World Mental Health Day & Debt this October

 

This October, we at UKDS want to focus on the link between debt and mental health. We take calls from ordinary people every day who are in desperate positions and we want to help and signpost people to those places that can provide advice if you find yourself in a position where you do not know which way to turn. 

There is no doubt about it that the last couple of years have been hard on UK businesses. 

Many have faced bankruptcy or have had to reduce their head count to align with their income during this tricky time. Whilst employment opportunity levels have reached pre pandemic levels, it is not all that it seems given that the opportunities out there are mostly due to Brexit with those from the EU leaving and not coming back, and the current issues with not having enough HGV drivers which companies are crying out for. 

Many of the financial support packages that were put in place by the government to help UK businesses have come to an end last month, including the furlough scheme which means that many employees may face the risk of redundancy, if they haven’t yet been notified of it.

We have put together a redundancy guide for you to read and understand your rights if you find yourself in this position. Read it here. 

Sectors such as retail, hospitality and tourism have been the hardest hit and are expected to be the worst affected by potential redundancies. Add into this the fact that the government is cutting the £20 Universal Credit uplift (which 60% of working families receive) and we are in a perfect storm of loss of income and ability to pay rent, mortgages, bills, etc which can then have a catastrophic effect on mental health. 

You will be reading first hand experiences from some very brave people who want to tell their story about debt and try to break the taboo and shame that surrounds debt. 

World Mental Health Day is on 10th October

This year’s theme is “Mental Health in an Unequal World”, highlighting that we are living in an increasingly polarised world. The wealthy are becoming wealthier and the number of people living in poverty and going into extreme poverty is too high. This is not just a global issue either – it is becoming increasingly common in the UK. 

Being in debt has a negative influence on mental well-being and World Mental Health Day also wants to highlight that access to mental health services remains unequal too, with between 75% to 95% of people with mental illness unable to access services at all due to funding issues and demand. If you want to read more about this, then please visit the World Federation for Mental Health’s site here.

We hope that this October, we can provide you with the tools and the knowledge of what is out there to help you out. If you still find yourself in a position where you do not know which way to turn in terms of dealing with your debt, then please do not hesitate to contact us.

We can discuss your situation with you and see if there are any options out there to help.