Debt management is partly about sorting out your current money problems, but it's also about helping you to manage your money better in the future. No-one who's been in serious debt wants to go there again, and the stress and strain of owing thousands of pounds is enough to push anyone into taking more care of their cash.

Your income

If you're spending more than you're earning, you're setting yourself up for a debt problem. The best thing to do is to try and reduce your spending, but there are some things that you don't have any control over, such as the cost of your electricity or gas bill; the price of local public transport or the price rises in your supermarket. Try looking for ways to increase your income if you can. Is it possible to do some extra hours at work, or volunteer for shifts that are paid at time-and-a-half or double time? Could you take on a second job which gives you a couple of evenings of extra work each week? Do you have a spare room in your house that you could rent out for extra cash? Increasing your income will help you to cover your expenses.

Drawing up a budget

Many debt management advisers talk about the importance of having a budget. This doesn't have to be complicated – just a record of how much money comes into your household each month and how much goes out. You might be surprised, for example, on how much you spend on takeaways each month, or how much you pay for parking during the week. Write everything you spend into your budget so that you can see any areas that you might be able to cut back on. Do you really need to buy new clothes every Saturday? Cutting your trips into town to once every two weeks could make a huge difference to the amount of cash you spend, and you'll be able to see the results when you update your budget.

Restrict loans and credit cards

Don't take out extra loans or cards if you can avoid it. Credit cards are useful, but stick to one, and make sure you pay off as much as you can afford each month. Don't be tempted to take out another card, even a store card – the interest on these credit facilities is really high, and you could end up back in debt sooner than you think. Try to do without loans and credit cards unless you know you can afford to pay them off.

Varden Nuttall has been established for over 15 years and is dedicated to helping people in financial difficulty find a debt management solution through an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA). Employing 90 people, including trained and skilled IVA administrators, we are one of the largest IVA companies in the UK and handle over 3% of all IVA applications. To find out more about the company, or to make an appointment to talk about putting an IVA in place, call us today on 0800 031 9802 or fill in our online enquiry form.