UK charity, Christians Against Poverty (CAP) is launching its yearly Budget not Blues campaign to help local people improve their financial situations. CAP partners with churches across the North West to offer free face to face debt advice and money coaching.

The charity is revealing new polling with Opinium Research highlighting the need for more face to face budgeting support in the North West:

Money worries are common for many - 29% of adults who live in the North West report having daily anxiety about their finances.

Budgeting support is in demand - A quarter (25%) say they would like help with budgeting.

CAP's Bolton Debt Centre Manager, Sam Wolstencroft is encouraging people in the North West to seek free debt advice if they're struggling in unmanageable debt.

placeholder image — CAP's Bolton Debt Centre Manager, Sam Wolstencroft is encouraging people in the North West to seek free debt advice if they're struggling in unmanageable debt.

Many want face to face help - 42% say they would find in-person financial advice helpful.

CAP’s Bolton Debt Centre Manager, Sam Wolstencroft, says, “Winter often brings financial anxieties, and with energy bills and prices continuing to rise, the pressure all adds up. However, CAP’s Budget not Blues campaign offers a clear path to taking back control of your finances. Here are my simple, effective steps to improving your finances in 2025.”

Find out your financial personality - Try out CAP’s new Money Personality Quiz which provides useful tips on building a better relationship with money and helps people understand their spending habits.

Create a personal budget - Creating a personal budget is key to understanding your financial situation in order to make positive changes. Download CAP’s budgeting guide at capuk.org/budgeting to create your own personal budget.

Cut back, cut costs and cut out - To make your money go further, you can reduce spending by cutting back (reducing how much or how often you buy something); by cutting the cost (finding it cheaper elsewhere); or by cutting the expenditure out completely (identifying if it’s a need or want).

Seek free help - Attend a CAP service in your local area to help you further improve your financial situation. You can find more information on all CAP’s free services in your area at: capuk.org/money and visit the moneyhelper.org.uk website for a wider range of support. If you’re struggling with unmanageable debt, you can call CAP’s helpline 0800 328 0006.

Build up an emergency fund - To avoid those unexpected costs that arise, it is important to save for future emergencies. Start small so that it is manageable within your budget, and set your bank account up to transfer the money into a savings account automatically so that you’re not tempted to spend it. It takes time to build, but an emergency fund can offer huge peace of mind when unexpected costs arise.

Sam continued, “If you’re struggling with your finances my message would be to seek help as soon as you can. Here in Bolton at St Peter's Church we offer free face to face debt advice and will also be running free money coaching sessions in February.

"CAP is also working with many other local churches across the North West to provide free support and people can find out what help is available in their local area at capuk.org/help."

“Our latest data shows the need for further support across the North West. We’d love to increase the amount of churches we work with so we can help even more people.

“I’d encourage any church leaders who are interested to visit capuk.org to find out more and get in touch if you’d be interested in running a service.”