems that are impacting their health, financial and housing wellbeing.
Tel:0800 288 8883
Email the Peabody Essex Outreach Support team.
Peabody Care and Support website (Opens in a new window).
Food banks
Food banks give free food to people who are struggling financially. Contact the Trussell Trust to find a food bank near you.
Tel: 01722 580 180
Email the Trussell Trust.
Trussell Trust website (Opens in a new window).
GP Care Advisors
GP care advisors are based at your GP surgery and can offer benefits advice. Please contact your local GP surgery for more information. GP care advisors can arrange to visit you at home, if it is not possible to visit or telephone the local surgery.
Independent Age
Independent Age is an older people’s independent charity offering regular friendly contact. Independent Age can provide you and your family with clear, free and impartial advice on issues such as care and support, money and benefits and health and mobility, via, advice, fact sheets and/or regular telephone calls.
Tel:0800 319 6789
Independent Age website (Opens in a new window).
Email Independent Age.
Jobcentre Plus
Jobcentre Plus is a government-funded employment agency and social security office that aims it is to help people of working age find employment in the UK. The agency administers claims for benefits such as Income Support, Incapacity Benefit, and Jobseeker’s Allowance.
Jobcentre Plus has branches in Clacton, Colchester and various other locations throughout Essex.
Tel:0800 055 6688
Jobcentre Plus website (Opens in a new window).
Living Well Essex (online only)
The website (Essex County Council in partnership with Healthwatch Essex) aims to help Essex residents take care of their health and well-being, manage health conditions, and find information about support and services in the local area. They also provide information on benefits and finances, staying safe, and tips on staying healthy and active.
Living Well Essex website (Opens in a new window).
Money Advice Service
Free and impartial money advice, set up by the government. They provide advice and guides to help improve your finances, tools and calculators to help keep track and plan ahead and support over the phone and online.
Tel:0800 138 1677
Email the Money Advice Service team.
Money Advice Service website (Opens in a new window).
National Debtline
National Debtline is an independent charity dedicated to providing free debt advice by phone and online to people across the UK.
Tel:0808 808 4000
National Debtline website (Opens in a new window).
Payplan
Payplan offer free debt help and advice to people struggling with multiple debts. They provide debt solutions and advice, allowing people to take control of their finances.
Tel:0800 280 2816
Payplan website (Opens in a new window).
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army offers debt advice and emergency assistance. They help people manage what they owe and work alongside them to make a realistic plan for repaying their debts.
This free debt advice service can contact creditors on a person’s behalf to explore and negotiate options like repayment holidays and more realistic repayment plans.
As well as helping people who are experiencing homelessness, they support families who have hit hard times, people who have been made redundant, become ill or are experiencing benefit delay.
The Salvation Army also offers emergency assistance to people in need (meal vouchers/food parcels).
Tel:0207 367 4500
Email the Salvation Army.
Salvation Army website (Opens in a new window).
Scope
Scope is a disability equality charity that provides practical advice and emotional support (including benefits and financial advice) via their helpline, our online community, through a range of employment and child sleep services, community engagement programmes, and more. All of their services are developed to achieve their strategy; Everyday Equality.
Tel:0808 800 3333
Email Scope.
Scope website (Opens in a new window).
Signpost (Tendring)
The Signpost charity offers a range of free core services to help people find employment. This includes supported Internet access for benefit applications.
Tel:01206 861 800 (Colchester)
Tel:01255 688 683 (Jaywick)
Email the Signpost charity team.
Signpost (Tendring) website (Opens in a new window).
Step Change
Step Change offer free, confidential and expert debt advice online or over the phone. Advice is based on a comprehensive assessment of your situation with practical help and support for however long it is needed.
Tel:0800 138 1111
Step Change website (Opens in a new window).
Tendring Mental Health Hub
The Tendring Mental health Hub is a community clothing shop that offers physical and mental health support for issues such as loneliness and isolation, housing problems and money worries, as well as debt and welfare benefits advice, via a drop-in service.
Tel:01255 377 080 (ext 101)
Address: 148-150 Old Road, Clacton-On-Sea, CO15 3BA.
Turn2us
Turn2us is a national charity that helps people in financial need gain access to welfare benefits, charitable grants and other financial help – online, by phone and face to face – through partner organisations (this service is a purely online resource).