Providing breathing space for people struggling with debt
The new statutory ‘Breathing Space’ scheme is designed to help people recover from financial difficulties and get their debt problems under control.
We’ve been at the forefront of campaigning for the Government to adopt this kind of scheme since 2014 and we’re proud to see it come to fruition.
We’re aware of how stressful the initial process of seeking help can be for those in debt. Some of our previous research demonstrated that six in ten clients who weren’t protected from interest, charges and enforcement action went on to take out even more credit to cope.
This is why we’ve worked hard to make sure this idea becomes reality.
Last year, it was estimated the new scheme could benefit up to 700,000 people in its first year, rising to more than a million people within a decade.
Given the number of people in problem debt has risen from 1.7 to 2.4 million over the course of the pandemic, it’s possible even more people could take advantage of Breathing Space.
Take a look at our timeline of how our campaigning made Breathing Space a reality.