Debt Talk: Poverty & Black History in Britain (Podcast)

As we leave the summer of 2025 behind and step into October, we enter a month that is unapologetic, bold, and powerful: 'Black History Month in Britain'.

This is a time to honour struggle and triumph, to celebrate the contributions of Black communities, and to confront the uncomfortable realities of poverty and inequality that still persist today.

Welcome to the Debt Talk Podcast. I’m your host, Ripon Ray. This episode: “Poverty & Black History in Britain.” To guide us through this important conversation, I’m joined by two remarkable guests: Jerry During, founder of Money A&E, the UK’s first lived-experience-led debt and financial education service, was born in Newham. Jerry shared how his father’s experience of debt shaped his childhood, and how his own awareness of being Black sharpened as he pursued a legal career. In law firms, the only non-white faces he encountered were in low-income roles, such as those of cleaners and receptionists. That moment stayed with him. His fascination with the diversity of challenges faced by indebted communities, alongside policy failures, drove him to create a service rooted in lived experience. As a Black man from East London, he set out to change the narrative and build something that spoke directly to the needs of his community. Helen Barnard, Director of Policy and Research at the Trussell Trust, brought her powerful insights from the recent report “Hunger in the UK.” The research shows that Black and minority ethnic communities are twice as likely to experience food insecurity compared to white communities. She explained how insecure jobs, low pay, and a welfare system that fails to meet people’s needs fuel this crisis. Helen stressed the importance of centring lived experience in policy-making—not only because it gives voice to those most affected, but because it is essential for driving meaningful change. Together, our expert panel provided practical tips for individuals facing financial struggles, as well as clear calls to action for policymakers to build fairer and stronger communities. Their voices carry weight in this vital month of recognition and resistance.

And stay tuned—our next episode tackles another urgent issue: “Insecure Homes.”

Comments

Betar Bangla radio’s Ripon Ray: How fashionista turned political activist and debt advisor

PUBLISHED: 09:02 13 March 2019 | UPDATED: 09:03 13 March 2019 Emma Bartholomew Ripon Ray: Picture: Rukya Khan Debt advisor and radio talk show host Ripon Ray tells Emma Bartholomew how he’s seeing more and more people who are unable to just pay the basic bills Ripon Ray: Picture: Nick De Marco Self-confessed “arty-farty creative” Ripon Ray originally set out to be a fashionista in life, when he “found his calling” and changed track to become an activist. He’d been studying at the London School of Fashion, but going on an anti-fascist protest “triggered a couple of things”. “I dumped my studies and went to Kingsley College where I was doing full-on activism, and organising protest marches,” he told the Gazette . “I loved it but I got kicked out of there because I was too much of an activist and I wasn’t focusing on my studies.” He knuckled under, bagged a history degree and started out in the charity sector as a housing advi...

Shame no more to talk about domestic abuse and money trouble!

Silence can be a deadly killer for women of domestic abuse and instead of just hindering their recovery it could lead to their fatality. According to the Office of National Statistics (2015), two women are killed every week in England and Wales by a current or former partner in a relationship. The definition of domestic abuse has been expanded in recent times by legislation: an incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening, degrading and violent behaviour, including sexual violence. Julia Oviedo, a victim and survivor of domestic abuse, shared her personal experience on ‘In Conversation with Ripon Ray…the Community Money Matters Show’ on Betar Bangla Radio. It may seem just another story to many listeners but for an individual to talk about such a personal experience requires bravery, confidence and the will to encourage other victims to come forward and share their experiences. In her case, it was physic...

Housing & homelessness on Your Money Matters...with Ripon Ray

I would like to thank Marc Lancaster, Housing Policy Officer of Tower Hamlets Council, for coming on Your Money Matters show this week to explain to me about the rights and responsibilities of being a private, housing association or local authority tenant. He talked about the differences between Section 8 and Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 (as amended) and how you can use the law strategically to protect yourself. Current legislation protects a tenant's deposit. If it's not protected you can ask the court to make a judgement against your landlord to compensate you three times the amount due for breaking the law. He elucidated that local authorities also have a duty to support vulnerable tenants with advice and provide accommodation when they are at risk of homelessness.

Search This Blog