Northbank Commons
SearchGive

Letters, forms and benefits

An adviser reads it with you and tells you what it means, what to do and by when.

  • A letter came and I don’t understand it.
  • I have to fill in a form and I’m stuck.
Across an oak table: a visitor’s hands holding a letter, an adviser’s hands with a pencil and a notepad, two cups of tea.
Where
The advice desk, at the back of the library
When
Tuesday and Thursday 10:00–16:00, Saturday 10:00–13:00
Bring
The letter or the form, and any letters that came before it.
Cost
Free, and private
How to find the advice deskOr call 020 555 0148

What happens

  1. Come to the back of the library and take a seat by the window. No appointment, no number to pull.
  2. An adviser makes tea and reads the letter with you. You can bring someone, or ask for a quiet room.
  3. You leave with what it means, what to do and by when, written down. If a reply is needed, we write it together.
  4. If it needs a second visit or a phone call, we book it before you go.
Tomasz Wróbel, welfare rights adviser

Bring the letter, even the one you put in a drawer. Most of what frightens people in an envelope can be answered in a week.

Tomasz WróbelWelfare rights adviserThe advice desk · 020 555 0148

People ask

Do I need to bring ID?

No. If the letter is about benefits, a bank card or a utility bill helps, but we never turn anyone away for not having it.

Will you tell anyone what I said?

No. The advice desk keeps notes only with your yes, locked and for six years, as the advice quality standard asks.

Can you help in my language?

Tomasz speaks Polish and Russian, and the desk can call an interpreter in 40 languages while you wait.

Also heard at the desk