Salvation Army extends debt advice service to prisoners

A church and charity has extended its debt advice service to those in prison and within the probation service.  

The Salvation Army has made the move to support those with debt whilst they're in or leaving prison and start to rebuild their life.

The debt advice service first launched in September 2020, when the financial effects of the pandemic were starting to be felt by many people. 

However, it's now expanding and offering what will be the first debt advice service of its kind, specifically working with the prison and the probation services.

 So far, 4% of inmates at the mixed Isle of Man Prison have signed up to the scheme. 

The service will support prisoners with historical debt, such as any rent arrears, mobile phone or utility bill debts.

Debbie White, Area Debt Advice Co-Ordinator for The Salvation Army on the Isle of Man said: “Finance is one of the biggest factors that impact people’s lives and bad debt can be a cause of poor mental health. With the cost-of-living crisis pushing more people to seek alternative means for funds such as loans, credit cards and borrowing from family and friends it can be very easy for people to quickly find themselves in financial difficulty. 

“The people within the prison and probation service serve their time with the aim of building a new life but then find themselves with mounting debt and can quickly fall into old habits to pay back those debts. We also see that it is not just the prisoner that debt affects, it can also be the wider family too, both in practical terms but also the emotional weight that debt brings. 

“The people using our debt advice support, through either the prison or people on probation, may have made poor choices in the past but are receiving help to rehabilitate back into the community and we’re here to give people that chance that they need to make that fresh start. Jesus came to help everyone, and we firmly believe in providing that support and are proud to do so.”