New research from StepChange Debt Charity has revealed growing concern about household finances, with millions of people worried about how they will cope as energy costs are expected to rise ahead of winter. These statistics come as Ofgem is expected to announce a rise in the energy price cap from October, before households have felt…
Tag: energy
Responding to the latest Ofgem price cap, Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said:
Responding to the latest Ofgem price cap, Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said: “Today’s price cap rise pushes energy prices to a three year high. It’s another sign of the relentless erosion of living standards across the country: energy bills are simply too high, prices leapfrog incomes, and debt levels continue to…
The cost of living crisis is no longer a one-off event. It’s a monthly reality for millions. We need to turn the tide on energy, housing and debt, before it’s too late.
https://wearecitizensadvice.org.uk/its-time-to-turn-the-tide-8a6c1ac2a82f Crisis has become the new normal. Millions of households face a relentless financial squeeze that feels like it never stops. At Citizens Advice, our advisers do all they can to help people find a way forward. But prices keep rising faster than incomes, pushing household debt levels ever higher. Half the people who come to…
rightsnet updates on today’s budget include:
Budget 2025: Two-child limit within universal credit to be removed from April 2026 Budget 2025: Extension of targeted case reviews in universal credit expected to achieve further £1.3 billion in savings in 2030/2031 Budget 2025: Government confirms that ‘relevant threshold’ for purposes of calculating surplus earnings under universal credit to stay at £2,500 for an…
Understanding the savings, debt and financial resilience of low-to-middle income families
https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications/money-on-my-mind/ Key findingsBritish households are carrying far lower levels of consumer debt than in the past. Among the poorer half of families, average debt has fallen from £2,617 in 2006-08 to £2,256 in 2020-22 – a 14 per cent real-terms drop. Higher-income households have seen an even larger fall of 21 per cent over the…
Unpacking the rising cost of essentials for low-to-middle income Britain
https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications/bare-necessities/ Essentials take up more of households’ total spending than they have in the past, with spending on essentials for low-income households increasing the most. A more essentials-heavy spending basket also left poorer families facing faster price growth in recent years. Higher energy costs, coupled with rapid food inflation, have led to hardship for many….
The Warm Home Discount will be expanded meaning 6 million households will receive £150 off their energy bills this winter.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/millions-more-families-to-get-150-off-energy-bills-this-winter Warm Home Discount to be extended to all households in receipt of means-tested benefits The government has announced that it is removing restrictions on the payment of the Warm Home Discount so that all households where the means-tested benefit recipient (or their partner or legal appointee) is named on the energy bill will now…
Everyone over the State Pension age in England and Wales with an income of, or below, £35,000 a year will benefit from a Winter Fuel Payment this winter.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nine-million-pensioners-to-receive-winter-fuel-payments-this-winter Nine million pensioners to receive Winter Fuel Payments this winter as all pensioners in England and Wales with an income of, or below, £35,000 a year will benefit from a Winter Fuel Payment. This extends eligibility to the vast majority of pensioners, with around 9 million, or over three quarters, benefitting. This threshold is…
Understanding the psychological harm of utilities debt collection and disconnection
https://www.moneyandmentalhealth.org/publications/connection-lost/ More than half of those in some form of utilities arrears have a mental health problem (52%). More concerningly, people with severe and enduring mental illnesses (SMI) such as bipolar or schizophrenia are over four times as likely to be in some form of utility debt as those without a mental health problem. Being…
Government will need to find better targeted support than Winter Fuel Payments to help the 7.7 million households suffering from fuel stress
https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/press-releases/7-7-million-households-suffering-from-fuel-stress/ 7.7 million households in England are at risk of fuel stress this winter, including the majority of families with children. The Government will therefore need to do more to support vulnerable households who are no longer eligible for Winter Fuel Payments (WFP) and those who never have been, according to new research published by…