It's a bit of a milestone for our benefits expert John Gordon this week. His 250th advice column is below.

Mr Gordon worked for the Department of Social Security in the North-East for 35 years.

For the past five years he has advised readers of The Northern Echo on pensions, benefits and National Insurance issues through his weekly For Your Benefit col- umn.

He said: "This is my 250th For Your Benefit. So far the column has helped about 2,000 readers to get extra state benefits, ranging from 50p to £70 a week.

"If all the extra benefits they have claimed per week are added together the total is about £12,000 each week. These extra benefits will, in most cases, continue to be paid for a number of years.

"Someone claiming an extra £10 a week, for example, gains £520 over the year and perhaps £5,000 for future years.

"On this basis, the projected extra total income that the column has brought to readers of The Northern Echo has now passed the £5m mark.

"All the letters printed are genuine, drawn from the 5,000 or so I have received during the past five years.

"Every reader who sends a stamped addressed envelope, and nearly all do, receives a personal reply."