Don't struggle alone

Claire is single parent, living with her two young sons in a rented house in Cardiff. She was made redundant from her previous job and fell into arrears of around £1,000 on her rent, but has now gained part-time work as a receptionist for a local business. Including benefits, Claire has an income of £1,300 a month.

Claire was never a big spender, with most of her money going towards supporting her children, making sure they had what they needed and paying their way through school. After losing her job, Claire was struggling to make ends meet so used credit to bridge the gap. She owed nearly £5,000 to various creditors as a result.

Once Claire recognised her spending habits were unsustainable, she contacted CCCS, who were able to help her budget in detail, analyse her income and expenditure, and find a workable repayment plan. She offered £10 per week to her landlord to gradually pay back her rent arrears, which the landlord accepted. As the rest of her expenses are roughly equal to her income she makes token offers to her other creditors.

Claire is continuing to do this until she gets a benefits review in three months time, when CCCS will review her situation and find a solution appropriate to her situation. It is likely she will be able to apply for a Debt Relief Order, a relatively new form of debt relief, specifically designed to help debtors with no assets who would struggle to find the fees to go bankrupt.