Fenland Community Safer Partnership.
The Loan Sharks awareness project The community safety partnership applied for funding from the Illegal money lending team to deliver an Opp Gripped Loan Shark Awareness project in Fenland. A successful bid was achieved last year and the Opp Gripped Fenland project will run this summer from June – July 2021.
Under-reporting of Loan Sharks.
In Fenland there is very little reporting of loan sharks either to the Illegal Money Lending Team, charities working to support people in debt, or the police. The fact loan sharks are not being reported in Fenland is an indicator that we need educate our vulnerable communities and foster an understanding of how the Illegal Money Lending Team works with victims of loan sharks to support and protect them.
COVID 19 – Economic Crisis – increased vulnerability in Fenland.
The current COVID 19 pandemic is very likely to have further economic impact on Fenland. The full impact of this crisis will not be known for some time but we are aware of an increase in claims for Universal Credit and this increase is forecast to continue. The CSP partnership felt there was a risk of increased use of ‘Loan Sharks’ and there was a need for a partnership response to inform the community of Fenland where help can be reached instead of illegal money lending.
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