Debt awareness week

Debt Awareness and Child-to-Parent Abuse: Breaking the Cycle

Debt Awareness Week serves as a vital opportunity to highlight financial struggles and encourage individuals to seek support. While debt can affect anyone, parents experiencing child-to-parent abuse often face unique financial challenges, including coercive control over money, forced borrowing, and financial manipulation. Understanding the connection between debt and child-to-parent abuse can empower parents to take steps towards financial and emotional recovery.

Financial abuse is a key element of coercive control and is increasingly seen in cases of child-to-parent abuse. Parents may find themselves pressured into giving money, taking out loans, or covering costs for their child against their will. Over time, this can lead to overwhelming debt, financial instability, and emotional distress.

Common signs of financial abuse in child-to-parent abuse include:

Forced Borrowing: Parents being coerced into taking out loans, credit cards, or payday loans for their child.
Control Over Finances: A child demanding access to bank accounts, benefits, or wages.
Unpaid Debts: Parents accumulating debt due to their child’s spending or lifestyle choices.
Threats and Manipulation: A child using emotional blackmail, threats, or intimidation to obtain money.
Destruction of Property: Breaking valuable belongings to force parents into financial submission.
Fear of Repercussions: Parents feeling unable to refuse financial demands due to the threat of aggression or false accusations.

For many parents, financial abuse leads to not only debt but also significant stress, anxiety, and isolation. The fear of losing financial security, coupled with emotional manipulation, can make it difficult to seek help or set boundaries.

Parents may experience:

A loss of financial independence.
Guilt and shame for struggling with debt.
A sense of helplessness in their own home.
Fear of confronting their child about financial issues.
Difficulty accessing financial assistance due to coercion or lack of control over their own funds.

If you are struggling with debt or experiencing financial abuse, the following UK organisations can provide free and confidential advice:

StepChange Debt Charity (www.stepchange.org) – Provides expert debt advice and solutions to help you regain control.
National Debtline (www.nationaldebtline.org) – A free and confidential debt advice service.
Citizens Advice (www.citizensadvice.org.uk) – Offers financial guidance and support for those dealing with financial and emotional abuse.
MoneyHelper (www.moneyhelper.org.uk) – A government-backed service offering free money and debt advice.

Financial abuse within child-to-parent abuse can feel isolating, but support is available. Seeking help for debt and coercive control is a courageous step towards regaining financial and emotional freedom. By raising awareness and breaking the silence, we can help parents rebuild their confidence and stability.

If you are experiencing financial coercion or abuse, reach out to trusted support services such as us here at PEGS or the services above.

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Founding Director, Michelle, has been awarded an MBE in the Kings Birthday Honours for Family Support and Advocacy.

By PEGS Admin • June 15, 2026

Child to Parent Abuse organisation founder awarded MBE The founder of a social enterprise which has supported thousands of parents impacted by abusive behaviours from their children has been awarded an MBE. Michelle John, originally from Pembrokeshire in Wales but now based in Shropshire, was among the names announced for the prestigious accolade in the King’s Birthday Honours List this year. In 2020, Michelle set up not-for-profit organisation PEGS with the aim of supporting parents and carers, training professionals, influencing local and national policy, and raising awareness of Child to Parent Abuse – which is thought to affect up to one in ten households in the UK. Since then, she has grown a team of experts who have trained police, social workers, teachers and many other professionals to better recognise the signs of CPA, support parents, and signpost to specialist organisations. In addition, Michelle set up a range of parent-focused initiatives including daily practitioner-led online sessions, a Facebook peer support group which now has 3,300 members, and one-to-one offerings for those at highest risk. PEGS launched a CPA Covenant for employers in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions, only the fourth such covenant to be backed by the Government, and Michelle has advised everyone from the Home Office to Channel 4 and the BBC on CPA – the latter for storyline on Hollyoaks and EastEnders. Her work has seen CPA covered by journalists across television news programmes, national newspapers and magazine, and regional press and radio, and she’s received numerous awards both in the UK and internationally. Michelle, whose MBE was awarded for Family Support and Advocacy, said: “This honour is also shared with the parents who have trusted me along the way: they drive me, inspire me and I will always stand with them. “I feel proud, privileged and very grateful – and I’d like to thank everyone who has supported me and PEGS along the way. There is much more to come for PEGS, and we will continue to work every day for the parents and carers who have been or continue to be impacted by CPA. “There is so much to reflect on from the journey of the last six years, and there have been many highlights and challenges along the way. I am sure there will be many more in the future – although being told I’d received an MBE will always remain a truly incredible moment that I’ll remember forever!” For more information about us, visit www.pegsupport.co.uk or search for 'PEGS' on social media!