Pushed Under, Pushed Out, The Link Between Debt, Poverty & Living Standards

One in five of us in the UK live in poverty and, until today, very little was known about the impact that debt can have on poverty and living standards1. Christians Against Poverty (CAP), a national debt help charity, has partnered with the Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) at the University of Loughborough to explore the interaction between living standards, debt and the persistent nature of inadequate income.

‘Work first’ can work better

A top-down perspective of a formally dressed individual pointing at their laptop screen

‘Work first’ is a core idea that underpins the UK’s employment and welfare systems, and effective ‘work first’ orientated systems have long-term, paid employment as the primary goal for people interacting with them. This is the right objective, but with work entry rates for unemployed benefit claimants falling, health-related inactivity rising sharply and millions of people not claiming benefits locked out of support, urgent improvement is needed to reach it.

Illustrating the relationship between poverty and NHS services

Currently it is estimated that more than one in five people in the UK are living in poverty. Living in poverty has a profound impact on people’s health and how they use NHS services. From greater prevalence of a wide range of diseases and difficulties in accessing health care, to later treatment and worse health outcomes, poverty affects every stage of the patient journey.

In too deep? The impact of the cost of living crisis on household debt

Hard economic times and rising interest rates have brought a renewed focus on household debt in recent years, with concerns that more and more families could find themselves overwhelmed by the burden of debt. So this briefing note takes a closer look at the use of consumer debt (such as credit cards, personal loans and overdrafts) through the pandemic and cost of living crisis.