Acting chair announced to quell bitter in-fighting at the embattled organisation

Agnes Robson is to replace Dominic Notarangelo as acting chair of Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS).

This week TFN revealed Notarangelo had been forced to resign after an internal review slammed his catastrophic seven year reign.

The chair’s tenure had been characterised by bitter in-fighting at board as well as management level resulting in a series of sackings, resignations and forced departures.

As a result the charity’s major funder, the UK government’s Department for Infrastructure, Business and Skills (DBIS), forced CAS to undertake an internal governance review which, though yet to be published, heavily criticised Notarangelo and others for pushing the organisation to the brink of collapse.

The network fulfils a hugely valuable role in Scottish society and has deep roots in local communities - Agnes Robson

Robson, who was previously vice chair at CAS, is a former senior civil servant and was a member of the main management board of the then Scottish Executive.

She is also a former board member of Citizens Advice Edinburgh, where she has been a volunteer advisor for the last eight years.

On taking on the role, Robson said: “The Citizens Advice network is a Scottish institution that has served the general public for 76 years, and delivers a vital service to the thousands of clients who come to us for advice.

“While this is a period of challenge for CAS, I know from my experiences as a volunteer and a board member that the network fulfils a hugely valuable role in Scottish society and has deep roots in local communities.

“I am personally committed to ensuring that the outcome of our current governance review will enhance the ability of the organisation to support the Citizens Advice network as a whole to deliver the essential services on which our clients rely.”

CAS is the umbrella body for the 61 member bureaux that advise over 300,000 people every year on finance, welfare and consumer issues.