The Best Debt Charities in the UK

If you are struggling with money on a regular basis, a payday loan is not the answer. Below is a list of the top debt charities in the UK along with all their contact information. We always recommend you choose a free debt charity like Stepchange to manage your debt rather than a debt management company that charges a fee.

Getting Help With Debt

Usually, the first step in dealing with a debt problem is finding the right help. Any help you receive should be professional, impartial and free. With an abundance of different companies and other organisations in the UK offering free help and advice, how do you choose the right one?

When you are looking for free help, you should be careful to ensure that the organisation you choose to help you is actually free. There are many commercial businesses that misleadingly offer ‘free’ advice and assistance, but actually charge a fee for their services. The fees that these companies charge for providing a debt management plan, for example, are 17% on average and, for many people, this could add around £4,000 to the cost of the plan. On top of this, some companies encourage people to pursue debt solutions which aren’t appropriate to their particular debt problem.

All of this is in light of the fact that good advice and support is actually available for free from debt charities.

Are Debt Charities as Good as Debt Management Companies?

The support that debt charities provide to people who are in debt is professional, reliable and completely impartial. The charities which we will talk about below have helped a huge number of people in the UK to overcome debt problems. Sometimes, people believe that they will get better service or a better deal by going to a debt management company. However, charities provide very good advice and support. Often, what people receive from a debt management company is either poorer or no different, except that it comes with a hefty fee.

Comparing the Top Debt Charities in the UK

In no particular order, here are eight different charities which give free support to people who are struggling with debt, in the UK:

Stepchange Debt Charity

StepChange are the UK’s leading debt charity and they help over 600,000 people every year to deal with debt problems by providing free debt advice and practical support. Advice they give to their clients is given after a thorough investigation is made of their circumstances. Practical support can also be lengthy and involved and they can even lead people all the way through complicated processes, such as creating a debt management plan or even bankruptcy. On top of this, their website has a large amount of resources available for people who are inexperienced in dealing with debt.

If you are looking to arrange a debt management plan, an advisor from StepChange will work with you to organise a budget to suit your personal circumstances and set up a debt management plan where you will make one monthly payment which will cover your debts. The charity will also be impartial when helping you decide whether this is the right way forward or whether a different approach might be better.

Go to Chapter 25 of this guide for an in depth look at StepChange or go straight to their debt advice tool here.

PayPlan

While it is not actually a charity, as it is funded by the credit industry, PayPlan offers free advice and free debt management plans to people who are in debt. As well as providing free debt advice and debt management plans, Payplan also helps people to make individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) and trust deeds, amongst other things. The advice they offer is extensive and they can help people to understand complicated procedures, such as debt relief orders, and will support people the whole way through their debt recovery.

For an in depth look at PayPlan, go to Chapter 27 of this guide.

Citizens Advice

Citizens Advice is an organisation that most people have heard of. While they do not provide practical support, in the same way that StepChange or PayPlan do, they have a large amount of information available and are great people to discuss debt issues with.

The website at Citizens Advice gives a large amount of information on how to deal with debt and also explains who the best people are to go to to arrange debt solutions. On top of this, they offer plenty of other information, such as what action your creditor is allowed to take while you are in debt. If you are looking for information on debt management, the Citizens Advice website is a good place to go. You can also speak to a Citizens Advice debt advisor who will offer you free, impartial and professional advice.

For an in-depth look at Citizens Advice go to Chapter 29 of this guide.

Christians Against Poverty

Christians Against Poverty is an excellent organisation that helps people with the emotional side of being in debt, as well as the practical side. They offer free, professional, impartial and extensive advice to people who are in debt and help them the whole way through their recovery. The services they offer are extensive and they are a good organisation to go to if you need help with debt. As well as helping people to deal with debt, they also help people to find work and learn life skills which will help them deal more effectively with money. This is an organisation that does not push religion, but is purely motivated by the desire to help ordinary people who are struggling with debt.

More in depth information about Christians Against Poverty can be found in Chapter 28 of this guide.

The Debt Advice Foundation

The Debt Advice Foundation is a charity which provides debt advice and solutions to people who are struggling with debt. Just as with StepChange and PayPlan, if you are considering starting a debt management plan or pursuing a similar course of action, they are a good organisation to go to. They also aim to educate people about debt in order to prevent it from happening. On top of this, they fund and undertake research into debt in order to help people to understand better how debt occurs and what effect it has on people. The services they offer to people who are struggling with debt are extensive and they are a good organisation to go to for help.

You can find out more about the Debt Advice Foundation in Chapter 26 of this guide.

National Debtline

National Debtline are one of the major debt charities in the UK and are promoted by the government. They offer free, professional and impartial debt advice online and over the phone. They are a good organisation to turn to for all types of information on debt and how to deal with it. A huge number of people have used National Debtline to make enquiries from simple ones to the most complex. As well as being able to discuss your situation with them, their website also offers a huge amount of useful information. For many people who find themselves in debt, National Debtline is the first port of call.

Business Debtline

Run by the Money Advice Trust, Business Debtline exists to help self-employed people and people with small businesses deal with debt. Business debt and debts for the self employed are often complicated and having a specialist charitable organisation which is devoted to this problem is a great resource. If you are self-employed or own a small business and are struggling with either personal or business debt, then you can go to Business Debtline for help.

In Summary…

The charities we have mentioned in this article are the best places to go if you are struggling with debt. The services provided by them are professional, impartial and, most importantly, completely free. Not only can you contact them for advice and support, but there is also an abundance of information available on their websites. With so much good, free help available there should be no need for anyone to seek help from a debt management company which is only looking to profit from other people’s debt and may give inappropriate advice while they are doing so.

Chapter 21:
How to Get Free Debt Advice in the UK

Chapter 23:
Why You Shouldn’t Use a Debt Management Company