Debt is something many of us feel we can’t escape from. Whether it’s racking up student loans from university or dipping into credit cards to make ends meet, debt is deeply entrenched in our daily lives.

Dubbed by campaigners as the personal debt crisis, nearly 10 million people in the UK find themselves deep in debt, a figure worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic and cost of living crisis.

According to The Money Charity, the average UK household is more than £65,000 in debt (including mortgages), with around 330 people a day declaring themselves insolvent or bankrupt in England or Wales in the latter part of 2023. This comes down to one person becoming insolvent every four minutes and 22 seconds.

“I just felt like I was drowning”: millennial women are falling into debt to try to make ends meet