Borrowing Data

Debt advice statistics in Wales 2026

Last updated November 2026 · Data to 2025 · Wales

Debt advice figures for Wales, from the Money and Pensions Service and StepChange.

13%

Need for debt advice 2024

An estimated 13% of adults in Wales needed debt advice in 2024.

Source: MoneyView 2025: How people in the UK feel about money, Money and Pensions Service, 2024

Survey of 12,534 adults interviewed July to October 2024 (analysis base 12,354).

32

Clients per 10,000 adults 2025

StepChange recorded 32 new clients completing first-time debt advice per 10,000 adults in Wales in 2025.

Source: Statistics Yearbook 2025 data sheet, StepChange, 2025

Statistics Yearbook 2025 data sheet; calendar year; clients' first fully completed debt advice session. Clients per 10,000 of local adult population. The 2025 yearbook says client location is assigned by postcode lookup.

33

Clients per 10,000 adults 2024

StepChange recorded 33 new clients completing first-time debt advice per 10,000 adults in Wales in 2024.

Source: Statistics Yearbook 2025 data sheet, StepChange, 2024

Statistics Yearbook 2025 data sheet; calendar year; clients' first fully completed debt advice session. Other editions published: 2024 yearbook 30. Clients per 10,000 of local adult population. The 2025 yearbook says 2024 regional data were restated using postcode lookup, and 2024 per-10,000 figures were weighted in line with 2025.

33

Clients per 10,000 adults 2023

StepChange recorded 33 new clients completing first-time debt advice per 10,000 adults in Wales in 2023.

Source: Statistics Yearbook 2024 data sheet, StepChange, 2023

Statistics Yearbook 2024 data sheet; calendar year; clients' first fully completed debt advice session. Clients per 10,000 of local adult population.

5%

Where clients live

5% of new clients completing first-time debt advice at StepChange lived in Wales in 2025.

Source: Statistics Yearbook 2025 data sheet, StepChange, 2025

Statistics Yearbook 2025 data sheet; calendar year; clients' first fully completed debt advice session. The 2025 yearbook says client location is assigned by postcode lookup.

36%

Clients in council tax arrears

Among new telephone clients in Wales completing full debt advice at StepChange who were responsible for paying council tax, 36% were in arrears on it between July 2018 and June 2019.

Source: Wales in the Red 2019, StepChange, 12 months to June 2019

Wales in the Red 2019 data set; clients in Wales who completed a full debt advice session through the telephone service between July 2018 and June 2019 (6,434 clients); location is collected fully only for telephone clients; period shown is the end month.

39%

Clients in negative budget

Among new telephone clients in Wales completing full debt advice at StepChange, 39% had a negative budget between July 2018 and June 2019.

Source: Wales in the Red 2019, StepChange, 12 months to June 2019

Wales in the Red 2019 data set; clients in Wales who completed a full debt advice session through the telephone service between July 2018 and June 2019 (6,434 clients); location is collected fully only for telephone clients; period shown is the end month.

£10,415

Average unsecured debt, clients

New telephone clients in Wales completing full debt advice at StepChange had an average unsecured debt of £10,415 between July 2018 and June 2019.

Source: Wales in the Red 2019, StepChange, 12 months to June 2019

Wales in the Red 2019 data set; clients in Wales who completed a full debt advice session through the telephone service between July 2018 and June 2019 (6,434 clients); location is collected fully only for telephone clients; period shown is the end month.

6,434

New telephone advice clients

StepChange recorded 6,434 new telephone clients in Wales completing full debt advice between July 2018 and June 2019.

Source: Wales in the Red 2019, StepChange, 12 months to June 2019

Wales in the Red 2019 data set; clients in Wales who completed a full debt advice session through the telephone service between July 2018 and June 2019 (6,434 clients); location is collected fully only for telephone clients; period shown is the end month.

Key points

An estimated 13% of adults in Wales needed debt advice in 2024. StepChange recorded 32 new clients completing first-time debt advice per 10,000 adults in Wales in 2025. StepChange recorded 33 new clients completing first-time debt advice per 10,000 adults in Wales in 2024.

Frequently asked questions

What share of adults in Wales needed debt advice in 2024?

An estimated 13% of adults in Wales needed debt advice in 2024.

How many new debt advice clients per 10,000 adults were there in Wales in 2025?

StepChange recorded 32 new clients completing first-time debt advice per 10,000 adults in Wales in 2025.

What share of new debt advice clients lived in Wales in 2025?

5% of new clients completing first-time debt advice at StepChange lived in Wales in 2025.