Making the most of your money

Swindon Borough Council wants to support it’s residents to maximise their income and make the most of their money helping them to live free from the harmful effects of poverty. We know that poverty and money worries adversely affect wellbeing and health and can separate people from the community, so we want to do all we can to prevent financial crisis and promote social justice.

Our approach to helping people to become “financially included” is based on providing information, advice and support to help people understand and manage their own finances.

We are working to make the information and advice that is needed; accessible, consistent and credible nurturing honest relationships that help people manage in these times of welfare reform and increasingly shrinking council budgets.

This is an ongoing initiative which focuses on the following key objectives intended to limit the effects of poverty by supporting those who experience it:

• Maximise income and respond to welfare reforms
• Support residents to manage their debt
• Increase skills in money management and expenditure
• Help residents to train, gain and remain in employment
• Promote the expansion of affordable credit options and access to bank accounts
• Stop loan sharks and discourage “door to door” lending
• Reduce fuel poverty

You can find further information by following the links below:

• Affordable Credit
• Benefits Cap
• Council Tax Support - overpayments, how to claim and appeals
• Discretionary Housing Payments
• Emergency Assistance Fund
• Housing Benefit
• Home Energy Efficiency
• Local Housing Allowance
• Loan Sharks and High Cost Lending
• Managing Debt
• Maximising Benefits Income
• Universal Credit

Visit and LIKE our Facebook Page: Swindon Money Matters, where we post:

• Changes to the website as they occur
• Updates on benefit and welfare reform
• Purchasing hints & tips to save you money
• Information on getting the best deal on your utilities