Drowning in debt? Don’t know where to turn? Cashfloat presents you with an introduction to Christians Against Poverty.
- CAP proide a variety of workshops to prevent future debt
- Christians Against Poverty will help you even if you are not Christian
Western Circle, trading as Cashfloat, is a London based payday loans company. As well trying to help people with our loans, we also try to educate our customers in how to obtain debt help, should they need it.
In this article, we will explain what the debt charity Christians Against Poverty can do to help people who are struggling with debt.
Christians Against Poverty: Debt Support and Personal Support
Getting into debt can happen a lot easier than many people think. Often debt is caused by unfortunate circumstances, such as the loss of a job or the breakdown of a marriage. Whatever the cause of debt, it is important that people receive good support to overcome it. Christians Against Poverty (CAP) is a charity which exists to help people overcome debt. As well as trying to help people with the financial side of debt, CAP also try to get to the root causes of it and to prevent it from recurring. On top of this, they also help people to gain life skills, find employment and to learn responsible money management.
Get Help With Debt
Debt can be very complicated and it can be difficult to know exactly what to do about it. That is why it is so important for people to receive good advice and support to overcome the problem. For someone who is struggling with debt, taking the wrong course of action could make their situation worse or cost them a lot of money. The best thing you can do is speak to a free, professional and impartial debt advisor. The UK debt charities, including CAP, provide free and impartial debt advice that is of a high standard. As well as helping people to understand how best to approach a debt problem, they can also support people the whole way through their recovery from debt.
This compares to debt management companies. These are commercial businesses, which exist to make a profit. Debt management companies charge fees for the services, which are often very expensive. On top of this, they have been known to give bad advice to their customers. There is no reason to pay for debt advice and support from a debt management company when free and much better help is available from debt charities.
Do I Need to Go to Church to Get Help from CAP?
Christians Against Poverty are a completely impartial organisation and while their ethos is based on faith, they will not expect you to go to church as a ‘payment in return’. CAP explicitly state that while their faith is part of what drives them, they do not expect people who receive their help even to have an interest in Christianity. They are happy to help anyone and accept the fact that only 4% of their clients go on to practice Christianity.
What Do Christians Against Poverty Do?
When it comes to tackling debt, the immediate problem of how to get out of it and to rebuild a person’s finances is, rightly, most people’s main concern. If a person is unable to clear their debts by budgeting themselves effectively and sticking to the payments they should be making, they will need to find an alternative solution. There are many available. One example of a debt solution is a debt management plan and this whole guide is devoted to them. As well as debt management plans, there are a number of other debt solutions, such as individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) and debt relief orders.
Christians Against Poverty provide advice on what debt solution people should pursue and also offer practical support to help people overcome debt with their chosen debt solution. Practical support can be comprehensive and can exist for a number of years. Although the practical side of dealing with debt is very important, there are often underlying causes behind it or financial skills which people may be missing. CAP offer the most comprehensive support that is available. Not only do they provide debt advice and support to tackle the immediate problem of debt, but they also offer help to address the underlying causes and knock on effects that it has. Read on to find out more.
Debt Advice and Debt Solutions
Christians Against Poverty have been providing free debt advice and support since 1996 and they help thousands of people to get out of debt each year. They are one of the largest debt charities in the UK. If you are struggling with debt, do not be afraid to give them a call.
Debt Advice
A debt advisor from CAP will be able to advise you on what is the best way to tackle your debt problem. It is important to tackle debt in the right way to ensure success and to avoid doing any further financial harm to yourself. Taking the wrong course of action could cost money or harm you in other ways. The experience and training that the debt advisors at CAP have allows them to offer you good advice on what to do.
To receive advice from CAP, give them a call on 0800 328 0006. They will arrange a face to face meeting with one of their local debt coaches. After you have met your debt coach for an initial meeting, you will go through further meetings in which you will discuss your situation in depth. In consultation with the debt advisors from CAP’s head office, your debt coach will explain to you what they recommend are the best ways to become debt free. Knowing how to escape from debt brings a lot of calm and clarity to a person’s situation and allows them to work to a definite plan.
As well as helping you to find a way out of debt, CAP will also contact your priority creditors to inform them that they are working with you. This should reduce the chance of them taking action against you, if you are struggling to make payments for any priority debts that you have.
Debt Solutions
Following on from receiving advice on how to approach a debt problem, CAP will support you the whole way through your recovery from debt. This is until you are completely debt free. This practical support can be in depth and often requires them to do extensive work on your behalf.
One example of how they provide practical support is through debt management plans. Beginning a debt management plan requires careful budget planning, as well as the handling of negotiation with creditors. Following on from this, there is a certain amount of ongoing management of the plan, which must be done. CAP will do all of this work for a person, for free. For more information on how debt management plans work, go to Chapter 3 of this guide. CAP support people through many ways of solving debt, whether it is a debt management plan, an IVA, a debt relief order or something else entirely.
Personal Support and Development
As well as helping people with the practical side of overcoming debt, CAP also try to address the root causes of it and to help people with a range of financial issues. The personal support and development which CAP offer is available to everyone, whether they are actually in debt or not.
The Fresh Start Programme
Where the underlying cause behind a person’s debt is a form of addiction, CAP will try to address the issue through their Fresh Start programme. Fresh Start courses run for eight weeks and allow people to discuss their problems in a supportive group and to find ways to overcome it. Tackling the root cause of a debt problem, where it is an addiction, can prevent debt from recurring and can help people to live happier lives.
Life Skills
Christians Against Poverty’s Life Skills course allows people to find ways to manage money more effectively. This course helps people, particularly those on a low budget, to find ways to save money and to suffer less stress from living on a budget. Where debt has been caused simply by the pressure of living on a low budget, this course can be particularly helpful. Not only can this course be practically helpful, but it can also be fun and people find a support network through it.
The Job Club
One of the most innovative ideas that CAP have come up with is their local Job Club groups. These groups offer people who are unemployed the chance to find employment as well as to have support from other people in the same situation. During an eight week course, participants are given practical help through things such as CV advice and interviewing practice. As with the other forms of personal support and development which CAP offer, there is no cost and no expectation that you should be a Christian.
Watch the video below for peoples’ perspectives on the Job Clubs:
CAP Money Courses
CAP Money Courses help people to learn to live on a budget. Delivered to 10,000 people every year these courses teach people the basic skills needed to stay in control of money. Basic budgeting skills are essential in life and these courses help to prevent debt from occurring in the first place by showing people how to stay on top of their money.
The History of Christians Against Poverty
Christians Against Poverty was founded in 1996 by John Kirkby, a financial professional who sacrificed his financial career to help those in need. Starting in his home town of Bradford, John found many families and individuals whose lives had been blighted by debt. From small beginnings, where he helped local families by negotiating with creditors and helping them to budget themselves to overcome debt, John has grown CAP into a large organisation which helps many thousands of people each year. Four CAP centres were opened in 1998 in the UK and they now operate internationally with operations in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the US.
If You Want To Help
CAP encourage people to raise money for them through sponsored challenges. They run sponsored events themselves, which you can sign up to, or alternatively you can organise your own. Supporting CAP helps thousands of families in the UK to escape from debt or to avoid it in the first place. As well as receiving money through sponsored events, CAP also have 29,000 regular supporters who donate money to them.
How to Contact Christians Against Poverty
If you are struggling with debt or if you want to benefit from the personal support and development that they offer, then do not be afraid to get in touch with Christians Against Poverty. CAP have helped countless people to turn their lives around and can deal with even the most difficult of debt situations. No debt problem is unsolvable. Anyone who comes to them for help with debt will receive support all the way until they are free from it.
Christians Against Poverty |
Contact Information |
| Website | https://capuk.org/ |
| Telephone | 0808 278 9044. for debt help, you should call this number first to arrange an appointment with your local debt coach |
| Fresh Start Programme | Find a local Fresh Start course |
| Life Skills | Find a local Life Skills course here |
| Job Clubs | Find a local Job Club group here |
| Money Courses | Find you next local CAP money course here |
| Email Inquiries | info@capuk.org |
In Summary…
Christians Against Poverty are a comprehensive debt charity, which help people to overcome debt problems. They offer free, professional and impartial advice to people who are struggling with debt and can support people right until they are free from it. As well as tackling the immediate problem of debt, they also do a lot of work to address the underlying causes and to teach people the skills they need to stay debt free. If you are struggling with debt or would like to take advantage of the support they offer with addiction, life skills, employment skills or money management then do not be afraid to get in touch with them.
