WORCESTER Citizens Advice Bureau has moved to new offices in the Hopmarket after being based in a church crypt for 13 years.

The nine staff and 47 trained volunteers transferred to their new base in the week before Christmas, ready to start the New Year in style.

Until now, they have had to manage with three interview rooms and a general office underneath St Nicholas' Church.

Their new three-storey building, given by the Hopmarket Charities, has a staff dining room, training room, offices, spacious reception area, four interview rooms and a lift for the disabled.

There is also a smaller, separate building providing more interview rooms, a telephone advice centre, storage space for case files and room for expansion of the over-stretched telephone service and IT system.

A web site has been set up at www.worcestercab.org.uk and the plan is to expand and update it regularly, while advice can also be given by e-mail on bureau@worcestercab.cabnet.org.uk

"We're getting hundreds of hits a week on the web site, but strangely they are mostly coming from America," said manager Michael Gardner.

"We get about eight to 10 people a week asking for advice by e-mail and we haven't pushed it at all."

Seventeen thousand people sought advice from the centre in 2000 and the numbers have been increasing throughout 2001.

About half are dealt with by telephone and many others can be resolved in a half-hour interview, but more complicated problems such as those involving debt, welfare benefits and employment issues might need further appointments with a case worker.

Welfare benefits topped the list in November with 508 enquiries, followed by 408 about consumer matters, 397 debt, 277 employment, 191 housing and 108 relationship matters.

"The numbers may be going up because we are a little more high profile than we used to be and we also do a lot of outreach work in community centres, neighbourhood offices and Maggs Day Centre," said Mr Gardner.

"We also do home visits for people who are housebound and we go to hospitals, because an accident or trauma can produce a sudden change in people's circumstances."

All this work is made possible by the dedication of volunteers and the help of grants and sponsorship from local councils and charitable trusts.

The move to the new offices was aided by a £300,000 Lottery grant, £120,000 from Worcester Municipal Charities, £10,000 from the Tudor Trust to buy furniture and £25,000 from local charities, leaving the CAB with £20,000 still to be raised.