Money worries?

We are here to help! We understand that if you are having difficulty paying your rent, you may not want to talk about your problems to your landlord – but you mustn’t bury your head in the sand either.

Unity has partnered with debt advice charities St Vincent’s and StepChange and will happily refer you to either of them so that you are able to get the support and advice you need. You can download any of our information leaflets from this page for more details about ‘Rent Arrears’, ‘Welfare Support & Advice’ or ‘Debt Advice’.

St Vincent’s

St Vincent’s is a free and confidential service. It offers information, advice and support to clients on a low income experiencing financial difficulty.

They offer a drop in every Monday 10.30am – 12.30pm (except bank holidays) where you can talk to someone about your money worries. Just turn up with proof of income and you will be seen by an advisor. During busy periods you may have to wait to be seen.

The effect of debt can cause so much stress that it leaves a person feeling embarrassed and depressed. St Vincent’s counsellors are able to help with a range of such issues.

Their office at 82 York Road, Leeds, LS9 9AA is open 9am – 3pm although they will be happy to take calls on 0113 248 4126 until 5pm. You can also visit their website by clicking here.

StepChange Debt Charity

When you’re struggling it’s important to get free debt help. We have a partnership with StepChange Debt Charity. They have 20 years of experience of helping people to become debt-free and gave advice to 420,000 people last year.

To get help with debt now take the 60-second debt check. Answer a few simple questions and take the first step towards getting control of your finances, or call 0800 138 1111 to speak to somebody.

Loan Sharks

If you are under pressure to pay off your debts, it can be tempting to borrow from anyone. However it is important that whatever happens, you avoid borrowing money from illegal loan sharks. These are people who will use violent or threatening behaviour to recover money they are owed, have no fixed rates of interest and can add to your debt at any time and for no reason.

Click here to see a video from the Illegal Money Lending Team explaining the dangers of using loan sharks.