Credit union support for tenants

St Leger Homes of Doncaster – the organisation that manages around 21,000 homes for Doncaster Council – will pay for two workers at the South Yorkshire Credit Union, based on Netherhall Road, Doncaster.

Tenants who are struggling to pay their rent are referred to the workers who help them prioritise their bills and debts and give them the support and advice they need to help them straighten themselves out financially.

Kay Humphreys, of South Yorkshire Credit Union, explained: "We try and help tenants to prioritise their debts such as rent and council tax.

"Tenants can also open a credit union account and have benefits or wages paid into it and we then set up arrangements for their priority debts to be paid straight from the account.

"If a tenant misses payments we contact them straight away to discuss the problem and try to help and advise on what to do in order to save time and reduce stress.

"We are keen to help tenants when they start experiencing money problems. It is much easier for the tenant to ask for help straight away rather than letting debts mount."