Q: Where can I get in person help with government services?
A: As many of you know, here at the Resource Centre, under the umbrella of our programs like our Community Navigation Hub, Legal Advocacy program, and our Community Volunteer Income Tax Program, we regularly help clients navigate government services. This may be by helping with things like online access, understanding old age benefits, or filling out various forms.
With that in mind, we were excited to learn about a new government service drop-in day at the Sechelt Public Library. Sechelt Library will offer a Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and Service Canada “Superclinic.” It happens Friday, Oct. 27 – the day this newspaper hits stands.
During this clinic, representatives from both Service Canada and the CRA will be on hand to offer people one-on-one service on topics like: Canada Pension Plan/Old Age Security; Canada Pension Plan disability benefits; passport information; SIN numbers* and many more topics that fall under the federal government’s Service Canada and CRA umbrellas. (*If you need a Social Insurance Number, please bring: your birth certificate, certificate of Indian Status and any other forms of federal or provincial identification you may have.)
Superclinic details: Oct. 27, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the community room at the Sechelt Library (5797 Cowrie Street). For questions about these clinics, or as to whether there will be future clinics like this, please contact the Sechelt Library at 604-885-3260.
This article is a good chance to highlight again that the Service Canada scheduled outreach days on the Coast continue on the first and third Thursdays of the month, on a first come first served basis, out of the Service BC office (5498 Wharf Avenue, Sechelt). These outreach days allow you to have various Service Canada forms checked over and much more. The hours for the outreach days are 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
And there is always the Service Canada Outreach phone number available to call. I can’t stress enough how useful it can be for general and basic questions about Service Canada-related questions. Many times, when clients come into our office, we sit on speakerphone with this number and have the agents there walk us through various forms and online processes. In many cases it may be able to help you with your Service Canada questions without needing to wait in line in-person. This is for things like Employment Insurance, general questions around pensions and much more. Call the Service Canada Outreach number at: 1-877-631-2657.
For any other questions related to navigating government services, reach out to us at the Resource Centre.
Angie Theilmann is an information and referral specialist at the Sunshine Coast Resource Centre, your community information hub. The Resource Centre is open Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Appointments are recommended to be sure we are available to help you. Note: on some days, we can book clients after 2 p.m. Contact us: [email protected] or 604-885-4088.
