Research & Campaigns

Citizens Advice Sefton has two aims:

To provide the advice people need for the problems they face
To improve the policies and practices that affect people’s lives

Research & Campaigns is how we work towards the second of these aims.

Why research and campaigns matter

Every day, our advisers see how policies, systems and services work in real life. When those systems don’t work well, they can cause stress, hardship and unfair outcomes for people in Sefton.

Research & Campaigns allows us to use anonymised evidence from advice cases to highlight patterns and issues that affect many people, not just individuals. This work helps identify where things are going wrong and what needs to change.

By influencing improvement locally and nationally, this work helps prevent problems from happening in the first place and improves outcomes for people who may never need to seek advice themselves.

How we use evidence

Our Research & Campaigns work is based on anonymised information gathered through advice, alongside feedback from people using our services.

We do not share personal details, and individuals are never identified. Instead, we look at common themes, emerging issues and repeated problems.

This evidence is used to:

Contribute to national Citizens Advice research and campaigns
Inform discussions with local partners and service providers
Respond to consultations and policy developments
Highlight where local services or systems could be improved

Local and national impact

Citizens Advice Sefton works alongside Citizens Advice nationally to support research and campaigns on issues such as:

Cost of living pressures
Welfare benefits and Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
Debt, energy and housing problems
Access to essential services
Consumer rights and fairness

You can find more information about current national Citizens Advice campaigns here:

Citizens Advice national campaigns

Our role locally

At a local level, we use evidence from Sefton to help ensure that the experiences of people in our area are reflected in discussions about services and policy.

This may include:

Sharing insights with local partners and decision‑makers
Acting as a critical friend to services where change could improve outcomes
Feeding local evidence into Citizens Advice national work

This approach helps drive improvement locally while contributing to wider, national change.

How you can help

You do not need to take part in campaigns directly to support this work.

By seeking advice when you need it, sharing your experiences with our advisers, and providing feedback about services and systems, you help build the evidence that leads to positive change.