AQW 24275/17-22

Ms Kellie Armstrong
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 14/10/2021
Answered On Date: 10/11/2021
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Communities how much money has been spent on debt and money management options delivered by or funded by her Department, broken down by provider in each year since April 2017.

Answer:

My Department has had policy and commissioning responsibility for the provision of debt advice services from 2019. It was previously the remit of The Money Advice Service.

My Department provides annual funding in the region of £6.6m for the delivery of independent, community based advice services, which includes appeals, help with problem debt and money management.

Funding provided from 2019 is detailed in the table below:

Funding Year		Annual	Delivery
2019/2020	Debt Advice services	£1.2m	Delivery of a free, impartial and confidential debt advice services managed by Advice NI as lead provider in partnership with community based advice organisations and NIACRO.
2020/2021	Debt Advice services	£1.9m (including additional funding received in response to Covid-19 pandemic)	Delivery of free, impartial and confidential debt advice services managed by Advice NI as lead provider in partnership with community based advice organisations and NIACRO.
2020/2021	Financial Inclusion Fund	£700k	Funding allocated to all eleven Councils to allow community sector organisations to work with people who need help to build financial resilience through access to money management advice and support, low cost/affordable credit, promoting savings.
2021/2022	Debt Advice services	£1.6m	A multi-channel debt advice service managed by Advice NI as lead provider in partnership with community based advice organisations and NIACRO.