The cost-of-living crisis has pushed many households from just-about-managing into monthly deficits. If that's you, start with a benefits check — millions of pounds of Universal Credit, Pension Credit and Council Tax Reduction go unclaimed each year.
Renegotiate every essential you can: broadband and mobile deals (especially at contract end), motor and home insurance (never auto-renew), and any subscriptions that have quietly been auto-renewing.
If the monthly numbers still don't work, that's a sign the problem is structural rather than budgeting. Free debt help can look at whether a formal solution (DMP, IVA, DRO) would give you breathing space.
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