Hi rumpo
Is your wife a Chartered or Certified Accountant? She will have no problem in proposing an IVA, however as you correctly state cannot practice if she is declared bankrupt. She should, however, check her own Regulatory Body's rules and regulations to be sure.
An IVA is not a loan which is secured against your house. It is not a loan at all, but an agreement between you and your creditors to pay a set amount over an agreed timescale.
Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.
For further details contact me at
http://melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at:
http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk