FBD Service Runs Debt Awareness Week

• The Growth Company's (GC) Finance, Benefit, and Debt service (FBD) aims to help people in prison manage their finances.
• The Ministry of Justice’s (MOJ) Commissioned Rehabilitative Services (CRS) are delivered across eight prisons in Yorkshire and the Humber.
• In March, the FBD team hosted a debt awareness week at three prisons to help people better understand debt and how to manage it.

A Growth Company programme recently hosted a debt awareness week to help people in prison manage their money.

A Ministry of Justice CRS contract, commissioned by HM Prison and Probation Service and delivered by the Growth Company, the Finance, Benefit, and Debt service aims to support people in prisons across Yorkshire and the Humber with a range of financial issues.

The team provides people in eight prisons with information, advice, and guidance on benefits, budgeting, debt, banking, and access to post-sentence financial support. They do so through one-to-one coaching and the development of personalised action plans, with a view to improving participants’ financial literacy and stability – and, ultimately, reducing reoffending rates.

Debt Awareness Week

As part of this service, the FBD team ran a series of debt awareness drop-in sessions between 25th and 28th March at HMP Leeds, HMP Moorland, and HMP Wealstun.

The sessions aimed to help people understand the various types of debt and how to deal with them, from court fines and rent arrears to loans and mortgages.

Participants were able to ask questions about their own debt concerns, while those with complex debt issues could ask to be referred to the FBD service.

The response was overwhelmingly positive, with many people praising the form and content of the sessions, especially the information on individual budgeting and personal wellbeing in the community.

A participant at HMP Wealstun said they liked “how welcoming the staff were” and the feeling that they could be “open and honest” about their debt issues.

Another commented: “I think these services can be really helpful.”

A significant number also suggested that such awareness weeks should be held “more often because it helps make the information clear”.

Debt Support in Action

One person to benefit from the FBD service is Matthew*.

Matthew was referred to the service because he was struggling with overdraft charges and was unable to get in touch with the bank. In addition, he was estranged from his family, so could not ask them for help.

The possibility of accruing more and more debt was, quite understandably, a great source of anxiety.

After hearing about these problems, Matthew’s FBD adviser phoned the bank to explain that he would not be able to make payments while in custody.

The bank’s agent was, thankfully, sympathetic to Matthew’s circumstances. They placed the account on hold and confirmed that no further charges would be imposed.

Matthew told his adviser that he would not have been able to resolve this issue without the help of the FBD team and was therefore grateful for their support, which alleviated his stress and gave him much needed space and time to plan his future finances. 

Find Out More and Get In Touch

The Growth Company is an award-winning social enterprise with a mission to generate growth, create jobs, and improve lives. We provide employment services across Greater Manchester, the Liverpool City Region, Lancashire, Cheshire, and Yorkshire and Humber.

Get in touch today to find out more. 

*Name changed to protect the participant’s anonymity.