How we can help
1. Find your local CAP Centre by postcode search
Please enter the first half of your postcode below (e.g. LS22):
Because we visit people in their home, we can only help those who live within 30 minutes drive of a CAP Centre. If you do not live in the catchment area of one of our centres, please click here to discover other options that may be available to you.
2. Phone CAP
If you live in a postcode covered by a CAP centre, phone the appropriate number for help (use the postcode search at the top of the page to find this out). CAP’s centres are opened in partnership with a local church. CAP employ and train a debt counsellor to deal with your finances, whilst voluntary support comes from people in that church. CAP will help anyone regardless of their religious beliefs.
3. Home visit from debt counsellor
The counsellor will arrange to visit you at home to gather your financial information. Home visits ensure you have all of the paperwork to hand and avoids problems caused by lack of transport or child care. On the first visit the counsellor will explain how CAP helps, the implications, and the next steps. They will also offer to pray for your situation. This, however, is a purely optional part of the service.
4. Prepare a budget
Following your decision to work with CAP, the counsellor will prioritise essential bills such as mortgage payments and electricity bills. They will then contact these companies to agree repayments to complete a budget to see you out of debt in a reasonable time. Your budget will also include savings for Christmas or emergencies. The counsellor will visit you again to talk you through the budget and how to make payments.
5. Set up a CAP Account
A CAP Account is then set up for you to use to pay your bills and debts. You will make one weekly or monthly payment to CAP which we will distribute to your creditors on your behalf. The CAP Account simplifies a budget and is especially beneficial for those without a bank account.
6. Creditor Liaison
The Creditor Liaison Unit in Bradford will inform your secondary creditors (credit cards, bank loans, etc) of the repayment offer laid out in the budget. CAP’s knowledge of the legal system and relationship with creditors allows us to negotiate affordable repayments, ensure that interest and charges are stopped, and that priority debts are cleared first. This releases you from continual phone calls and threatening letters.
7. Options for severe debt
If your debts are very large and you can’t pay them off in a reasonable time CAP’s Insolvency department will explain the options, including insolvency and bankruptcy, to help you choose the best way forward.
8. Client Support Unit (CSU)
Once your CAP account has been running well with us for six months, your case will be transferred to our CSU team in CAP’s head office. CSU will manage your case efficiently via telephone contact through until you become debt free.
9. Debt free
CAP will provide reliable, ongoing support for you until you are debt free!
