Stop Loan Sharks: WhatsApp Launch & Lets Talk About Loan Sharks online presentations

Stop Loan Sharks is now on WhatsApp!

You can now access support or report illegal money lending quickly and confidentially by messaging the team on 07700 102773. This new service is available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, and all messages are treated in confidence.

Outside those times, you can still reach the team by calling the 24/7 helpline 0300 555 2222 or visiting stoploansharks.co.uk
Let’s help protect our communities - please share this with anyone who might need support.

Let's Talk about Loan Sharks explores why 1.08 million people are turning to loan sharks. With the rise in cost of living, job loss, gambling debts, illness and increased pay day lending, more and more people are turning to loan sharks. In the Army it is known as “Double Bubble” However, lending money without the correct permission required by the Financial Services and Markets Act is illegal.

Let's Talk about Loan Sharks provides useful information, guidance and support to help us help those who might be struggling. No registration needed and you can join via laptop or mobile.

• 29 Oct 25 1200- 1300 TEAMS link to join here Meeting ID: 377 727 192 932 6 / Passcode: et3KX2Mo
  
  Alternatively dial in by phone: +44 20 3443 8728,,847358711# Phone conference ID: 847 358 711#
  
  
• 05 Nov 25 1200 - 1300 TEAMS link to join here Meeting ID: 340 057 025 199 4 / Passcode: cZ7dZ9iJ
  
  Alternatively dial in by phone +44 20 3443 8728,,536765765# Phone conference ID: 536 765 765#

If you or someone you know needs help, call Stop Loan Sharks on the confidential support line 0300 555 2222 or via WhatsApp on 07700 102773.

Search this database to see if a money lender is legal.

Vale of Glamorgan: Could you be entitled to the School Essentials Grant?

Vale of Glamorgan Council:

School days should be about learning and fun, not money worries
Get up to £200 with the School Essentials Grant to help with school costs.
Check the eligibility criteria to see if you could be entitled to financial support 

Information provided by Wales HIVE Hub

Serve and Protect Credit Union - 10 Years of Supporting the Armed Forces

Last week marked a special milestone for us at Serve and Protect Credit Union. On Wednesday, 15th October 2025, we proudly celebrate ten years of providing dedicated armed forces support to service personnel, reservists, veterans, and their families.

It’s a decade defined by our commitment to improving the financial resilience of those who serve and have served our country. We are honoured to be the largest credit union available to the military, serving over 16,000 members across the armed forces community.

Our journey in armed forces support

The story began in 2015 when the Ministry of Defence selected Serve and Protect, as part of the ‘Joining Forces’ initiative, to offer financial services to the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force. Our mission was clear from the start. To provide an ethical and affordable alternative to high-cost lenders. We set out to build a foundation of financial wellbeing for the armed forces community, ensuring they have access to fair and supportive financial solutions.

This partnership was built on a shared goal to enhance the financial resilience of military personnel. We understood that the unique demands of service life can bring specific financial challenges. Our role was to provide reliable armed forces support that personnel and veterans could count on.

To read the article in full, including a YouTube video link, please go to: Serve and Protect celebrate a decade of Armed Forces support

MOD Update: Credit union service for Defence people celebrates 10-year anniversary

Credit union service for Defence people celebrates 10-year anniversary

This month marks 10 years since the launch of Joining Forces – the collaboration of three credit unions, established to help Service Personnel and Defence civil servants save regularly and borrow responsibly.

The Joining Forces Credit Union (JFCU) service – which now supports over 27,000 members – provides a range of simple savings accounts and affordable loans, to help Service Personnel (Regulars and Reservists), veterans, and their families access financial products. Repayments can be made straight from military pay or pension.

Defence Civil Servants can also use the service, with saving and loan repayments made via Direct Debit – rather than payroll deduction.

What is a credit union?

Hampshire: Hampshire County Council money worries

Please click on the link below to access the HCC website that provides vital information for families who may be struggling due to the cost of living crisis with lots of useful links.

Click HERE for more information.

Information provided by South East HIVE Hub

Stop Loan Sharks: Briefings in Oct and Nov open to the Service Community

There are 1.08 million people in debt to a Loan Shark in England. You are not alone. Call Stop Loan Sharks on 0300 555 2222 to access support.

Stop Loan Sharks briefs - no registration needed, join via laptop or mobile:

• 7 Oct 25 0900 - 1000 TEAMS link to join Meeting ID: 357 830 299 772 8 / Passcode: De3KX9x3

Alternatively dial in by phone +44 20 3443 8728,,651144970# Phone conference ID: 651 144 970#

• 7 Oct 25 1330 - 1430 TEAMS link to join Meeting ID: 329 059 383 381 4 / Passcode: e746np9K

Alternatively dial in by phone +44 20 3443 8728,,228840345# Phone conference ID: 228 840 345#

• 29 Oct 25 1200- 1300 TEAMS link to join Meeting ID: 377 727 192 932 6 / Passcode: et3KX2Mo

Alternatively dial in by phone:+44 20 3443 8728,,847358711# Phone conference ID: 847 358 711#

• 05 Nov 25 1200 - 1300 TEAMS link to join Meeting ID: 340 057 025 199 4 / Passcode: cZ7dZ9iJ

Alternatively dial in by phone +44 20 3443 8728,,536765765# Phone conference ID: 536 765 765#

October webinars from Serve and Protect Credit Union

 
📢 Free financial webinars this October from Serve and Protect - don't miss out!

🌍 Eco-Friendly Ways to Save Money
🐖 Saving Made Simple
📝 Budgeting 101
☔ The Road to Financial Resilience
🚀 Credit Score 101
🔍 Before You Borrow

🔗 Register here: https://sandpcu.co.uk/hs-webinars

Wiltshire: Free online Family and Community Learning budgeting courses this October

 

Wiltshire Council's Family & Community Learning team will be running their budgeting courses online during the half term break at the end of October.

This pair of courses help participants create and stick to a budget, identify good value for money, and reduce spending:

• Shop For Less Monday 27 October 10am – 12pm

• Balance Your Budget Thursday 30 October 10am – 12pm

To book a place, new learners need to complete an application form, which they can do on the phone or online here: Enrolment - Work Wiltshire. Booking closes one week before the course. Learners can join one or both courses.

Contact number: 01225 770478

Information provided by Colerne & Lyneham HIVEs

KCC: The Kent Money Advice Hub

 

'People go to the Money Advice Hub  with a lot on their shoulders, and they finish the call with an instant sense of relief and an increase in confidence.'

Are you worrying about money? The Kent Money Advice Hub could help you.

 
Click HERE for more information

Information provided by South East HIVE Hub

Wiltshire: Wiltshire Money newsletter - Sep '25

 

Please click here to read this helpful newsletter online

Information provided by Colerne & Lyneham HIVEs

Wales: Armed Forces Family Focus - Citizens Advice Service in Wales

 
Citizens Advice:

Our Wales-wide holistic advice service supports service men and women, ex-service personnel, and their families by providing practical, comprehensive, and tailored advice on benefits, debt, welfare, and housing, helping them access the right support and information to move forward.

Our project will provide holistic, multi-issue support, including:

• Income maximisation (identifying unclaimed benefits, supporting grant applications)
• Practical assistance accessing financial support following injury or development of health conditions
• Unlocking entitlement to financial support for carers and connecting them with specialist support agencies
• Help with benefit applications and appeals
• Access to emergency financial support (fuel vouchers, food bank referrals)
• Managing problem debt and preventing financial crisis
• Housing rights advice (tenancy support, preventing evictions, ensuring safe living conditions)
• Advice on employment matters, such as general employment rights, flexible working to accommodate caring responsibilities and potential discrimination

Contact our helpline on 0808 531 0313 Monday to Friday 8am until 7pm and Saturdays 9am to 1pm.

https://cacv.org.uk/our-projects/armed-forces-family-advice-service/

This service is provided by Citizens Advice Cardiff & Vale and Citizens Advice Caerphilly Blaenau Gwent and funded by the Armed Forces Community Covenant Fund.

DWP news update: Children to benefit from funded childcare

The Government has delivered its pledge to fund childcare for 30 hours a week – saving parents £7,500 a year per child.

Take-up is expected to be over and above initial projections, with over half a million kids on track to be more school ready by age 5, giving every child the best start in life.

The Best Start in Life website brings together trusted information, guidance, and support into one place where parents will be able to check what childcare help they’re eligible for, find their local family services, sign up for tailored weekly updates, and access advice from everything from pregnancy to preparing a child for school. 

Click this link to Read the full press release

Northern Ireland: NIdirect Cost of Living Information and Advice

  

Information and advice about support with the cost of living, including:
• help with energy costs
• help with your income
• help for families and children
• help for older people
• help with housing
• help with other costs
Find out more: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/cost-of-living
Jobs & Benefits Northern Ireland

Information provided by HIVE NI

Fife: Citizens Advice and Rights Fife - worried about paying your council tax?

Worried about Council Tax?

You’re not alone – and help is out there.

👉 You might qualify for discounts or exemptions
👉  Apply for a Council Tax Reduction if your income is low
👉  Get extra help with rent through Discretionary Housing Payments

💬 We can check what support you’re entitled to and help you apply.

Don’t wait until bills pile up – reach out today.

Get advice 👉 Home | Citizens Advice and Rights Fife

Get help 👉 Cost of Living Support

Information provided by Leuchars HIVE

Gov.uk Armed Forces Pensions Update: Pension Scams

The over-arching link for all Armed Forces Pensions information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/pensions-and-compensation-for-veterans

2025 Army Families Federation questionnaire on Service pay

The Army Families Federation (AFF), Naval Families Federation (NFF) and RAF Families Federation (RAFFF) are jointly running a questionnaire to hear from Regular Service Personnel and their families about satisfaction with pay and personal financial circumstances over the past 12 months.

The responses will help to:

Better understand the financial challenges faced by service families.

Identify any trends or issues specific to each of the single services.

Provide robust, evidence-based feedback to the MOD, the Armed Forces Pay Review Body, and other key stakeholders.

To take part in this questionnaire, which is open to serving personnel, spouses and partners, please click the link below.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AFF2025_Pay_Questionnaire

The questionnaire should take no longer than 10 minutes to complete and every response helps strengthen the evidence that family federations can present on behalf of families.

Wiltshire: Household Support Fund extended to help Wiltshire's most vulnerable until March 2026

Wiltshire Council has welcomed the UK Government's decision to extend the Household Support Fund (HSF) for another year, ensuring vital assistance continues for residents most in need. The seventh round of the fund, known as HSF7, will run from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.

The Household Support Fund is designed to provide crisis support to households struggling with essential living costs, such as food and utility bills. It also offers preventative support, including budgeting and cookery classes, and the purchase of energy-efficient appliances like fridges and cookers.

Stop Loan Sharks: Summer Newsletter

 
Stop Loan Sharks have published their summer newsletter. This jam packed edition features the latest arrests, a video for school children, a new campaign encouraging partners to support victims in making the call, and much more.

To read the newsletter please click HERE

For further information please visit the Stop Loan Sharks website: Home - Stop Loan Sharks

Wiltshire: Struggling with high energy prices and the cost of living? Warm and Safe Wiltshire may be able to help!

Please click the images to enlarge

To visit the website, please click here

Information provided by Colerne & Lyneham HIVEs

Scotland: MyGov Scot Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods

Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods are payments that help towards the costs of being pregnant or looking after a child.
About Best Start Grant

The 3 Best Start Grant payments are:

Pregnancy and Baby Payment

Pregnancy and Baby Payment helps with the costs of having a baby. You can apply for this payment during pregnancy to help prepare for your baby's arrival, or after your baby is born.

Early Learning Payment

If your application is successful you'll get £319.80 to help with the costs of early learning. You can get the payment when your child is aged between 2 years old and 3 years and 6 months old. To get this payment your child does not need to go to nursery.

School Age Payment
School Age Payment is a payment of £319.80 per child. It helps with the costs of preparing for school when your child is first old enough to start primary school.