Record rise in greenkeepers’ debt problems

A national charity has said a record number of golf greenkeepers are coming to it needing help with debt problems.

Perennial, which helps people who work in horticulture who have a whole range of problems, including major illness, homelessness, bereavement and disability, as well as debt and redundancy, says that there was a 25 percent increase in the number of debt clients it dealt with in 2012 compared with 2011.

The charity has revealed that more than a quarter of its clients were gardeners, followed by landscapers. However, the third biggest group was groundsmen and greenkeepers, representing more than 12 percent of all the people that came to it. A spokesman said: “A category that is on the increase is greenkeepers.”

“We also reported a shift toward younger people seeking help, with 86 percent of new clients during 2012 under retirement age,” he added. “There was also a notable increase in clients from the north of England.

“During 2012, Perennial helped more people than ever, up seven percent on the previous year.”

As well as an increase in numbers, the increase in complexity of individual cases was also very marked in 2012, said the spokesman, which he attributed to the ongoing changes to the benefits’ system and the impact of the economic downturn on people’s personal circumstances.

Perennial caseworkers identified £636,000 worth of benefits that its clients were entitled to and assisted them in accessing these, compared to £543,000 in 2011.

Sheila Thomson, director of services at Perennial, commented: “We are proud to have helped more people working in horticulture than ever over the past year, but given the current tough economic times, Perennial’s help is needed more than ever. Our clients see Perennial’s help as a real lifeline and, without it, many of them would see no future. The continuation of our work relies on donations and involvement from the horticulture industry and we have many opportunities for horticulture businesses to get involved and show their support.”

Originally established as the Gardeners’ Royal Benevolent Fund in 1839, the national occupational charity for horticulturists was re-branded as Perennial in 2003 and now reaches out to anyone who works in horticulture.