BAILIFFS are knocking on more doors across Runcorn and Widnes than ever before as people face mounting debt, a report has revealed.

Halton Council sent bailiffs to 3,219 homes in 2014-15, a rise of 12 per cent on the previous year.

Some 3,039 of these demands – one in 20 households - were for council tax arrears.

The figures were obtained through a Freedom of Information request by Money Advise Trust, a charity that runs national debtline.

Their Stop The Knock campaign shows that Halton Council ended the year with £5.9 million in unpaid council tax arrears by individuals and businesses.

Halton Citizens Advice Bureau says people are struggling to feed their families.

The charity is urging anyone in financial difficulty to seek their independent advice and believes bailiffs ‘must be the last resort’.

Hitesh Patel, chief executive of Halton CAB, said: “We are seeing people on a regular basis struggling to put food on the table.

“We are referring more than one a day to the foodbank.

“Many of these people are working with some doing more than one job yet they still can’t provide their families with the most basic of needs, food and heating.

“It is a really poor state of affairs.”

He said council tax arrears have taken over from credit card debt as families strive to make ends meet.

Mr Patel said: “We helped 421 people with council tax arrears last year which is up 40 per cent on the previous year.

He said welfare reform, the reduction in tax credits and benefit cap have left many families in crisis.

He added: “At this time of year when parents are paying for school uniforms they are under a lot of pressure. They have to make difficult choices.

“No parent wants to see their children bullied by not having the right uniform. Some may pay for school uniform instead of their council tax.

“The use of bailiffs should be the last resort.”

A Halton Council spokesman said: “The council does not use such methods lightly. They are only used when all other avenues have been fully explored. We always encourage people to talk to us first if they are having difficulty meeting their bills.

“We have our own money advice and welfare advice staff available. “Council funding is under huge pressure and the council has a legal duty to collect what is owed to it as this money is used to fund vital public services.”

The council said the problem has been made worse after the previous Government stopped the nationally-funded council tax benefit system.

Local authorities are now responsible.

The spokesman added: “The Government cut the grant to pay for it by 10 per cent, about £1.5m.

“This has meant that some 6,500 people who previously would have received 100 per cent council tax benefit are now having to pay council tax for the first time.

"In 2014/15 the council raised 54,500 council tax bills. Of these 8,800 cases required liability orders to be issued by Halton Magistrates Court due to non-payment and 2,600 bills were paid via an agreed payment plan.”