The total number of people living in poverty in the UK is 14.2 million of which 4.5 million are children and 8.4 million are working-age adults.
These are the findings of a new report out today by the Social Metrics Commission which has launched a new measure of UK poverty.
For the first time, as well as looking at incomes, the new metric accounts for a range of inescapable costs that reduce people’s spending power, and the positive impact of people’s liquid assets on alleviating immediate poverty.
These inescapable costs include rent or mortgage payments, childcare and the extra costs of disability. Liquid assets include savings, stocks and shares. The new metric reflects more accurately the realities and experiences of living in poverty than previous measures.
The total number of people living in poverty is 14.2 million with the composition of poverty moving towards a better identification of children (4.5 million) and working-age adults (8.4 million). The good news is the shift away from pensioner poverty with far fewer pensioners living in poverty following a significant reduction of poverty amongst pension age couples, over the last 15 years.
The report reveals that people with a disability are much more likely to be living in poverty than previously thought, with around half of the 14.2 million people in poverty living in families with a disabled person.
The report also reveals the persistence and depth of UK poverty. More than one in ten (12.1%) of the total UK population are in poverty now and have been in poverty for at least two of the previous three years. A further 2.5 million people live less than 10% above the poverty line and are close to falling below it with relatively small changes to their circumstances; and around 2.7 million people live less than 10% below it.
Over half of those in poverty (58.2%) also live in persistent poverty. This means that more than one in ten (7.7 million) of the total UK population are in poverty now and have been in poverty for at least two of the previous three years. Persistent poverty is highest in families more than 10% below the poverty line, in workless families and families where someone is disabled.
The report found that people with a disability are much more likely to be living in poverty. Nearly half of the 14.2 million people in poverty live in families with a disabled person (6.9 million people equal to 48.3% of those in poverty).
However far fewer pensioners are living in poverty than previously thought, with a significant fall in pensioner poverty over the last 15 years. Poverty rates amongst pension-age adults have nearly halved since 2001, and have fallen to one in ten, a drop from 17% of the total population in poverty in 2001 to 11% in 2017. There are, however some pensioner groups still experiencing high levels of poverty. For example, the poverty rate for pensioners who do not own their own home is 34.2%.
Commenting on the findings of the report, Philippa Stroud, Chair of SMC and CEO of Legatum Institute said:
“I established the Social Metrics Commission with the aim of developing new measures of poverty for the UK. The need for an independent Commission was clear; much of the last decade of political and policy debate on poverty has focussed on whether and how we should measure poverty, rather than the action needed to drive better outcomes for the most disadvantaged in our society. The approach, results and recommendations in this report represents a consensus view uniting right and left, supported by every one of the fifteen Commissioners involved, on how we should measure and understand poverty in the UK and the experiences of those who are in poverty. For too long it has been possible to have a debate about the measurement of poverty. Now I call on people and organisations across, and outside of, the political spectrum to support this new measure of poverty so that we can all put our energy into creating the policies and solutions that build pathways out of poverty.”
Helen Barnard, Head of Analysis at the independent Joseph Rowntree Foundation, SMC commissioner said:
“I am delighted that we have launched this new poverty measure today. It gives us a clearer picture of who is in poverty and highlights the importance of housing and childcare costs in sweeping people into poverty, and the protection that savings can provide. For too long we have been stuck in debates about how to measure poverty. Working as part of the Social Metrics Commission has shown how much we share. We all want to live in a society where people have the resources to meet their needs, and to open up opportunities for people to build a better life. We call on the government, the Office for National Statistics and all of those working to solve poverty, to support this new measure of poverty and concentrate now on taking action to loosen the grip of poverty on people’s lives.”