Citizens Advice Bureau workers are not prone to existentialist crises. They know what they are there for, they know they are needed, and they know they are appreciated. 
Every morning when Neil Sumner comes to work, a queue has formed outside the door of the bureau’s office in Basildon’s Civic Centre. 
He says: “These are the ‘drop-in’ arrivals – people who have turned up without appointments.
All will have found their way to bureau’s door because of the urgent need for advice. 
Every individual’s concern will be different. 
“You just never know what is going to come through your door from one day to the next,” says Neil. “It’s what makes this job interesting, but challenging.” 
Neil is one of about 60 trained volunteers who offer advice on  issues, such as housing, benefits, employment and pensions, which directly impact on people’s lives.
The volunteers are backed up by ten full-time, salaried and professional staff. Neil also does outreach work in other, smaller centres, for which he is paid a small amount. In common with many, but by no means all the bureau’s advisers, Neil, 59, is retired. He formerly worked as an IT consultant. 
When he joined the bureau four years ago, he was already working with wildlife charities, but in search of a further voluntary activity that would really stretch his mind. He finds the analytical skills he developed in IT work can be applied to good effect. 
He says: “The work is very satisfying in terms of the results it achieves for people we deal with. But it is also intellectually satisfying because you are dealing with quite complex material.” He indicates a wallchart in his office listing dozens of different types of available benefit, each governed by its own set of intricate regulations. 
He says: “The training process give you a lot of knowledge, but you can never carry everything in your head. Also, the legislation is changing all the time.” 
When asked a question they cannot immediately answer, the volunteers have the backing of the full-time support staff. Even they don’t know everything.  Kathy Beach, the bureau manager at Basildon, says: “It’s very much about knowing where to look for the answers, rather than having the knowledge at your fingertips.” 
The support staff also offer another type of support – volunteers, too, have their issues. 
Neil says: “You can get quite upset and, yes, emotional when you listen to people’s stories and hear how they have been treated, although you must never show it.
A cup of tea and a download with one of the regular support staff can really help. Volunteers come from a variety of backgrounds, ranging from retirees like Neil to university students. 
Kathy says: “Some students find doing voluntary work at the Citizens Advice Bureau is a good thing to have on their CVs, or to develop their careers.”
The training course is rigorous, and lasts about a year. 
As part of the process, trainee advisers sit in with an experienced adviser.
Neil says: “One of your tasks as a trainee is to take notes on the meeting, and write them up afterwards. 
“It is a very effective way to learn and absorb.” 
About 75 per cent of those who apply for the role are accepted, of whom 50 per cent stick it out to the end of the course. 
Kathy says: “The requirements are a lot more challenging than some people imagine at first.”
She lists the core skills as patience, the ability to deal with the public, the ability to empathise “with what may be quite an alien situation”, and the capacity to analyse and interpret quite complex information. 
Neil adds one other quality, something that lies at the heart of a surprising number of jobs. 
“You need simply to be a good listener,” he says. 
l To find out about working for the Citizens Advice Bureau go to adviceguide.org.uk