Information & Advice

Age UK Portsmouth
The Bradbury Centre
16-18 Kingston Road
Portsmouth
Hampshire
PO1 5RZ
United Kingdom

Email: infoandadvice@ageukportsmouth.org.uk
Telephone: 02392 862121

We provide free, independent and confidential information and advice on a wide range of issues affecting people over the age of 50 in Portsmouth and the local area.

Our Information and Advice telephone line is open Monday to Thursday from 9.00am to 5.00pm and Friday 9.00am to 4.30pm. If our line is busy you can leave a brief message with your contact details and reason for your call and a member of our team will then contact you within five working days to see how we can help.

Issues we can help you with

• Welfare Benefits Guidance, specialising in benefits for individuals over State Pension age
• Online Benefits and Income Check, helping to ensure clients are receiving their full entitlements
• Application Assistance, providing support with filling out forms for benefits such as Attendance Allowance and Blue badges
• Help with Disputing Decisions, offering advice on how to understand and appeal benefit decisions.

Welfare benefits

Benefits enquiries are one of our most common requests, and last year we were able to help claim over £2.3 million in benefits for older people living in the Portsmouth area. It is estimated that every year over £3.5 billion of benefits goes unclaimed across the country, with more than 800,000 older people not claiming Pension Credit to which they are entitled.

Many people are put off claiming either by the complexity of the benefits system, or they assume they cannot claim anything because they have a private pension or have some savings or own their home.

We have a team of trained staff and volunteers who can check to see if you are entitled to claim any welfare or disability benefits, and can help you through the claims process from start to finish. If needed we can give you assistance filling in all of the forms.

Benefits Calculator – what are you entitled to?

Age UK's online benefits calculator can help you find out which benefits you could be entitled to. It's free and simple to use and the details you provide are kept anonymous.

Our benefits calculator can tell you if you're potentially entitled to claim extra money. The calculations are based on the information you provide – such as where you live, whether you're single or in a couple or if you care for someone.

Our calculator can give you an idea of which benefits you could claim and how much you could get, as well as how your benefits might be affected if your circumstances change – for example if you increase your working hours or move in with your partner.

Before you start, you'll need to have information about:
• your savings
• your income, including your partner's if you have one
• any benefits or pensions you're already claiming, including anyone you're living with.

Click here to start Age UK's online benefits calculator

How We Provide Support

• Telephone Support, offering advice over the telephone, including scheduled appointments
• Email Support, responding to queries and providing guidance through email
• In-Person Meetings, face-to-face support available through appointments
• Home Visits, for clients needing assistance with specific forms, like Attendance Allowance, when other options aren’t suitable
• Information Resources, supplying factsheets and guides to help navigate welfare benefits.

Legal issues

Every two weeks legal advisors from Biscoes Solicitors offer free 20 minute appointments at the Bradbury Centre to provide advice on matters such as Wills, Power of Attorney, Probate and other legal issues.