As we approach our next Headlinemoney Masterclass, speaker John Webb, Head of Consumer Affairs at Experian, highlights the link between literacy and financial capability and explains how journalists can boost the public's understanding of the support available for victims of scams and ID fraud.

Can you give a quick overview of what your Masterclass session will cover?

The Masterclass session will look at the world of credit scores. It’ll run through what they mean, how they’re used and importantly – how to improve them. We’ll also look at how lending decisions are made, our public education and also support Experian provides.

What are the current issues in your area journalists should help their readers understand?

We’ve been working on providing more support for financially vulnerable people. That includes extensive work to help victim-survivors of economic abuse.

Reporting vulnerabilities through a ‘tell us once’ service is consistently getting attention. We’re keen to help people learn more about the free SupportHub tool they can use for this.

Scams and ID fraud remain extremely common – and it’s great to help the public understand there’s routes for support and monitoring. Which can be done for free.

We’re also keen for people to understand it’s free to check their credit report and score, and improving your score could mean access to credit at more affordable rates.

With BNPL recently being regulated under the FCA – we’re also keen to help people understand any impacts this could have on applications for credit.

With the Budget coming up, are there any particular topics you are planning to discuss in the Masterclass?

The session will cover a number of things such as keeping on top of finances, how to get relevant free debt support and getting/moving credit to save money. It’s likely cost-of-living pressures will continue, so we’ll talk through ways people can save money on their existing borrowing.

What would you like to change about how journalists cover your area?

Experian has a very responsive in-house team who can support journalists. Even if the information is for background or knowledge only, we’re always happy to support incoming questions.

Tell us about the big stories in your sector in the past few months. Could these be rolling stories? 

In the past few months we’ve rolled out the Experian Library of No Returns. We’ve been around the UK delivering free books to children in areas who need it the most. There is strong link between literacy and financial capability – so we’ve been getting books into the hands of children to help them improve their reading skills. The start of the campaign was also supported by Alesha Dixon.

Finally, why is it important for journalists to have access to initiatives such as Headlinemoney Masterclasses?

There can often be some misconceptions about credit scores. The masterclass gives us a chance to talk through them in more details. Importantly, to answer questions. It also gives us a good opportunity to run through our extensive public education and support.

Finally, it’s an opportunity to build and create relationships with journalists – who we’re always happy to support.

Bio - John Webb, Head of Consumer Affairs at Experian

The Headlinemoney Masterclass will be held on Wednesday 16 September 2026. Experts from three other financial services companies will give succinct overviews of their sectors for financial journalists. Find out more and book a place.