Number of people in Ashfield declared financially insolvent rose in the last year

The Money Advice Trust, the charity that runs the National Debtline advice service, said the rise in personal insolvencies across England and Wales shows how significantly high costs have impacted people's finances.

Figures from the Insolvency Service show 308 people in Ashfield entered insolvency in 2024, up from 257 the year before.

Across the two nations, the number of personal insolvencies jumped 14 per cent to nearly 118,000 last year.

A person becomes insolvent when they are unable to pay their debts, and are left with a choice of declaring bankruptcy or taking on other measures to pay them back.

The insolvencies last year in Ashfield were made up of 13 bankruptcies, 99 debt relief orders, and 196 individual voluntary arrangements.

Overall, the area had a rate of 30 insolvencies per 10,000 adults.

The figures revealed significant regional disparity, with the rate of personal insolvencies highest in the north east at 33 per 10,000 adults and lowest in London at 15 per 10,000.

Grace Brownfield, head of influencing and communications at the Money Advice Trust, said the rise in personal insolvencies is a ‘sign of the significant impact high costs have had on people's finances’.

She added: "With household budgets being stretched even further, we're seeing more people falling into difficulty and needing to access an insolvency option to deal with their debts.”

The figures also show the insolvency rate for women (27 per 10,000) was higher than for men (22 per 10,000) for the 11th successive year.

Similarly, the rate in Ashfield was 36 per 10,000 for women and 25 per 10,000 for men.

Simon Trevethick, head of communications at StepChange, said: "Whilst the drivers of debt are complex and wide, we consistently find that certain regions and demographics are over-represented in our client base.

"Specifically, women are over-represented among people seeking debt advice, as almost two-thirds of our clients are women.

"What's more, our client stats show that women have a higher average expenditure and a lower average income than men – meaning their ability to pay debts or seek financial support is more difficult."

He said this can be due to women being more likely to have childcare and caring responsibilities that affect their income and ability to build savings.