What to do when you can’t get through
Our telephones are so busy at the moment that it can take about an hour to get through to us. We know that this isn’t good. Unfortunately, as a charity mainly run by volunteers and staff (we have 80+ volunteers and 20 FTE staff) we can only manage to take so many calls per day. With everything going on, a lot of people need us right now!
The good news is that there are several other ways you can get hold of us if waiting in an hour-long queue is not possible for you.
Check out our online advice
You can get instant advice right now on our website. Just type in your question on our online info page and you will get instant answers, and all the advice that our advisors have access to.
We know that sometimes it can be really nice to talk to someone about your problems, but as that can take a long time, getting instant answers might work out best for you. It is always worth trying on our website first, then calling us if you are still struggling. This helps us keep our telephone lines free for people who can not find the answer on our advice pages or who can’t read.
Email us
If you email us, we will always reply and provide the same great advice as Adviceline. We reply within five days. We know this can seem like quite a long time when you are having a tough time, but often this might actually be the quickest way of getting hold of us. 5 days is a maximum amount of time it will take us. You could always also email us and then try to call us if you have free time and we have not got back to you yet- that is absolutely fine. Emailing us just puts you on our list! Please be aware that we may call you back if you email and it will be from a private number- please pick up!
Webchat
We have a webchat service where you can ask live questions- this is a bit like having a natter on Facebook or WhatsApp where you can talk live to an advisor.
Outreach
If you live in Burnham, Iver or Buckingham, and are vulnerable and elderly, you will be eligible for our outreach service. Please email us in the first instance, and we will get in touch to arrange a meeting at a location local to you.
Finally, we are working hard to try and resolve this problem and are busy recruiting more staff and volunteers. If you would like to join our team, why not take a look at our vacancies for staff and volunteers?
