Tracking the impact that rising prices and interest rates are having on the finances, spending, health and wellbeing of low-income households.
We aim to make sure that media, government and other campaigners have accurate and timely information about how those on the lowest incomes across the UK are faring through the cost of living crisis. We survey households every six months, and since October 2021 we’ve surveyed over 4,000 households in the lowest 40% of household incomes to best understand this.
Our goal is for decision makers to be aware of how those on the lowest incomes are faring, so that they can make decisions based on that data.
The JRF cost of living tracker is a survey of 4,000 households created to monitor the living standards of low-income households in the UK. It focuses on the financial situation of families, including whether they are falling behind on bills or using loans to get by. It also looks at families ability to meet their costs for essentials like food, energy, housing, and transport — items that make up a larger share of spending for people on low-incomes.
The tracker aims to show how changing economic conditions affect low-income households, and highlights the experiences of different demographic groups who do not experience hardship equally.
We've developed a new interactive dashboard to explore insights gathered from the JRF cost of living tracker.
As the cost of living crisis enters a dangerous new phase, it's pushed millions of people to rely on unsecured lending as a last resort to pay for bills and essentials. With interest rates rising, and inflation stubbornly high, it's unclear how much more pressure this strategy can bear.
Like poverty in general, very deep poverty is higher for people in households headed by someone of black, Asian and minority ethnicity. In this blog, Peter and Rachelle look at important differences in both the levels and trends of very deep poverty, and the impact of the cost of living crisis for different ethnic groups.
Long-standing inequalities mean that households with a disabled person are falling behind faster in the cost of living crisis. Our latest analysis shows a disturbing picture - but it doesn’t have to be like this.
