'I borrowed £50 and we ended up homeless'

People could fall into serious debt if they use loan sharks this Christmas, charities warn

Michelle was new to the area. The school playground was full of the usual parent cliques, so she'd been keeping her head down as she dropped off her children.

But one mum was friendly, persistent, chatted each day, and asked Michelle to meet for a coffee.

A lot had been happening in Michelle's life; as well as the move, her hours had been cut at work, so money was tight.

The thought of buying something nice for her son's birthday was a bit overwhelming as she didn't have as much as usual to cover extras.

Michelle's new friend offered to help, said she knew what it was like to need a few extra quid, and that she could pay her back next month. That's what friends were for.

And so it started with £50.

'I cried every night'

The next month she had to pay the money back and cover the rest of her expenses, so another offer was made.

"This time she said it will be with interest, but that was a loan that was double the payback," she tells the BBC. "The next month, twice as much money was going out of my pocket. It was a cycle. I needed to borrow more each month because I was paying more."

It was an easy spiral to get sucked into.

"I was really embarrassed. Nobody knew, I didn't want anybody to know. I cried, every night."

That £50 turned into thousands of pounds being paid, in cash, over several months, with no records kept. When Michelle tried to put her foot down it soon became clear who was in charge.

BBC consumer affairs correspondent, Colletta Smith spoke to Michelle

She was sent threatening messages, people threw things at her house, set things on fire outside the front door, and smashed the windows at night.

Her children knew something was going on, no matter how much Michelle tried to hide it from them.

"It started in the summer so you could be out quite late," she tells me. "But as it came in to the winter months I was stuck in that house from four o'clock, in the dark."

Online, the abuse was ramping up as well with lies being posted about her for anyone to see. She tells me that was one of the worst feelings, making her sick to the pit of her stomach.

"I was humiliated, absolutely humiliated, and I was terrified someone at work would see it. I was thinking am I going to lose my job now because someone sees this? How was this going to affect me in the future, if you Google my name and all this stuff comes up about you?"

'Incredibly vulnerable'

Michelle was petrified, depressed and her family was in an incredibly vulnerable position.

And then this time last year her house was broken into and ransacked.

"There were things that were urinated on, the children's beds and carpets were urinated on. I had to throw a lot of stuff away that was left… There was stuff taken that I'll never get back. Really sentimental things."

Michelle's voice cracks as she's telling me this. It was the moment that she decided they just had to get out. She got the children, the few possessions that had been left, and they walked out of the house, never to return.

Michelle's family became homeless last Christmas. They were given temporary accommodation, but they had nothing. No table, no presents, no tree, nothing.

She begins to cry as she explains: "The hardest bit was knowing it was Christmas and that I'd made my kids homeless. What mother makes her kids homeless? I did. I made that choice. I took those children away from what they knew and I left them with nothing."

But then Michelle made a decision that got her life back on track. She rang the anonymous Stop Loan Sharks hotline. Since then life has turned around for Michelle.

"They were so kind. There was no judgement at all. The person said you don't need to explain yourself. And I felt I could breathe again, I felt like someone finally understood the extent of what these people do."

Charities are warning people not to use loan sharks this Christmas, amid fears they could also fall into serious debt.

Michelle's family have been moved to safe location, have a permanent home, and Michelle has had time to reflect on what happened.

"I'm not stupid," Michelle tells me. "I made a mistake because I was desperate, but I'm not a bad parent."

This is the first time Michelle has ever told her story publicly, and that's the thing Michelle really wants everyone to know. She didn't think it would ever happen to her, she had a good job, she's never been out of work, and she thought someone was just being nice.

Loan sharks are not always big burly blokes with shaved heads, they can be another mum in the playground, a friend of the family, or a neighbour.

"Last year we had nothing to celebrate, I couldn't give my children anything," she tells me.

But this year is different: "It's not even about stuff. This year we've got a home. We've got a happy settled home, and a lovely life. And my children are happy."

Where to go for help

If you are worried about any of the issues raised in this article Stop Loan Sharks has a 24/7 hotline on 0300 555 2222 or visit their website: www.stoploansharks.co.uk

BBC Action Line can provide links to charities helping with debt and homelessness.