An actor who once appeared in Brookside and Hollyoaks found himself living in an empty flat, scared he'd "be on the streets".
John Edwards, who grew up on the Radcliffe Estate and Scotland Road in Everton, was full of ambition, energy and excitement during his first acting job as an extra in Brookside at the age of 19. He'd wanted to be on screen since his childhood watching Casualty every Saturday on his grandad's TV.
Brookside success was followed by regular appearances in Hollyoaks while working part-time at the Adelphi Hotel. John, now 41, said he "just knew it [an acting career] was meant to be", but his health took a turn by his mid-20s. Moving out of home, he was shocked at the cost of water and energy bills, and took on jobs working security, on building sites and in Next on Church Street, Liverpool city centre.
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John said he was "frightened" by the thought of sleeping on the streets or in a hostel if he couldn't pay, contributing to long-term anxiety. He's had "pretty scary" times with his mental health where he's felt socially isolated and suicidal. He said: "I didn't want to go out, I stopped enjoying life, and I felt like I was losing a purpose."
He developed asthma around the same time, and a breakdown led to him leaving a job as a taxi driver in 2013. John hasn't worked since, with his health continuing to get worse. Two years ago, John was diagnosed with fibromyalgia after suffering "sharp pains" down his arms and legs, leaving him feeling increasingly isolated. He said: "I was thinking, things aren't looking too good for me, and I started to feel a little bit down."
John said he "didn't have much around" when he moved into his current flat 11 years ago, leaving him living in "pretty bleak" conditions. John had nothing even to cook food, leaving him relying on takeaways, sandwiches and food from Greggs, which "was costing a lot of money".
Surviving on Employment Support Allowance (ESA) and Personal Independence Payment (PIP), he says he couldn't afford to furnish his home, adding: "I haven't got £200 or more in my back pocket to go to Currys or Argos."
But John also doesn't have a high enough credit score to buy items with instalments or 'buy now, pay later' schemes. He "felt like it was a losing battle" until he found Fair for You, a not-for-profit community interest company aiming to help the more than 20m people in the UK struggling to access credit from mainstream lenders.
By offering "affordable credit to low income households" to buy household goods, the lender, owned by the Fair Credit Charity, aims to stop them relying on high cost or predatory lenders and being trapped in a spiral of debt, according to its website.
The items John got through Fair for You in the last two years have helped make his home a more pleasant place to be, with a smart TV replacing his 10-year-old one he was scared would "blow up". He also got a microwave he's used to make healthier meals, which is even more important since a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes last year "put the fear of god" into him.
Hearing about people with diabetes losing limbs scared John into exercising more and adopting a low fat, low sugar diet on the advice of his GP. John said: "I'm feeling happy, I'm in a good place, I can see a bright future, I've got a sense of purpose."
He added: "I would love to work again, I would love to go back to TV, but things have changed."
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