Who is Advice First Aid For?
Our fully-funded Advice First Aid course is available to any organisation that supports people in North Somerset who may benefit from advice, information or referral to Citizens Advice.
This includes organisations based outside of North Somerset as long as they provide support to people within North Somerset.
Please note: Since our first round of training, we have extended our eligibility requirements so if you weren’t eligible the first time round you may well be eligible now. Please contact us at trainingteam@nscab.org.uk if you are unsure.
What is Advice First Aid?
Advice First Aid is a training course designed and delivered by Citizens Advice North Somerset and currently funded by North Somerset Council.
The aim of the project is to equip trusted community members with the tools to spot early advice needs and connect people with the support they need. Advice First Aiders play an important role in ensuring people don’t fall through the cracks and in building a stronger, more confident support network across North Somerset.
In these interactive sessions we discuss:
- How to support individuals to access our service and what we can help with
- How to encourage open and meaningful conversations about sensitive topics
- How to recognise when someone is in urgent need of advice or support
- Barriers to accessing advice
When can we access the programme?
Our next round of training sessions will be taking place from September 2026 onwards.
Our next available date is an online session taking place on Tuesday 8th September 2026. You can self-book onto the training via the link below:
Advice First Aid (ONLINE) Tuesday 8th September 2026
If this date doesn’t suit, we will be running additional sessions throughout the year so please get in touch with us so we can find a date and time that suits you.
Where will the training take place?
We run the sessions online or at our Advice Shop in Weston-super-Mare Town Centre:
Citizens Advice North Somerset, The Sovereign Shopping Centre, High Street, Weston-super-Mare, BS23 1HL
We can also come to you and run the session at your office (provided it is located within North Somerset).
How can we get involved?
Our next session is scheduled to take place online on Tuesday 8th September and you can self-book using the link below:
Advice First Aid (ONLINE) Tuesday 8th September 2026
For information regarding future sessions, please contact the Training Team at trainingteam@nscab.org.uk and we will be in touch.
See our list of FAQs below:
We are delivering this training to upskill trusted community members in North Somerset to better support local people. This means we can only deliver the course to organisations that support people living, working, or travelling through North Somerset.
If your charity is based outside the area but still supports members of the North Somerset community, you will be able to access this funded training. Please contact the Training Team at trainingteam@nscab.org.uk for more information.
If your organisation does not support people in North Somerset, then unfortunately this course is not for you. You are, however, welcome to access our Advice Essentials Training (please note this is a paid course).
Advice First Aid is delivered by our experienced training officers, Ivan and Kerry, who both have a wealth of experience in training and working at Citizens Advice.
Our in-person sessions are limited to a maximum of 8 attendees, however, should you have more than 8 people wishing to take part in the training, please get in touch with us as it may be possible to create additional sessions for you.
Online sessions are limited to a maximum of 12 attendees.
No. This is a fully funded course, currently made possible by funding from North Somerset Council. We provide the training and all materials at no cost to you.
Any member of your organisation who has contact with the people you support can attend. This includes volunteers, trustees, or paid staff. We do ask that all participants are over the age of 18.
If you attend at our office or online – none. We provide everything.
If you would like us to deliver the training at your premises, we simply ask that you provide:
- A private space large enough to host the session with desks and seating for 8 attendees plus 2 training staff.
- A reliable internet connection
- Power access
- A screen or projector we can connect to
- You may bring your own laptops for accessing the internet otherwise these will be provided on the day.
Everyone will receive a resource pack following the session, summarising everything we covered. You are also welcome to contact us at any time with questions and we’ll be happy to help.
In the course we cover:
- An introduction to our service: how we operate and what we can help with
- Your role as an Advice First Aider
- Strategies for gathering information and encouraging open conversations about sensitive topics
- Understanding barriers to accessing quality advice
- Exploring our national website and how to make the most of it
- Scenario practice and interactive activities
No. The course is designed to boost your skills and confidence, not test you. You don’t need any prior knowledge of our service or advice work.
There are fun, interactive quizzes and activities during the training, but these are designed to support your learning. They are not scored, and there is no pressure.
We are currently running three training courses:
- Advice First Aid
- Advice Essentials 1
- Advice Essentials 2
If you’re not sure which course is best suited to you and your organisation then please get in touch with us by emailing trainingteam@nscab.org.uk and we’d be happy to discuss this with you.