Clarify - the debts that are over 6 years old - have there been payments made to these creditors by you? Have the made contact with you? If not they maybe statute barred.
Post a bit of a scenario for us to comment please.
Your wife is not liaiable if they are in your sole name - if they are joint, there is joint and seveal liaibility and if you go BR, the creditors may well follow up with action against her
The 6 year reference is the interesting one for me to phathom out.
Thanks, Richard
"Life is generally something that happens elsewhere" (Alan Bennett - author and one of my best heroes!!)