Can A Teacher Use a Scottish Trust Deed?

It is possible, in common with other public sector workers, that we are soon to see a rise in the number of teachers with a trust deed. With teachers currently subject to pay growth controls and substantial increases in the general cost of living, teachers in Scotland (along with other public sector workers) are facing a significant effective pay cut in real terms. This is leading to some teachers finding themselves in financial difficulty and unable to pay their debts, factors which could result in a trust deed. In this article we consider whether a protected Scottish trust deed can help teachers when they are struggling to repay their debts.

At Trust-Deed.co.uk our professionally qualified debt advisers regularly offer advice to teachers who have contacted us regarding a trust deed. We often hear the same types of concerns from teachers about getting a trust deed. One of the main concerns is that any advice they’ll receive on debt management options like a trust deed will be private and confidential. Another concern is whether dealing with problem debts will in itself become a barrier to continuing or further developing their career in teaching. Neither of these concerns are usually an issue in reality.

Although they are not generally well-founded, these types of concern do serve to emphasise the importance of working with a professionally qualified debt or trust deed adviser. There are many working within the trust deed advice field who have no formal qualification or training and who therefore are less likely to give sound advice, or answer technical questions correctly. Ask any adviser you are speaking with about their qualifications and move to a new source of trust deed or debt advice if they are unqualified.

If you go ahead with a trust deed in Scotland your details will be “advertised” in the Edinburgh Gazette. This can be a worry for teachers as they naturally want their details to be kept private, not least from parents, colleagues and pupils. This publication is reviewed mainly by people who work in finance or law. It is unlikely that anyone will come across your details in the trust deed advertisement section of this publication unless they were actively looking for it for some reason and knew exactly where to look.

So will a Scottish trust deed stand in the way of your career as a teacher? Our trust deed advice team has worked with many teachers who have worked through a protected trust deed with no negative career implications. Insolvency firms which our trust deed team spoke to reported the same experience.

If you are currently a head teacher, or are a teacher who may be looking for a role as head teacher in the future, a protected trust deed may well be a preferable option to sequestration (bankruptcy). As a head teacher you may be expected to sit on the Board of Governors. Being in sequestration may prevent you from sitting on the Board, yet a Scottish trust deed may present no such restriction.

All professionals, including teachers, should check their contracts of employment to see if there is a clause preventing you from entering into a protected trust deed just to be double-sure on this point (though it will very rarely be an issue). You can also seek advice and support from your union who will almost certainly have helped colleagues facing up to similar trust deed and debt problems in the past.

Of course a Scottish trust deed is by no means the only option open to you to deal with debts. Many teachers will find that their circumstances present a better fit for the use of sequestration, the debt arrangement scheme or an informal debt management plan. The important point is to find qualified debt or trust deed advice so that the decisions you ultimately make are based upon professional information rather than the unqualified musings of a debt solution salesman.

You can find good, professional trust deed advice at Trust-Deed.co.uk. Not only that, but you can also speak to both highly qualified trust deed experts and other people using a trust deed in our excellent, resource-sharing forum. Visit the rest of our site or call a trust deed professional on 0800 043 7201 to find answers to any trust deed or debt management questions you might have.

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