As we move into the next episode of the Debt Talk podcast, Financial Abuse & Our Communities, we do so against the backdrop of growing public concern about domestic abuse in the UK, particularly the recent cases where coercive control, economic exploitation and intimate partner violence have escalated into fatal harm. This makes our conversation with front-line experts even more urgent.

Dr Clare Wiper, Assistant Professor in Criminology at Northumbria University and co-author of the report “Designing Out Economic Abuse in the UK’s Banking Industry: A Call for Action”, highlights how deeply financial systems can compound the risks victims face. She stresses that many of the changes required to protect survivors are not radical—but depend on professionals asking the right questions, recognising red flags, and putting effective, trauma-informed safeguards in place, especially when victims are trying to separate financially from an abuser.

Helen Ganney from Christians Against Poverty (CAP) explains that economic abuse often sits beneath the surface of other crises. For many clients, debt advice is not the first intervention they need; only once safety, housing, immigration or family issues are stabilised can they begin to address the financial control, coerced debt or economic isolation that frequently accompany domestic abuse. She notes that this complexity places a huge strain on frontline services already operating beyond capacity.

Shirina Ali, Advice Manager at the Limehouse Project, a minority-led grassroots organisation in East London, emphasises how economic abuse intersects with language barriers, insecure immigration status and the threat of having no recourse to public funds. Many in the communities she supports only realise they are experiencing domestic abuse when they seek help to understand Universal Credit letters or ask if they are entitled to financial assistance. For these survivors, leaving an abuser often means leaving an entire community and support network behind.

All three guests share practical tips for professionals and community workers, urging stronger collaboration, better knowledge-sharing and coordinated responses to meet the overwhelming demand in a sector that remains critically under-resourced.

Stay tuned for our next episode: ‘January Financial Planning’.