This latest report provides insight into the demographic and debt information of new clients who first received debt advice in March 2026. It also includes the latest insights on our website traffic trends
Our key findings from March 2026:
- The number of clients completing debt advice in March 2026 is 16,349. This is 7% higher than February 2026 (15,262), and 20% higher than March 2025 (13,648). In March, StepChange observed Debt Awareness week, an annual campaign launched in 2014.
- The number of clients naming ‘reduced income or benefits’ as their main reason for debt has fallen by two percentage points from one in ten (10%) clients in March 2025 to one in 12 (8%) clients in March 2026.
- In March 2026, almost one in ten (9%) clients named ‘need credit to cover living costs’ as their main reason for debt. This is two percentage points higher than March 2025 (7%).
- The proportion of clients with credit card debt has risen. Over seven in ten (71%) clients held credit card debt in March 2026, one percentage point higher than February 2026 (70%) and five percentage points higher than March 2025 (66%).
- In March 2026, one in five (20%) clients, with a responsibility for paying this bill, had gas arrears. This is one percentage point higher than February 2026 (19%), but three percentage points lower than March 2025 (23%).
- The proportion of clients with council tax arrears, among those with a responsibility for paying this bill, has fallen by two percentage points from 35% in February 2026 to 33% in March 2026.
- Over four in ten clients (41%) identified as men in March 2026. This is one percentage point higher than February 2026 (40%).
Take a look at the full report to find out more.
This is the latest report in our series detailing monthly client data