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Welsh Government
Data Provider: Welsh Government 26. Pensioner poverty (WEL)
Chart corresponding to the data table
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Indicator[Filtered]
Measure[Filtered]
Measure2
YearEstimates for periods which span the financial year ending (FYE) 2021 do not include the data collected during FYE 2021 in calculations. For the latest two periods shown, estimates formerly calculated as 3 to 5 year rolling averages are based on 2 to 4 year rolling averages that omit the FYE 2021 survey data.[Filter]
Area[Filter]
Click here to sortFYE 1995 to FYE 1997Click here to sortFYE 1996 to FYE 1998Click here to sortFYE 1997 to FYE 1999Click here to sortFYE 1998 to FYE 2000Click here to sortFYE 1999 to FYE 2001Click here to sortFYE 2000 to FYE 2002Click here to sortFYE 2001 to FYE 2003Click here to sortFYE 2002 to FYE 2004Click here to sortFYE 2003 to FYE 2005Click here to sortFYE 2004 to FYE 2006Click here to sortFYE 2005 to FYE 2007Click here to sortFYE 2006 to FYE 2008Click here to sortFYE 2007 to FYE 2009Click here to sortFYE 2008 to FYE 2010Click here to sortFYE 2009 to FYE 2011Click here to sortFYE 2010 to FYE 2012Click here to sortFYE 2011 to FYE 2013Click here to sortFYE 2012 to FYE 2014Click here to sortFYE 2013 to FYE 2015Click here to sortFYE 2014 to FYE 2016Click here to sortFYE 2015 to FYE 2017Click here to sortFYE 2016 to FYE 2018Click here to sortFYE 2017 to FYE 2019Click here to sortFYE 2018 to FYE 2020Click here to sortFYE 2019 to FYE 2021Click here to sortFYE 2020 to FYE 2022Click here to sortFYE 2021 to FYE 2023Click here to sortFYE 2022 to FYE 2024
United Kingdom8384868684828078767575777775706764636465676970737373(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.7172
Wales9698979894939291878786918886797879797980808079838580(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.7880
Scotland9393939090888683797573727170676260596062677171716975(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.7774
Northern Ireland.The data item is not applicable.The data item is not applicable.The data item is not applicable.The data item is not applicable.The data item is not applicable.The data item is not applicable.The data item is not applicable.The data item is not applicable868887868688888782838382787172707370(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.7273
England8182858583817977747374767774706663626264666969727272(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.7071
North East1021041061091101039993928687899187797369666972777879889386(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.7476
North West9091999894908786828284888579737170707273788081807979(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.8582
Yorkshire and the Humber9999102103100959087828184878987858077737475777983878983(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.8286
East Midlands8687909092919288848285888983756763626772747266727486(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.7675
West Midlands8790908888909089878786899191877973727580798282899091(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.9086
East of England7069727068656263636159596465635853555458596261626061(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.5960
London7680818179797879807877757873706665635958606870737062(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.5968
South East6060616159595656535457585653505151514849525556575859(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.5656
South West7478838379777471656262666765625856565859555657605963(r) The data item has been revised since previously published in StatsWales.6364

Metadata

Title

Households Below Average Income

Last update

March 2025 March 2025

Next update

2026

Publishing organisation

Welsh Government

Source 1

Households Below Average Income, Family Resources Survey, Department for Work and Pensions

Contact email

stats.inclusion@gov.wales

Designation

National Statistics

Lowest level of geographical disaggregation

Wales

Geographical coverage

UK regions

Languages covered

English and Welsh

Data licensing

You may use and re-use this data free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government License - see http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence

Keywords

Social Inclusion; HBAI; Income; Poverty

General description

This table presents data on all people, children, working-age adults and pensioners living in households that have a household income below 60 per cent of the UK median household income before and after housing costs are paid.

Data collection and calculation

The data was provided by the Department of Work and Pensions Households Below Average Income Team

Frequency of publication

Annual

Data reference periods

Figures shown are 3 year moving averages. Figures cover Great Britain to FYE 2001 to FYE 2004 and the United Kingdom from FYE 2003 to FYE 2005.

Users, uses and context

See the link on the Weblinks tab

Rounding applied

See the link on the Weblinks tab

Revisions information

1. Revision made on 27 March 2025.
During quality assurance of the DWP’s FRS-based publications for FYE 2024, they identified that one Cost of Living payment had been omitted for Pension Credit recipients from the final FYE 2023 FRS dataset which underpinned the FYE 2023 Households Below Average Income dataset across the UK. The revised figures are marked with an ‘[r]’. More details can be can be found at the Family Resource Survey collection page.
2. Revision made on 25 March 2021.
A minor methodological revision has been made to the HBAI data series by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to capture all income from child maintenance. This results in more income from child maintenance being included, in turn slightly increasing some household incomes and so tending to slightly reduce low income rates for families with children. The full back series (back to FYE 1995) has been revised so that comparisons over time are on a consistent basis across the full time series. In terms of the impact of these revisions, in most cases the percentages of people in low income are unchanged rounded to the nearest percentage point.


Statistical quality

Note 1: There may infrequently be small discrepancies between equivalent figures published by Welsh Government and by DWP relating to relative income poverty. This is because of a difference in the way rates are calculated for datasets that are pooled across multiple years.

Note 2. FYE 2021 estimates are unreliable as they are based on data collected during the first year of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, when lockdown rules severely disrupted the data collection.

Note 3: Data collection during the financial year ending (FYE) 2022 was via telephone interviewing as opposed to the established face to face method used prior to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Although we have assessed the FYE 2022 data quality to be robust enough for publication, there remains some residual bias in the survey sample resulting from the change in survey mode. More information on data quality is available in the DWP technical report which accompanies the release of the FYE 2022 statistics.

Note 4: The survey asks respondents what they consider to be their ethnic origin. Individuals have been classified according to the ethnic group of the household reference person which means that information about households of multiple ethnicities is lost. Sampled numbers within smaller ethnic minority groups in Wales are small, and for this reason it is necessary to group some into an overarching "Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Group" category, and to present analysis as five-year averages. The White category includes White – Welsh/English/Scottish/Northern Ireland/British and any other White background including Gypsy and Irish Travellers.

Note 5: Disabled people are identified as those who report any physical or mental health condition(s) or illness(es) that last or are expected to last 12 months or more, and which limit their ability to carry out day-to-day activities a little, or a lot. This is in line with Equality Act definition. The means of identifying people with a disability has changed over time, and data before financial year ending 2013 are not comparable with current data.

Note 6: Some pensioners live as a couple with a partner of working age and therefore the age of the head of household will be under 65

Note 7: The pensioner couple category will include some working age adults who live as a couple with a partner of pension age.

See the link on the Weblinks tab