Last year Scotland’s Citizens Advice network supported almost 200,000 people and secured nearly £170 million for those facing the greatest hardship. This gives us a unique insight into why, for many, financial security feels increasingly difficult to reach.

The picture painted by the people we support is clear: things are getting worse. Life has shrunk to a series of exhausting calculations, deciding which bill can wait, choosing between replacing a winter coat for a growing child or keeping the lights on for another week. Trying to stretch an income that does not go far enough. Disabled people tell us of the anxiety of watching their prepayment meter credit dwindle, worried they will no longer be able to keep medicines refrigerated or charge vital medical equipment.

Beneath these experience sits an insidious systemic barrier: how we talk........

© Herald Scotland