A CAMPAIGN to beat the January blues, “Budget not blues”, is being launched by Christians Against Poverty (CAP), encouraging people to take control of their finances and embrace budgeting.

CAP supports people in their efforts to get out of debt, and helps clients to access the support and benefits to which they are entitled, but may not know about. The charity’s new budgeting campaign is aimed at anyone who finds January a struggle financially, after the expenses of the Christmas season.

It offers a free guide to budgeting, which takes users step by step through the process of creating a sustainable budget and includes suggestions for cutting costs.

CAP’s YouGov survey late last year suggested that two in five people did not know how to budget, and that as many as 3.7 million people lacked financial confidence (News, 10 November).

For those who cannot create a balanced budget, CAP offers support to find out what extra help may be available. The charity also runs free money-coaching sessions through hundreds of churches.

CAP’s money-coaching expert, Peter Snell, said: “January is often a time when we all feel a bit blue. The weather is cold, energy bills are on the rise again, and money for a lot of people is tight at this time of year, but there are simple steps we can all take to turn our January blues into budgeting success.

“This January we are launching the Budget Not Blues campaign, and releasing free resources to people and encouraging everyone to make it their New Year’s resolution to use our free tools to create themselves a personal budget and follow our five simple steps to improve their finances in 2024.”

Last year, CAP helped 2157 people to free themselves of debt: an increase of about 11 per cent on the previous year. It also helped thousands to uncover extra benefits to which they were entitled, averaging £513 a month.