How CAS is governed

Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) is the operating name of the Scottish Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux, which is a company limited by guarantee.  CAS is:

• a registered charity
• a membership organisation that is democratically governed by its members – Scottish citizens advice bureaux.

CAS employs around 70 staff in offices based in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness to deliver a range of services to Scottish bureaux. 

CAS is managed on a day-to-day basis by a team of senior managers, headed up by our Chief Executive, Kaliani Lyle. 

Our Board of Directors and Standing Committees control the strategic direction of CAS.  You can find out more about CAS plans.

The Board and Standing Committees are elected by member bureaux at the Annual General Meeting each year.

Standing Committees of the Board
There are four Standing Committees of the Board:

• Development Committee makes recommendation to the Board on planning the improvement,  growth and development of the CAB service and its support services in Scotland.  It disperses central government money to CABx for new or special projects
  
• Information Committee sets writing priorities for CAS information writers and helps checks new information items for ease of use.  The information CAS produces keeps the web-based AdviserNet system used by bureaux and the Adviceguide public information website up to date and relevant to Scotland.
  
  Information Committee also oversees Information and Communications Technology (ICT) developments undertaken by CAS.
  
• Membership Committee decides who is to be admitted to membership of the Scottish Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux and is responsible for:
  • The supervision of the Audit Process and Quality Assurance Scheme 
  • The conduct of regular and, where required, interim reviews and audits of members 
  • The issue of guidance to members to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, accessibility and quality of the service to the public
  • The execution of any particular task referred to it by the directors.
    
• Training Committee determines priorities for training materials and courses, and formulates training policy for CAS.  This includes looking at new ways of delivering training to bureaux, such as online learning.