Mental Health and Support

If you’re concerned your mental health is impacting the way you manage your money, we have a range of services available to support you.

Your mental health and money

Money problems and mental health issues are sometimes linked, with one causing or influencing the other.

If you feel your financial situation is impacting your mental health, you’re not alone. Research by the ONS suggests over a third of us feel stressed out when we think about money.¹

Signs you may be struggling

you feel anxious about reading bank statements, or checking your account balance
you’re worried about being able to pay bills, or not opening important letters
your sleep is disturbed because you’re thinking about your finances
you feel low and anxious, or like there’s no way forward due to your financial situation
you feel guilty after spending money, or you spend money on things you feel you shouldn’t be

If you’re struggling with challenges like those above, we encourage you to visit your GP or contact a healthcare professional who can help.

You can find someone who may be able to support you through the NHS.

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¹For more information, view the first direct money wellness index.

first direct is a division of HSBC UK

How can we help?

Coronavirus

If you’re worried about covering your normal monthly costs because your income has been affected by coronavirus – through losing your job, losing business or being offered fewer hours – there is support available.

Coronavirus financial support

Budgeting

Use our online resources and guides to review your finances, create a budget and plan a way forward. This can help you assess your incomings, outgoings and disposable income.

Everyday budgeting

Managing Debt

If you’re struggling with debt you have with us and have missed a payment, or are worried about missing a payment, you can call our team of specialists on 0345 850 0622 to get a helping hand.

Lines are open:

08:00 - 18:00 Monday to Friday

08:30 - 16:00 on Saturdays

Please note, lines will not be open on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. Calls may be monitored or recorded.

You can also take a look at our series of guides to help you tackle your debts and take control of your finances.

Managing debt

Getting in touch

Call us

If your mental health is affecting your ability to manage your finances, when you’re ready to speak to us, you can call us on 03457 404 404 or Textphone 03457 125 583.

Lines are open from 08:00–20:00 every day

Calls charges are the same as local rate calls. However, you may want to check with your service provider whether these charges are covered under your existing call plan.

Online banking and Chat service

We have a Chat service so you can speak to someone without having to call. To start a chat with one of our agents, log on to online banking and select the ‘Chat’ button. Or to talk to us through your Mobile app, log on and select ‘Support’ and then ‘Chat with us’.

If you start a conversation through online banking, you can continue through ‘Chat with us’ on your mobile if you need to be on the move.

You can also speak to us through the Chat tab on the side of this page, however we may not be able to support all queries through this channel. If the ‘Chat’ option is not on the side of the page, this means we have no available agents. If this is the case, please try one of the alternative contact options.

Visit a branch

Most of our branches are open, but with limited hours and services. Due to coronavirus, we aren’t currently able to support you in branch. We're still here to help, but please call us to get in touch.

Getting help from someone else

If you feel it’s too much to manage your account, you can empower someone to act on your behalf. You need to obtain a Power of Attorney first, or we can arrange to set up a Third Party mandate for you.

If you'd like more information about what a Power of Attorney does, the Citizens Advice website is a good place to start.

If you’d like to find out how a power of attorney works with your bank account, or how to register, visit our Assisting someone with their money page.