Wage freezes, bills from the festive period piling up and businesses cutting shifts or jobs means the financial screw is being turned tighter and tighter.

And with the number of unemployed in the Falkirk Council area up 70 per cent in December, those problems look set to get even worse in the coming months.

It's a growing problem. In the financial year which ended in March 2008, Falkirk Council's debt service dealt with over £14.7 million worth of debts.

But by December 2008 it had already dealt with over £13.6 million, with three months left to go in the financial year.

These problem debts cover everything from rent and mortgage arrears to loans and overdrafts.

All types of people have been seeking help. Of the 601 new cases dealt with since April last year, 189 of the clients have been in full time employment, 91 unemployed, and seven have been students. The majority are aged between 21 and 50.

Graeme Mitchell oversees a team of five welfare benefit officers and three income maximisers at Falkirk Council. In the last financial year, they dealt with over 16,000 enquiries and generated over £7.5 million in the Falkirk Council area.

Income maximisers identify potential benefit entitlements, while welfare benefit officers help members of the public lodge appeals when they are turned down for benefits.

Of the 292 appeals they helped with, they won 75 per cent - the national average is under 40 per cent.

Graeme said: "Even people who are in work at the moment are being encouraged to seek advice in advance in case they do get made redundant. I think people are often surprised by how much we actually do.

"It's not just existing social work clients we deal with - we deal with people from across the Falkirk council area. We're not just improving the lives of the individuals – it also helps generate income for the community."

Initially, people can phone the helpline for advice on straightforward matters. More complex matters will require one or more consultations.

Staff from the team also carry out talks and training to help educate people about what benefits exist.

Graeme added: "When people get the form in front of them it can be quite off-putting - the one for disability living allowance is around 40 pages long for example. The income maximisers are experts on filling in the forms, but even they can take a couple of hours to do it.

"It is something which is definitely on the increase – we have seen an 18 per cent increase in the number of people contacting us for help."

George Paul is in charge of the debt team which is made up of seven debt advice officers who deal with people who are in a multiple-debt position.

George said: "When someone comes to see us we check first of all to see if there is any urgent action required - for example if they are being threatened with eviction or legal action. We will deal with that there and then.

"Then we will review their financial situation. We will try to maximise their income and make referrals to Graeme's team if necessary to help
with that. We then advise them about what options are open to them.

"A lot of what we do is about trying to reassure people and calm them down. No matter how late it is or how far along the line someone is,
there is always something we can do to help.

"We can normally get something in place to save the house and we've got good contacts for people who are threatened with power cut offs.
Companies are only interested in getting their money so, if they can get the ongoing amounts, we can help people come to an arrangement about the arrears."