From personal motivation to system-level change

The conversation starts by Daniel sharing his journey into debt advice. Growing up, his family went through significant financial hardship and entered a formal debt solution. Years later, Daniel remembers the moment they made their final payment and became debt free – an experience that stayed with him. Within a few years, he began his own career in debt advice, driven by a desire to help others navigate similar challenges.

Today, his focus has shifted from frontline support to system-wide improvement – asking not just how to help individuals, but how to design better systems for everyone.

How the debt advice sector has transformed in recent years

Over the past two decades, the debt advice landscape has changed dramatically. Stronger regulation – particularly through the Financial Conduct Authority – has reshaped lending practices and collections, offering greater protection to consumers. The sector has also developed a far deeper understanding of vulnerability and there is now broader recognition that financial difficulty rarely exists in isolation. Health issues, life events, caring responsibilities and economic shocks all play a role – and support must reflect that complexity.

Alongside these cultural and regulatory shifts, we've also seen the emergence of new technologies and evolving attitudes to the use of these –particularly the use of chatbots after the pandemic. This is something that the sector now has to respond to, ensuring that information and support is available in the way that is most helpful to the individual. 

The push and pull: human support vs digital efficiency

Debt advice is, at its core, deeply human work. It often involves people at moments of acute stress, fear or uncertainty. Trust, empathy and reassurance are critical. At the same time, the scale of need, particularly in the context of the cost-of-living crisis, demands smarter, more efficient systems. Daniel’s current work focuses on technology and innovation: improving customer journeys, streamlining processes like the Standard Financial Statement, and using digital tools to remove friction from the advice process.

The challenge, and opportunity, lies in ensuring technology enhances human support rather than replaces it. Digital tools can:

• Reduce administrative burden for advisers
• Speed up access to solutions
• Enable earlier intervention
• Improve consistency across the sector

But they must be designed around real human experiences – automation without empathy risks alienating those who most need support, though Daniel recognises that actually some people, for fear of judgement, might be more honest with an AI bot than humans. Equally, over-reliance on manual processes can limit reach and sustainability. The future of debt advice depends on getting this balance right, and enabling individuals who need to use the service to have a choice.

The next 20 months – and the next 20 years

Looking ahead, the next 20 months will likely remain shaped by economic pressure, rising living costs and continued demand for support services. Innovation will be essential to ensure organisations can meet this demand.

But the longer-term horizon is even more compelling: over the next 20 years, the opportunity is to move from reactive crisis support to preventative, insight-led systems – where data helps identify risk earlier, where digital tools empower individuals before problems escalate, and where advisers are freed to focus on complex, high-impact cases.

This is not about choosing between people and technology. It is about designing systems where technology handles complexity at scale, and humans provide the judgment, empathy and trust that no algorithm can replicate. As Daniel’s journey shows, debt advice is ultimately about outcomes – about helping people reach stability and relief – even as the tools evolve.

You can find debt advice resources and access support on the MoneyHelper website (run by the Money and Pensions Service).

The PSC exists to make public services brilliant. If we can support your organisation to harness digital tools in ways that strengthen human interactions, guided by real user needs and lived experiences, get in touch with us at hello@thepsc.co.uk – we’d love to start the conversation.