DEBT advice centres need financial help too.

That’s the message from Oxfordshire County Council, which has called for a tax on banks to pay for services helping people battling with financial problems.

As the number of people in Oxfordshire seeking help with debt soars, County Hall is urging the Government to introduce a levy on banks to fund advice centres.

The move comes after the Agnes Smith Advice Centre, in Blackbird Leys, Oxford, revealed it was dealing with its highest number of debt cases since the 1970s.

Cathy Wells, an advice worker at the centre in Blackbird Leys Road, said taxing banks to pay for assistance for people with money worries was fair.

She said although there was no immediate threat to funding for the centre, which comes from the county and city councils, money to pay for advice services was at risk in future, due to the financial pressures on councils.

The centre’s running costs are about £160,000 a year.

Mrs Wells added: “Lenders should take some responsibility for the mess some people end up in. A lot of people end up in debt because circumstances change or they have been reckless.

“But a lot of the time they’re over-committed because the banks sold them products they could not afford.”

According to the centre’s annual report, between April and September 2009, 680 clients spoke to its advisers about debt problems. But in the six months from October 2009 to March last year, that soared to 909 – a rise of almost a third.

The call to press the Government to introduce a tax on the banks came from Eynsham Conservative county councillor Charles Mathew.

His motion, passed unanimously by the council, called for a statutory annual charge on UK banks, specifically to pay for debt advice services.

He added: “In this time of financial uncertainty, with many people requiring more, rather than less help and advice, our voluntary services are becoming essential lifelines to those in need, but unfortunately, they too are struggling for funding.”

In January, the Government introduced a permanent levy on banks that is expected to raise about £2.5bn a year.

The Treasury said it could not yet comment on the council’s idea. Spokesman Kathryn Hopkins said: “The Government is working with industry and consumer groups on the best way to deliver debt advice and to give support to people to help them manage their money.”