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Young Wrexham

Money

Borrowing money is easy – paying it back is a lot harder.

Some major concerns about money are:

How come some people always have new designer clothes, the latest computer games, fast cars, holidays or can afford to go out and enjoy themselves much more than you can? The answer could be that they’ve borrowed money to pay for all these things, so they don’t really own them, and they are probably very worried about how they can pay for them. The Citizens Advice Bureau receives thousands of queries about debt problems every day.

Budgeting

The answer to avoiding debts is to budget. Even the richest people have a budget for their money – it’s true! Basically, you write down what money you have coming in, whether it’s pocket money, income from a job or benefits.

Then you write down the money that you HAVE to pay out – not for things that you would like to have, but for things like food, bus fares or car expenses, rent or mortgage, basic clothes and so on. Add up what you have to spend, take it away from your income, and you will find out whether you have enough money to cover your basic spending needs.

If you haven’t got enough money, don’t panic! You can look at ways of cutting back on your spending and there are people who can help you if you can’t manage on your current income.

If you do the sums and find that you have money over, that’s great. You can start saving and earning interest on your savings, so you have even more money, and you’ll be able to buy the things you’d like without having to get into debt.

For many students, it’s impossible to avoid debt, but there are ways of minimising it and of earning money while you study.

Student Loans

If you are planning on furthering your education at university you may be eligible for financial help the amount depends on your course, institution and household income. Just remember the amount borrowed will need to be paid back when you start earning in excess of £15,000 per year.

For more information on student loans please visit Student Finance Wales.

EMA

EMA (Education Maintenance Allowance) is a scheme providing young people who wish to continue in education after school leaving age with an incentive to earn awards through good attendance and achieving agreed objectives.

Depending on your household’s annual income, you could get £10, £20 or £30 weekly. This is paid every two weeks, so you would get £20, £40 or £60 every fortnight.

For more information please click here

Bailiffs

What is a bailiff?

A bailiff is someone who has been authorised to collect a debt on behalf of a creditor. A creditor is someone you owe money to. There are different types of bailiffs – e.g. county court bailiffs, certificated bailiffs and private bailiffs who can be used to collect different types of debts. These include County Court Judgments, unpaid Council Tax, magistrates court fines, unpaid maintenance to the Child Support Agency and outstanding rent.

For information on what a bailiff can and can’t do please visit Debt Advice Trust.

Tax Credit

Tax credits are payments from the government. If you're responsible for at least one child or young person who normally lives with you, you may qualify for Child Tax Credit.

To find out more information or to see if you qualify for tax credits click here

Wages

The National Minimum Wage (NMW) is a minimum amount per hour that most workers in the UK are entitled to be paid.

You become eligible for the National Minimum Wage when you're older than school leaving age (you're under school leaving age until the end of the summer term of the school year in which you turn 16). The rate of minimum wage will then depend on your exact age.

If you're doing an Apprenticeship and you're under 19, you won't qualify for the National Minimum Wage.

To check that you're getting paid the right amount click here.

Debt

If you are under 18, you can't apply for credit cards or have an overdraft on your bank account. That said, you could fall into debt in other ways, such as borrowing money from your friends or your parents.

No matter how old you are or what your level of debt is, it's important to understand how debt can mount up. It's also important to know how to deal with debt problems if you ever face them in the future.

People who are in debt often make the mistake of ignoring the problem and hoping it will just go away. Unfortunately the problem won’t go away if you just ignore it, so the earlier you start to tackle the problem, the easier it will be. If your financial situation is in danger of becoming serious, do something about it now.

The worst thing you can do if you're having money problems is to just ignore the situation. It's often the case that people assume they'll be able to pay off their debt in the future when they start earning more money.

If you are worried that you may be getting into debt, please contact the National Debt Line or the Debt Advice Foundation for free, independent and confidential advice.

Benefits

You may be entitled to receive benefits if you are on a low income or have certain costs to meet because of your personal situation.

If any of the following apply to you:

You can check whether you may qualify to receive financial or other support visit your local Job Centre or go to Direct Gov.

Fines

Fines are penalties imposed by courts for a wide variety of criminal offences. The amount of the fine is determined by the seriousness of the offence and can be anything from £200 to £5,000 in a Magistrates' Court (Crown Court fines have no upper limit).

Fixed penalty notices, which are given for less serious offences such as speeding, parking tickets, truancy and public disorder, can result in a criminal conviction and fine if they are not paid, usually within 14 days of the notice being served.

CCJs

A creditor (a person or company you owe money to) is able to take court action against you to try and get their money back, if they believe you have failed to keep up with the agreed repayments.

There will be a simple County Court hearing, where the court will listen to evidence from both sides. You do not have to attend the hearing in person although you will have to complete a form in advance, either admitting or disputing the amounts being claimed.

You'll also need to give details of your income and expenditure to the court so it can decide how much you can afford to pay if they decide you are liable for the debts.

If the court decides that you do owe the money, then a court order is made. This is called a County Court Judgment (CCJ). If you and the people you owe money to can't agree on an amount that you can reasonably afford to pay back each month then the court will make a decision based on the information you've provided.

Your CCJ will be recorded on the Register of County Court Judgments for six years if you are not able to pay the full amount of the judgment within one month.

Providers of credit such as banks and loan companies use the register when deciding whether or not to lend you their money. A person with one or more CCJs will be seen as a bigger lending risk than someone that has none.

Blacklist

A blacklist is a list of people who are being denied access to something. In the world of finance, blacklisting is a term often used to describe a list of people with a poor credit rating. Credit ratings are used by banks and building societies to help them decide who they should and shouldn't lend money to. The credit score is made up of a number of factors including court records, address details and payment histories.

In reality, blacklists don't actually exist as every lender has their own lending criteria.

So, is all debt bad?

No. There's no such thing as good or bad debt, although it can be very serious if you borrow more than you can afford to pay back. Depending on the type of debt (and who you owe the money to), this could include being made Bankrupt, having your home taken off you and possibly even being sent to prison.

That's why it's so important to think long and hard about whether you can save up instead of taking out a loan. If you do decide that you want to take out a loan, you need to make sure that you can definitely keep up with repayments.

It might sound like an easy thing to do, but what if your circumstances unexpectedly change:

No one can predict the future, which is why it's so important to remember the ABC of borrowing:

  1. Affordability – can you afford the repayments now and just as importantly, could you still afford them if the worst was to happen and you could no longer work?
  2. Benefit – Do you really need it or do you just want it? Can you afford to wait? It will be cheaper for you in the long run if you save up as you won't have to pay any interest.
  3. Consequences – Who are you borrowing the money off and what's the worst that could happen if you don't keep up with repayments?

www.debtadvicefoundation.org

Local Contacts

Wrexham County Borough Young Savers Credit Union

Wrexham County Borough Credit Union operates a Young Savers Account which encourages young people to join and develop a savings habit. The Young Savers Account facility will help children to develop their savings and budgeting skills.

Wrexham County Borough Credit Union
1 North Arcade
Chester Street
Wrexham
LL13 8BB

01978 266843
info@wrexhamcu.co.uk

Wrexham Council Student Support

We are responsible for assessing the eligibility and entitlement of all students normally resident in the area of the Authority attending Colleges and Universities throughout the United Kingdom.

Our primary purpose is to ensure that you receive all the assistance and advice you need to ensure your take up of higher education is as trouble free as possible.

Student Support Office
16 Lord Street
Wrexham
LL11 1LG

01978 297406
Fax: 01978 298707
student.support@wrexham.gov.uk

Citizens Advice Bureau Wrexham (CAB)

For help with debt, money and budgeting. The CAB offers practical, reliable, up-to-date information on a wide range of topics including benefits, housing, employment, debt, consumer and legal issues. Visit the CAB website or phone to make an appointment at a local office.

Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri: 9.30am – 2pm

For further information on CAB in villages in Wrexham County, please contact CAB in Wrexham

Citizens Advice Bureau
35 Grosvenor Road
Wrexham
LL11 1BT

01978 364639

WCBC Welfare Rights

Provide a comprehensive Welfare Rights Service enabling young people to obtain their full entitlement to Welfare Benefits. Contact the phone number above for further information.

WCBC Welfare Rights
Gladman Buildings
Unit 5 Edison Court
Wrexham

01978 298254

Wrexham Jobcentre Plus

Advice and information as to what jobs are available and how to make a claim for benefit.

Wrexham Jobcentre Plus
Ty Maelor
15 - 17 Grosvenor Road
Wrexham
LL11 1BW.

01978 316500
Textphone: 01978 316536

Caia Park Community Advice Centre

Open to Caia Park residents only.

Advice is given on a wide range of matters, including attendance allowance, carers allowance, charity grants, child benefit, child tax credit/working tax credit, council tax, disability living allowance, housing benefit, incapacity benefit, income support/pension credit, insurance, social fund, sure start maternity grant and vehicle excise duty.

Contact 01978 354825 for opening times.

Trading Standards, Wrexham County Borough Council

The Service exists for the benefit of consumers and businesses within the Wrexham area. Our aim is to ensure a fair and safe trading environment and to advance Animal Health and Welfare. We perform this role through law enforcement, advice and education.

Advice to Consumers is provided by Consumer Direct Wales.

8.00am to 6.30pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am - 1.00pm Saturday excluding Public Holidays and Bank Holidays.

08454 04 05 06 (calls at local rate)
www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/contact

National Contacts

National Debtline

The helpline that provides free, confidential and independent advice on how to deal with debt problems.

0808 808 4000

Student Finance Wales

This site provides online services and information for those in Wales interested in the financial help available to students in higher education.

Gamblers Anonymous (UK)

Gamblers Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who have joined together to do something about their own gambling problem and to help other compulsive gamblers do the same.

0161 976 5000

Student Loan Company

Details of Students Loans to those people on a Higher Education Course.

0845 6028845

Entitled To

Free calculators to help you work out your entitlement to benefits and tax credits.

Money Saving Expert

Information about all aspects of money from savings to Mortgages and H.E. Grants.

TheSite.org

TheSite.org is for young adults when they need support and guidance.

Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS)

A registered charity to help you with debt problems.

Housing Benefit / Council Tax Benefit

For information please see the Housing Section of the council's website.

Samaritans

Free and confidential advice and support on any issue. Samaritans provides confidential non-judgemental support, 24 hours a day for people experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those which could lead to suicide.

08457 90 90 90 / jo@samaritans.org