People in Dumbarton and the Vale are being encouraged not to hang back from asking for help as the cost-of-living crisis begins to bite.

The call comes from the West Dunbartonshire Citizens Advice Bureau - as a briefing from Citizens Advice Scotland reveals that the average financial gain for someone seeking help about benefits from the organisation nationally is £4,400.

As well as this, the whole Citizens Advice network is worth £245 million in net benefits to Scottish society.

In the past year, West Dunbartonshire CAB has helped more than 5,000 people with 27,260 issues and unlocked a significant amount in financial gains in the process.

And they expect to see this number rise over the next 12 months as energy bills soar, inflation hits seven per cent upwards and incomes fall.

Joe Mccormack, WDCAB's manager, said: “We’re seeing an unprecedented cost of living crisis in West Dunbartonshire and indeed across the whole country, but it’s really important that people know WDCAB is here to help.

“Anything we can do to put more in people's pockets at a time like this can make a huge difference for people and be truly life-changing.

“That money is then spent in our local area, building wealth in our community and making it a better place – helping reduce poverty and giving people the security and opportunity to get on with their lives.

“The key thing about the coming months is that cost pressures aren’t going to come from one single place.

"While the soaring cost of energy is driving this crisis, costs are going up everywhere and met with flat or falling incomes at the same time, people won’t just need help with one issue but be dealing with multiple problems.

“That’s where WDCAB excels - we offer a wraparound, person-centred service that helps people with all their issues, not just one.

"Our advice is free, impartial and confidential and all delivered with empathy and understanding. We’re for everyone, no matter your background and circumstance. We don’t judge, we just help.”

The West Dunbartonshire CAB can be found at https://www.wdcab.co.uk/ and is located on High Street. Call them on 01389 744 690.