Divorced or separated people are most likely to be struggling with debt repayments for credit cards, loans and overdrafts.

According to debt consultants Thomas Charles, around one in five people now owe more than £10,000.

Spokesman James Falla said:

"The rise of the ‘credit junkie’ phenomenon and the 'spend, spend, spend' culture is a long term issue. It needs addressing at grass roots level and that means via the educational system. There has been a strong movement from the educational community to add debt education to the curriculum."