North Ayrshire: Christians against poverty charity stage successful event

And two clients gave emotional testimonies of f how they had come back from the brink thanks to the work of the charity.

The Ayrshire team of Christians Against Poverty held the meeting to focus on how to further grow CAP in the region in order that more people could benefit from the unique free debt help and money advice courses that CAP offer.

Around 30 people were in attendance.

Alan McLaren who has just been appointed as a Community Link Worker for CAP across Ayrshire said:  “Our free debt advice service is a friendly and face-to-face service that is non-judgemental.

The CAP event at the Park Hotel was a real success. pic: Alan McLaren.

“We are also  able to meet  people in their own homes  outside of working hours, which means they do not need to request time off to deal with their finances.

The team were visited by Gordon Cheung , Scotland Network Manager, who stated that 42 per cent of people who received Universal Credit had a deduction taken from their Social Security Payments.  CAP are calling for the government to place a pause on all social security deductions to provide much needed breathing space for those who are strugglin

The highlight was when two CAP clients shared their stories about how debt had affected their lives.  Ron spoke of how he was two days before committing suicide due to the mental health issues associated with debt before he deciced to call CAP.

The event at the Park Hotel was a success. pic: Alan McLaren

David spoke of feeling depressed, isolated and alone until his MSP referred him to CAP. 

 He made a phone call to CAP on 0800 326 0006 and from then on he found people who cared.

 In  2021 CAP supported 13,452 people on their journey out of debt. Three reasons for debt crisis were:  Mental ill health 19 per cent; Low Income  17 per cent;  Relationship Breakdown -11 per cent.

Source – CAP Client Report “On The Edge ”  published 2022.