Episode 11 A Matter of Life and Debt

Every day, all over the country, millions of people

are struggling to find the cash they need to make ends meet

or to realise their dreams.

-40, 60, 80, 100.

-Can I withdraw £500?

I'm hoping for sort of 700-1,000.

I mean, if I can get more, that'd be great.

Many struggle to qualify for high-street borrowing,

making them vulnerable to illegal loan sharks.

I knew there was absolutely no chance

of any of the high-street banks giving me any money whatsoever.

Hiya.

But there are a growing number of community banks or credit unions

that are offering a helping hand,

whilst at the same time, supporting the local area.

20, 40, 60, 70, 80.

I'm pleased to tell you your loan's been approved.

Brilliant, thank you very much.

They gave me the option of what I could afford.

I could actually live again and actually save again.

From household emergencies

to kick-starting a new life or business.

Organic veg boxes!

I'm happy to say it's been approved.

Brilliant, thank you, I'm so pleased. Thank you so much!

We're following some of these life-changing stories.

One of the best feelings ever, because I knew I could fund myself.

I had enough working for somebody else, I needed to do my own thing.

Without that help,

the transformation to my life would have been impossible.

So, it's a win-win situation, really.

Today...

..how a credit union loan helps a nurse turn her patienting skills

to therapy for dogs.

It was like somebody had said, "You've won £1 million!"

One woman goes in search of a solution

after her spending gets out of hand.

I'm here to do some debt consolidation.

Too much spending on the credit cards.

And how a debt management company

finally turns a young man's life around.

The letters stopped, the e-mails, they stopped.

Everything stopped.

And I could breathe again.

-Hello.

-Hello. I'm applying to get a top-up on my loan.

A rise in the cost of living has put more pressure on family budgets,

but instead of tightening their belts,

households in the UK have increased their spending this year,

racking up an extra £1.6 billion in consumer debts.

I was absolutely maxed out on every single bank account

and credit cards and loans, at the limit.

I couldn't even afford to repay them,

or even keep up with the monthly payments.

Credit and loans almost always comes at a price.

The latest figures show families could be paying an average

of almost £2,000 in annual interest payments alone.

But there is help at hand.

Almost 2 million Brits now use credit unions

to help them manage their money.

-How you keeping?

-I'm keeping all right, yeah.

-Good.

Even if your income is low or you have a disastrous credit history,

these community-based ethical lenders could provide the answer.

Really, this is what banking's all about.

-We can say to you yes, we're happy to do a loan for you.

-Thank you.

It's easier to get a loan and they don't charge you great interest.

No, no.

Credit union has been a life-saver.

-Morning. Hiya.

-Hello.

-Hello!

-Hello.

The London Mutual Credit Union has four offices

serving 27,000 members, most of whom live or work locally.

20, 30, 40, 50, 60, £70.

Thank you very much.

Donna has arrived at the Peckham branch,

looking for a loan to enable her to put all her debts together

and pay them off more cheaply.

I'm here to apply for a loan, to do some debt consolidation.

Too much spending on the credit cards, catalogues,

spending outside of my means, some would say.

Donna is working part-time as a carer,

while she studies to become a nurse.

She wants to combine her existing debts,

which she's run up on store and credit cards,

into a single loan with a lower interest rate.

I want to give my papers in and then hopefully, fingers crossed,

it gets approved.

-Hello!

-Hiya.

I'm here to apply for a loan.

OK. Have you had a loan with us before?

-I have, yeah.

-Lovely.

Did you want to try and keep your repayments the same,

-leave it like that?

-Yeah, yeah, that's fine.

I've been with the credit union since 2007 or '08,

when I moved into the area.

What I like about it is that credit union,

I think it's more, like, community-based,

where banks are more like business.

So, I feel like credit union works for the people.

That's why I always come back here, because I always get

good service with them, I've never had any problems.

Lovely, so the loan department will be in touch with you

-within ten working days.

-OK, cool.

-They usually text you with the decision.

-Thank you.

-Have a lovely day.

-You too, bye-bye.

-Take care, bye-bye.

If the loan's approved, Donna should have more money in her pocket,

because she'll be paying less interest.

While credit unions are providing financial services

for personal customers around the UK,

there are other ethical lenders who focus on small business funding.

These are also not-for-profit organisations,

offering loans to local people

who might be turned down by traditional lenders.

It's that personal service I remember from banking

years and years ago, has all but disappeared now.

PHONE RINGS

South West Investment Group offers business advice,

mentoring and low-cost finance.

Compared to commercial lending,

it's reasonably easy to get your hands on.

Sarah Osborne is a fund manager.

It's quite wide, anyone from 18 to any age,

nearly every business sector.

We can lend to people who've been in business several times before,

to people who never thought about it before, so it's actually very open,

and that's why it's such a special loan.

It's low interest, it's easy to find out about.

Sarah loves the variety her job brings.

-Thank you.

-Every business is different.

Some of them are much more ambitious than others,

and some of them are an extension of kind of lifestyle.

There's no "computer says no" in our business, there's none of that.

It's about us engaging with the person,

understanding the business idea,

and looking at the finance they're looking for and thinking,

the bottom line is, "Will we get this money back?"

In 2016, the organisation got an enquiry from neo-natal nurse Marion,

who was looking for a £22,000 loan

for a very unusual business start-up.

Marion's plan was to set up a hydrotherapy spa

for dogs in Gloucestershire.

It's very similar to nursing,

in that you're trying to make a difference

and help someone get over an illness.

Children and dogs, the biggest vehicle is play,

so that's the same.

You can't get near children without play

and you can't get near dogs without play,

so there's a lot of similarities in that way.

Yay, good boy!

Always eating.

Since childhood, Marion had always wanted to be a nurse.

It was a long-held ambition.

I used to dress up in a nurse's outfit.

It was never anything else, it was always going to be nursing.

Marion began her busy nursing career in 1986,

specialising in neo-natal intensive care.

As soon as she could, she and her partner Stu

made space in their lives for her other passion - dogs.

Bilbo was probably a year, 18 months old,

and he'd been a very busy puppy.

He would run for miles after hares.

He had so much energy and he would be jumping like anything.

He'd do what looked like star jumps.

It was when Bilbo became ill

that Marion's life took an unexpected turn.

Come! Come!

We noticed that he stopped, he almost went backwards.

He became less energetic, quiet, withdrawn.

Bilbo was diagnosed with joint dysplasia,

which made it possible he'd need hip replacements.

But the vet suggested hydrotherapy might improve his condition.

Just like humans,

dogs can benefit from swimming to help repair muscles

after injury or surgery, and to boost fitness.

We took him to this hydrotherapy centre.

He was quite anxious to begin with.

But within, I don't know, eight minutes, he was away.

After months of pain,

Bilbo was suddenly able to move freely and play in the water.

We just saw this dog change again.

We were getting our puppy back.

We watched him retrieve toys again.

He was playing.

It was fantastic, she'd throw the toy

and he'd go and get it and his little tail...

As Bilbo's energy levels rose,

Marion was surprised by her own new-found enthusiasm.

I thought I was going to be doing something that was good for Bilbo,

but I didn't expect to get that buzz.

After just a couple of sessions,

Marion made a life-changing decision.

I came home one day and I said, "Stu, I want to do this,

"I don't want to just do it for Bilbo, I want to do it."

And he said, "All right, then."

He said, "I've never seen you so happy."

Marion's idea of setting up her own dog spa was going to be expensive,

so she needed a loan.

I went to my own bank, they said no.

So, I changed bank,

to somebody else, and they said no.

I tried my partner's bank,

and I tried another bank and when you get that many nos,

and it was a common theme,

I thought, well, this isn't going to happen.

Then Marion found out about SWIG,

which provides loans to get business ideas off the ground.

I didn't know what the different terms meant,

I was as green as green can be.

She was put in touch with loans manager Sarah.

She gave me direction.

She liked my business plan, she was very enthusiastic, very encouraging.

She understood what it was all about, which was really good for me,

and she was enthusiastic about the whole notion of hydrotherapy,

so that helped me, actually.

That gave me a big lift.

In order to build her hydrotherapy pool and kit it out,

Marion needed Sarah to approve a £22,000 loan.

It came back with a yes and she phoned me to tell me first,

and I was like squealing down the phone.

-I was like...

-SHE SQUEALS

My voice went really high-pitched.

I was just, it was like somebody had said you've won £1 million.

Go on, then!

It's such a big jump for people, and Marion included,

moving from a professional job in the health service

to being her own boss and doing something completely different.

The investment group's involvement doesn't end with the loan.

They carry on offering advice and support, and nine months on,

Sarah's come to see how Marion is doing.

-Marion!

-Hello. Hi, Sarah.

This is our pool.

-Yeah, it's six metres by 2.5...

-Yes.

-1.1 metres deep.

In Marion's colourful beach huts,

dogs can also have the full spa treatment,

with showers, a blow-dry...

Oh!

-It's quite strong!

-..and a massage.

That's it, one more.

I found it terrifying at first.

You know, I had no idea what was involved

and I still feel I had so much to learn,

being very naive about certain things,

but I think I needed that direction and that support

and also knowing that I could contact people.

And you know, when you begin to enjoy it,

you wear that responsibility a bit more lightly, in a way.

-I don't know!

-Because it becomes your life.

-Yeah.

-It's not something additional, you know.

It just is who you are now.

We've had people come for birthday treats,

they've just wanted to swim with their dog.

-What, their birthday or the dog's birthday?

-Their birthday.

Never mind swimming with dolphins, swim with the dog!

-Yeah, exactly...

-It's the real deal.

-It's the new thing!

I must say, I didn't quite know what to expect.

But when you see the end result of something working,

and the customers using it, and you're training staff...

That's the real joy of it.

I like it when it works out at the end,

that's the real buzz at the end of it.

I feel so proud.

It's like having kittens or something,

and seeing them grow up into cats!

But I'm claiming too much there.

All the credit is down to the business owners, to be honest.

For Marion, her business and her confidence are growing all the time.

Having a team around me that I want there,

that have the same visions, that's really good.

I can make an assessment and determine how I'm going to

treat a dog, it's up to me, and that responsibility is awesome.

It's just a great feeling.

Bye!

In Peckham...

Can you just confirm the first line of the address?

..carer Donna is back at her local credit union

to see if she's going to get the £500 loan,

so she can clear her credit card debts.

I'm nervous a little bit.

I just feel like they're going to say no, but I never know,

know what I mean? I'm optimistic either way, though,

no matter what I think, I'm optimistic.

The decision is in the hands of loans officer Jay.

When we receive an application for debt consolidation,

we are obviously expecting for there to be some defaults

on her credit file or maybe some missed payments, stuff like that.

Obviously that is the reason why they've applied

for the loan application. So, what I'll do right now

is just check the credit file and see how it's looking.

It doesn't look too bad to me, to be honest with you.

Application looks OK so far.

She's had numerous loans with us and has paid them off all on time.

Checks done, it's time for Donna to hear his verdict.

-Hello, Donna, how you doing? My name's Jay.

-Nice to meet you.

-You all right?

-I'm good, thank you.

-Take a seat here.

Remind me, what are you spending the funds on again?

-Consolidation.

-OK.

-Not even for, like, pleasure.

-Yeah, yeah.

-I've got some good news for you today.

-OK, cool.

The loan application has been approved

-for the full amount of £500.

-Great.

I'll just quickly go over the terms.

So, it's going to be £500 over 18 months.

And the repayments are going to be £60.

Is there any questions that you have today, Donna?

-No, I don't have any.

-Well, that's it for today.

-Thank you for your time.

-No problem at all.

And we're pleased to help.

Just keep up the good work.

The only reason we are able to help is because obviously,

-you are saving well with us.

-OK.

You've had a good history with us, as well, of loans.

-And yeah.

-Thank you for helping me out, man, I appreciate it.

-No problem at all.

-Thank you.

-Here to help!

-Feel beautiful today!

She seemed really surprised at the decision.

You can just see there was a lot of weight off her shoulders

when we did give her the decision.

Went really good, to be honest with you.

I'm quite ecstatic with the decision, I must say.

I'm going to pay off my debts and have one direct debit coming out.

I feel a bit of relief, to be honest with you.

Something I don't have to think about.

I'll sleep lighter tonight.

Thank you, darling.

As locally-based member-owned organisations,

credit unions aim to provide more than just financial services,

by supporting the people and communities they serve.

-Morning.

-Hello.

-Hi.

Can I take your proof of identity

and proof that you work in the borough as well, while you do that?

Thank you.

You do get to know the members more,

they do feel that, like, they're your friend,

more than I think they would do with anyone in the bank.

They come to us for help and advice.

Some of them come in as new members and ask us about the loans.

If they have to be a member with us to apply for a loan and, yes,

you do have to become a member first.

-You're applying for a loan...?

-Yeah.

Usually with loans, you notice there's certain times of the year,

so it'll be, like, Christmas and summer.

At London Mutual,

manager Lucky knows how important that is to every member.

If the credit unions don't provide that kind of services,

especially low-cost loans,

our members will go to the loan sharks or high-cost lenders,

like payday lenders.

They don't have other choice,

because high street banks may not lend money for them.

-Thank you!

-OK.

Mum of two Sam is hoping to join the 27,000 members of the credit union

so she can get a loan.

I care for two of my children who suffer from mental health,

and one has myasthenia gravis.

-Hiya.

-Hello, you all right?

-Yes, thank you.

My mum's been a member for about two years now,

and she tells me there's a lot of benefits that you can receive

if you're a member of the credit union.

-How can I help?

-Basically, I wanted to open a new account.

OK, have you not got an account with us?

No, my mum has.

So, do give live or work in Southwark?

I'm living at my mum's.

I've been a carer for so long, I'd love a holiday.

So, I'll be definitely interested in maybe a short-term loan.

-So, I can give you the forms.

-Thank you very much.

-Just bring it all back.

-I will do.

-All right.

-Thank you.

-You're welcome.

-Thanks a lot.

-Cheers, bye.

Bye-bye.

If Sam gets her loan, she wants to go on holiday to Jamaica,

where she's hoping to bump into Olympic hero Usain Bolt.

He doesn't live too far away from where my family live.

Apparently, we come from the same parish, so I'd love to go there,

hoping to see Bolt.

Still to come...

How a credit union loan helps one woman slash her high-interest debt.

You're going to be a lot better off each month,

simply by paying that loan off with the credit union loan, aren't you?

I'm very pleased.

And support from an ethical lender helps get two boys safely to school.

And you can see he's actually trying to do some joined-up writing now.

After a week, he's kind of picked it up really quickly.

With many households struggling to manage

in the current financial climate,

families are still turning to payday lenders and loan sharks

to help them out of financial difficulties.

But many of us are blissfully unaware

of how much we're paying in interest charges.

-Do you know what APR stands for?

-No clue. No.

-Do you want to guess what it means?

-Not really.

APR is a foreign word to me that I can only see in the small print

on things that come up on TV.

What? It normally looks like a massive number,

like 1,065% interest,

and that's normally when I go, "I probably shouldn't take that out."

If you borrow so much money over a certain amount of years

and you're doing a certain amount of payments every month,

they'll add on a certain percentage amount

and that will just be your interest,

and that's how the companies make money from lending you money.

While short-term loans may seem like a quick and easy solution,

it's important to understand how much you might have to repay.

Borrowing £400 for one month from a typical payday loan company

could cost over £90 in interest.

When it comes to credit and loans,

the most sensible thing is to borrow smart,

and that means only borrowing money that you really need to,

for the shortest period possible,

and paying it off as soon as you can.

You don't want to pay a penny more in interest

than you absolutely have to, and so it's about looking at your options,

to find out what the cheapest way for you to borrow is,

and then getting rid of that debt as quickly as you can,

if you are being charged interest.

21-year-old Will from Derbyshire

found out about expensive loans the hard way.

It started three years ago,

when a hobby that began as a bit of fun got out of control.

When I first started gambling, it was usually I'd be in the pub

with my friends, just having a few beers and we'd see the slot machine,

so we'd say, "Let's go and have a fiver each in it."

And the first few times, I pulled away some pretty good money.

I mean, off a slot machine in a pub, the jackpot's about £70-£100,

and I hit the repeat on a jackpot, so I got £200.

When you've had that feeling of coming away with money,

when you've had that rush, it's hard to get rid of.

So, it all starts off at pub fruities

and then that's sort of the gateway into the bigger things.

Will's interest in gambling continued to grow

and he even got himself a job, in a bookies.

Really enjoyed it, you know,

just seemed an all-round perfect fit for me.

What I'd do is at work, I'd make fake accumulators,

just to sort of pass the time.

So, I'd get a bet slip, I'd write down who I thought was going to win,

just to see, you know, what I would have won,

and if it had come in.

And quite a few times, it started to roll in a bit more

and I was thinking, "Oh, I could have won money there."

It happened about four or five times and then I decided,

"No, I'm feeling lucky, I'll go try myself."

Will decided to take his new hobby to the next level.

So, I started going to the casino with a group of friends.

Usually only spending £20-30 a time.

You see how easy it is to make money from gambling,

you can turn £20 into £200 like that in a casino.

It's so quick,

but what you don't also realise is that when you're putting £20 down

and you lose it and you put another £20 down and you lose it,

you can lose £100 in...

I think the quickest I lost it was in about a minute and a half once,

£100, you know, and that's a day's work, just gone.

Will was hooked,

but his job didn't earn him enough to fund his trips to the casino.

So, he went in search of extra cash.

I got my first, I'd say adult job, working in a contact centre,

and I'd never seen a wage packet like it.

The pay was great, and when it hits your bank for the first time,

it's this real sort of rush,

like wow, I've got a lot of spare cash here.

Because of the bigger wage,

I'd taken out all of these different luxuries.

I had two phone contracts.

And when all those bills start to come through,

that's when it all really gets on top of you.

But no matter what, even though you know that you've got bills to pay,

and even though you know that you've got things to come out

towards the end of the month, you will still go and gamble,

because you've got this inkling in the back of your mind that

I could go into the casino tonight with £100 and win £50,000

and that would solve all my problems.

You know, it wasn't £10 bets on blackjack tables any more,

it was £50, £100 bets, trying to make quick money,

but the quicker you try and make money,

the quicker you lose it as well.

Will was in trouble.

Losses at the casino pushed him deep into debt.

He needed cash, and he needed it fast.

I turned to payday loans.

It was... At first, it was £100.

I thought, "I need this to pay my phone bill, cool."

And it was so easy, five minutes - done.

£100 in your bank account within half an hour.

And that's like winning money at a casino, you know, it's that quick,

it's that easy, and I didn't read between the lines.

Because you may be borrowing £100

but you're going to be paying back 300,

so it just doubles and triples in price

and that's when things started to get hairy.

And it was about four or five weeks later,

I got a letter through the post

saying you're in default, you're in arrears.

And I was skint, I had no money.

So, then that leads me to think,

"All right, I'll get another payday loan,

"just to cover this and then that's it."

So, I took another payday loan out for £300.

And I...

I didn't pay off what I said I was going to pay off with.

I went straight to the casino.

It's the whole devil-angel on your shoulder, you've the angel saying,

"Right, great, use this money wisely, Will,

"pay off what you need to pay off and stop it there."

But the devil on my shoulder's saying you've £300 here,

you could turn that into ten grand tonight.

I'd say out of the 50 times I went,

I probably walked away happy, twice.

In the space of six months, Will took out 12 payday loans,

adding up to £6,800.

I was getting around about 25 phone calls a day

from different loan companies, saying I owe money to them.

I was getting four or five letters a day

and around about ten e-mails a day, and the feeling was just crushing.

I buried it. I stuck my head in the sand

and I stopped answering the calls, didn't reply to the letters,

didn't reply to the e-mails,

buried my head in the sand and I didn't know where to turn.

At that point, I owed £8,500.

You couldn't go out the house without thinking about it.

You can't move.

Too afraid to reach out for help,

Will's anxieties turned into depression.

The lowest point was the day

that I was actually considering ending it.

I was on my way to work.

And I just had a bit of a breakdown, really.

I had realised how much money I had got to pay back.

So, I drove up to a local hot spot called Black Rocks.

It's a really high sort of area.

I parked with my car.

I remember sending my family, I sent them all a goodbye text.

Luckily for Will, his sister got the message

and tracked him down in time.

Within two minutes, three police cars came bounding up.

Three police cars blocked me in.

I remember the police officer tapped on the window and he says,

"Are you all right?"

I said, "No. I'm not.

"I'm really not OK."

I said, "I'm in a lot of trouble with money.

"And I don't know what to do."

That's when everything

took a turn up.

With the help of his family, Will took control of his finances.

He started by contacting a debt management company.

Within five minutes, he explained how the process works,

how they can consolidate all the debt into one big debt

and how they can start to fix the payment plans.

So, I went on, signed this agreement.

He said, "Right, you're going to be paying £103 a month

"for the next five years and once you have made all those payments,

"we will settle the rest of the debt."

I went, "OK. Cool." And that was it.

And gradually, the telephone calls stopped.

The letters stopped. The e-mails, they stopped.

Everything stopped.

And I could breathe again.

Entering into an IVA, or Individual Voluntary Arrangement,

helped Will get back on track with his finances.

I managed to start opening up saving accounts, putting money away,

not spending money willy-nilly.

I haven't been to a casino now since last year.

I don't plan on going to one any time soon.

I don't gamble any more.

I feel good about my life at the moment.

It's going in the right direction.

It still takes work, it still takes a lot of hard work,

but I'll get there.

It's been a tough journey, but Will says he's learned his lesson.

Do not ever touch a payday loan with a barge pole.

No matter if it's 50 quid or £500.

Don't do it, because...

..this has been the hardest time of my life

and I don't ever want to come back to this.

I will never, for the life of me, ever touch another loan, ever.

Good boy.

Short-term loans will always attract high interest

if not paid off in full.

And they're a sure-fire way to increase debt problems.

But there are alternatives.

Payday loans can seem like a really flexible way

to borrow a small amount of money

for a relatively short period of time.

The key thing is they are a really expensive way to borrow.

So, although you will be borrowing from a regulated lender

that is obliged to treat you fairly, they're not the cheapest option.

There most likely will be cheaper options out there.

Ethical lenders such as credit unions will always be registered

with the Financial Conduct Authority and can be checked online.

Credit unions aren't only about loans.

They also encourage people to save.

Always good service!

Madeline has been a member of Lewisham and Bromley Credit Union

for the last ten years.

I was looking for a new way of banking.

Single parent, I had two children.

Bye-bye. Next, please.

It's really just helped me build, I think,

some security for myself and my family over the years.

And it's provided a very good support in me gradually building

from that point to this point,

to support my family and get a bit of savings behind me.

-Hello.

-Hello.

-I'd like to make a withdrawal, please.

-OK, no problem.

-Do you have a pen?

I'm visually impaired.

I lost my sight in one of my eyes when I was 20,

the other one when I was 21.

I managed to regain the sight back in my right eye, but not in my left.

Actually, the finances I managed to accumulate with the credit union

have really helped me with, I suppose, my freedom in society,

and always having that safety net behind me financially to support me

when I've had my disability needs.

There's my ID.

Thank you, Madeline.

I do feel very, very supported with regard to my visual impairment here.

-I've got some 50 notes.

-That's fine.

Madeline built up a pot of money and used her savings

to take some courses to improve her employment options.

-Thank you.

-60, 80...

With regard to my remedial massage therapy and the life coaching,

it was quite a lot of money to be able to pay for those courses.

Perfect. Which I think, without credit union,

I wouldn't have been able to build up that level of finances

to have done that.

-Thanks very much. Thank you. Bye.

-Take care, bye.

It's put me in a much better financial position than I was in

when I originally joined.

Because credit unions are run as a community cooperative,

staff can treat individuals on a personal case-by-case basis.

Have you got some ID?

And this is especially helpful for people with poor credit ratings.

Never checked it. Not even thought about it.

I tried to explain that to you the other day, didn't I?

-I'm still confused.

-Everybody has to have

hire purchase to get on the ladder, to get credit.

A better credit score history,

got better chances of getting real estate.

Having a poor credit history can make it difficult to get a mortgage

or borrow money.

And if you've moved here from abroad,

life is even tougher,

as you are deemed to have no credit history at all.

If you're from outside the UK,

credit histories and credit checks do not cross international borders.

That is the same around the world.

So, it doesn't matter what your circumstances are,

you could be rich, poor,

you could have taken many loans in the past or never,

if you have only done that activity outside the UK,

it's the same as having no credit history at all in this country.

That is a hindrance to getting credit, no doubt about it.

When computer specialist Ignis from Lithuania settled in Britain

with his family in 2014,

he had no reason to think he would have a problem with his finances.

I have a lot of experience as a software engineer.

So, for me to find a job anywhere is quite easy.

I can demand a good salary to be able to support my family.

Ignis soon found a job and a home for his wife and children.

There we go, Lucas.

But establishing the family ate into his savings.

I didn't have a lot of capital when I moved here.

And moving reduced my savings, so I had to look for credit.

I'm just going to put the safety belt on.

Ignis was in desperate need of a loan to buy a car.

But quickly realised his credit rating wasn't recognised in the UK.

Because of my lack of credit history in the United Kingdom,

I hadn't had much other options in terms of borrowing some money.

I get a good salary, but sometimes when my savings get low,

I also need to borrow from somewhere.

I wasn't able to get credit from the banks.

It was vital for Ignis to get a car quickly.

His two sons, Lucas and Rochus, have special needs,

and driving them to school helps to reduce their stress.

Routine and following the rules

is critical for people with autism,

because if routine is disrupted, they can go into panic mode

and it's not easy to calm down from the panic mode

when you have some challenges with communication.

We had a lot of tears on Monday.

The same kind of process,

where he calms down and then it gets to break time and he goes outside.

He's got that transitionary time and he remembers again,

he's upset again.

It's a really hard day.

But as a recent immigrant,

it was almost impossible for Ignis to get a loan.

When we learned that we couldn't get a loan from a regular bank,

it felt overwhelming because we didn't really know what we can do.

In desperation,

he started searching for advice online

and came across information about credit unions.

I looked up what kind of credit unions were available

and I found that, because my work, my job was in Southwark,

I was eligible for London Mutual Credit Union.

Lucky, the manager of Ignis's local branch, processed his application.

Ignis is one of the typical members that we have.

Wanted some money, but he can't borrow money from elsewhere.

We always sympathise with our members.

We find a bit more about the members, including the income,

the credit checks and also their family circumstances.

After assessing his ability to repay a loan,

the credit union offered Ignis the money he needed

to get his son safely to school.

So, I was able to borrow £3,000.

With that money, I was able to buy this car.

His income was good.

So, we thought it's a good reason to apply for a loan,

and a good reason for us to grant that loan.

So, the nice thing about this car, it has the children-safe door locks.

So, for my kids, because they don't fully understand,

you have to do everything possible to keep them safe.

Without the credit union's help, I wouldn't be able to afford this car,

that reduced stress on me and my family.

With their transport needs met,

the children now have a settled routine

and are making good progress at school.

You can see he is actually trying to do some joined-up writing now.

OK, so he is keeping the finger spaces as well.

Yeah. After a week, he's kind of picked it up really quickly.

Education is really important for my children.

We don't want our kids to grow up and just, you know,

stay at home and collect benefits and those things.

We want them to find a job and be productive members of society.

Train! Crashed!

Ignis now has big dreams for his children's future.

My hopes are that the boys will be able to go to university

and be able to enter higher education, and that they will

be able to get a job, and just build a family,

to enjoy life and not have to struggle every day.

-I win.

-No, I win!

We both win.

One of the largest credit unions in the UK is London Capital,

which traces its roots back to 1962.

-Good morning. Would you like to come over, please?

-Yes, please.

I love to see people coming to the credit union

and just to say to us what we've done for them.

We sometimes have people who have never saved before.

And after a period of time, they can look in their accounts and say,

"Can I see what's in my savings too?"

And they may have £1,000 in there. And they've never saved before.

-Thank you.

-Thank you. Bye!

The credit union is open to anyone who lives,

works or studies in the area.

And Helen has been a member for three years.

She's on her way to apply for a loan.

I need to do some maintenance in my home.

I'm applying for £1,000.

Basically, just buying furniture and having the new flooring in.

A home makeover isn't the only reason that Helen needs help.

I had a very high interest loan from another company.

With this loan, I could actually pay off that loan

and new furniture in, and new flooring.

So, that would be great, you know, spirit lifted up around the home.

It's nice to get rid of the old and in with the new.

Manager Martin Groombridge is Helen's loan adviser.

-Hello.

-Hello, there.

-How can I help you?

-I'm just here to apply for a loan.

OK. That's smashing. Can I have your membership number, please?

Yes. It's on the paper here.

OK, that's smashing.

Let's have a look.

-You've got bank statements with us?

-I have.

-That's smashing.

-What was the purpose of the loan?

-It's for maintenance.

-OK.

And pay off another loan?

Martin can see immediately

that paying off the higher interest loan

will put more money in Helen's pocket.

That certainly makes sense.

So, you're going to be better off each month

simply by paying that loan off with a credit union loan, aren't you?

That certainly makes sense.

If you'd just like to take a seat over there, Helen.

-I'll draw the document up for you.

-Thank you.

See you in a moment.

Before deciding whether Helen can have her loan,

Martin needs to work out if she can afford her repayments.

The purpose of the loan is to repay certain things

that have gone wrong about the house.

But also to clear up a loan from a high-interest lender

and we'll reduce her monthly payments from £120 a month

to £75 a month.

Actually, it'd be more than that

because she's already paying £50 a month anyway.

So, effectively, she's going to be paying an extra £25 a month

to clear a loan that she's currently paying £120 a month.

So, she's going to save a lot of money

and make a significant difference to her monthly income.

It doesn't take Martin long to reach a decision.

OK, Helen, would you like to come on over?

I'm pleased to tell you the loan's been approved.

Very speedy.

Hopefully, what we'll do, once we've got this,

I'll give you the original documentation back.

The loan's been approved, this money will be sent

-to your bank account later today.

-Thank you.

I'll find you an envelope to pop it all in to keep it together.

-Thank you very much.

-Cheers, Helen, take care.

Nice to see you again. Bye.

The loan decision will free up extra cash,

so that Helen can spruce up her home.

I'm very pleased that it's been approved very speedily.

Knowing that my money will be there in the account,

in just a couple of hours, is very good.

I'm really, really excited about that.

So, I'll do my shopping!

Since our filming, Marion's dog spa

has a raft of new four-legged clients.

And as a result, she's taken on another apprentice.

Building up what we want the business to look like

is a great feeling.

And Ignis has paid off his loan.

Thanks to having a car, his boys are now doing well at school,

with vastly improved performances in reading, writing and maths.

My hopes are that the boys will be able to go to university

and enjoy life every day.