Thursday 14 April 2022
In the media, director of external affairs Richard Lane was on Times Radio yesterday discussing the impact of the cost of living increase and advising where to go to get support.
Last weekend senior public policy advocate Ed McDonagh spoke to the Observer about the aggressive tactics of bailiffs for an article that included stories from StepChange clients about their experiences with bailiffs.
Richard Lane was quoted in This is Money in a piece about the rising use of Buy Now, Pay Later services among young adults with a third of people unaware that BNPL is a form of borrowing.
StepChange was mentioned as a source of advice in the following online articles:
News
Friday 8 April 2022
In the media, our coverage was focused firmly on the sharp rise in the cost of living as both the energy price cap and National Insurance increased this week.
Across the week, director of external affairs Richard Lane did a string of interviews about this including on ITV News, Times Radio, BBC Breakfast (from 39:50) and BBC Radio 4’s You and Yours, the latter of which StepChange client David also gave his heartfelt testimony about his financial struggles, praising StepChange for helping him during a difficult time in his life. (Listen from 43:45)
Phil Andrew wrote an opinion piece for the Yorkshire Post which appeared online and in print discussing the impact the rise in energy bills will have on StepChange clients and people from financially vulnerable households.
This week also saw the launch of our 2021 Statistics Yearbook, which provides insight into the debt and demographic situations of our clients between January and December 2021. This was picked up by the Big Issue, who focused on the number of people who were already in arrears on essentials bills prior to the cost of living increase. Our data was also covered during a discussion on LBC, as well as in Your Money, Credit Connect, and CCR Magazine.
Elsewhere Senior public policy advocate, Ed McDonagh, spoke to the Observer last weekend for a piece that examined the growing IVA market and accompanying concerns around the debt solution being mis-sold.
Social media
- We celebrated World Autism Day and shared our lovely colleague Lucy’s story. This reached over 4,249 people across our channels and was our top ‘Media Tweet’ for the week on Twitter. You can view the post here on Facebook.
- Phil Andrew’s op-ed in the Yorkshire Post surpassed our 2% engagement rate goal on Twitter – reaching 6%.
- We launched our annual Stats Yearbook across our LinkedIn and Twitter platform. You can find the thread post here. In total, we’ve had 500 users from social media go to our site this week from our content.
News
Opinion
Friday, 1 April
In the media, following the release of our latest client data report for February and the Bank of England’s latest Money and Credit data, Peter Tutton was quoted in over 200 media outlets including the FT, Daily Telegraph print edition, the Independent and host of other national and regional titles.
Elsewhere, our research on the cost of living published during Debt Awareness Week was featured in the Mirror alongside a quote from Phil Andrew and a guide to help people manage their finances.
Peter Tutton was again quoted in the Mirror, this time responding to Gordon Brown’s call on the government to restore the £20-a-week Universal Credit boost. He argued that whatever the mechanism, it’s vital the Chancellor pledges further support for the most financially vulnerable in the face of the cost of living crisis.
A quote from Senior Public Policy Advocate, Ed McDonagh, was included in a widely syndicated article in over 100 various outlets revealing the large numbers of people who remain on legacy benefits ahead of the Government’s target to complete the Universal Credit rollout by 2024.
On social channels, we republished some of our Debt Awareness Week content around the Real Life Stories page, one of our highest engagement rates of 5% on the Twitter platform for the week. You can view this here.
We reminded our LinkedIn audience of our 4-year strategy in a recent post, which gathered a 4.3% engagement rate. The strategy document has now been viewed over 150 times since promoting on socials. We’ve had nearly 200 referrals from our Reddit page for the month. You can view our AMA here.
In the news:
StepChange was mentioned as a source of advice in the following online articles:
In print StepChange was mentioned as a source of advice in several local titles including the Lancashire Telegraph and Wetherby News. Across broadcast media we were mentioned on LBC and BBC Radio Lincolnshire, Shropshire, Coventry & Warwickshire and Three Counties.
Friday, 25 March
In the media, a combination of the launch of our annual Debt Awareness Week, new research from StepChange revealing that one in five people expects to fall into problem debt this year, and our reaction to a Spring Statement that fell well short of helping the most financially vulnerable households, led to us achieving more than 250 pieces of coverage this week.
Across TV and radio, StepChange research or spokesperson comment was featured 160 separate times, including high profile interviews for Phil Andrew on Good Morning Britain, LBC News and Radio 5 Live, and regular appearances across BBC and commercial radio stations by Sue Anderson, Peter Tutton and Sharon Bell.
In print and online media, we gained more than 100 pieces of coverage, with highlights including Phil Andrew’s widely shared op-ed for The Guardian, coverage for our new research in The Sun, BBC News Online and The Mirror and our reaction to the Spring Statement covered by the FT (£), Guardian, The Sun twice and the ITV News website..
Since last Saturday, there have been more than 60 pieces of local and national coverage mentioning Debt Awareness Week, including articles in the Express and the Yorkshire Evening Post.
This week we also published our new organisational strategy, supported by a press release and a blog, as well as posts on our various social media channels. It was reported in Credit Strategy and Credit Connect.
Our news coverage included:
StepChange was mentioned as a source of advice in:
Friday, 18 March
In the media, Public Policy Manager Adam Butler's comments on the dangers of high-cost credit were carried in The Observer in a piece revealing that Google is profiting from ads offering high-interest loans to people with poor credit ratings.
Debt Advice Policy Officer Andy Shaw was interviewed by the Sun for an article detailing what help is available for people behind on their energy bills.
Director of External Affairs Richard Lane was among 50 signatories of a letter that was delivered to ministers yesterday urging them to uprate benefits to keep them in line with inflation.
We celebrated Women's History Month across our platforms, sharing Courtney, our Workplace Risk and Resilience Co-Ordinator's personal journey, which received wonderful comments and engagement. You can view this here on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
The State of Financial Wellbeing Report by Wagestream was published this week, in which StepChange contributed to. This received praise particularly on our LinkedIn.
Yesterday we were one of 50 signatories to Child Poverty Action Group's call to increase benefits by at least 7% in April to match inflation. You can see this here on Twitter.
Other coverage included:
Friday, 11 March
Barclays released research on the effect of Buy Now Pay Later on Generation Z, including commentary from StepChange director of external affairs Richard Lane, which was widely covered including in the Express, the Sun, the Mirror and YourMoney.
The March issue of Credit Strategy magazine (print edition – available online to £ subscribers) includes an opinion column by CEO Phil Andrew based on our recent research on credit being used as a safety net and how lenders need to spot the warning signs of people turning to credit when it may exacerbate their problems.
On the cost of living crisis, Richard Lane was interviewed on Times Radio and Sue Anderson was interviewed on BBC Radio Cornwall. Cashback sites accused of rewarding gambling in the Mail included our comments.
For International Women’s Day Gail Arkle’s personal story received over 130 positive and celebratory reactions from clients, colleagues and partners.
We have seen our largest engagement since April 2021 on our blog over the past week, with Peter Tutton’s in-depth review of Breathing Space reaching over 550 views, and Peter Wordsworth’s blog on IVA’s reaching nearly 300. And among a number of wonderful shoutouts from former clients, this one on Twitter stood out, sparking many shares.
Director of External Affairs Richard Lane was interviewed on the cost of living crisis on the drivetime programme just before 5pm yesterday on Times Radio.
A feature article in the print edition of the Herald and online featured extensive insight from StepChange Scotland and quoted Sharon Bell, head of StepChange Scotland.
Peer pleads for Government action over 'scandalous' costs of prepayment meters for poorest (Yorkshire Post)
StepChange was mentioned as a source of advice in:
Other coverage included:
Friday, 4 March
This week saw the publication of our annual Client Outcomes Report, looking at the experience of clients who sought advice before the pandemic compared to those who sought it during the pandemic.
Our monthly client data report for January also landed earlier in the week, with our accompanying press release commenting on the findings as well as the Bank of England’s latest Money and Credit data.
The Guardian’s economics editor, Philip Inman, featured Richard Lane’s comments in an article reacting to the BoE’s data, showing borrowing on credit cards and short-term loans had slowed in January. As part of his role on The Sun’s ‘Squeeze Team’, Debt Advice Policy Manager, Jonathan Chesterman’s comments were also given a prominent airing in a feature advising people on what to do if they’re in debt.
Elsewhere, our work on bailiff reform took a step forward with the announcement that Catherine Brown will be the new chair for the Enforcement Conduct Board. News of the appointment was covered in trade titles CCR and Credit Connect.
Some essential reading can be found on our Medium blog in the form of Peter Tutton’s, Breathing Space – how’s it really going?.
Our news coverage included: