As the cost of living increases, we are keen to understand the impact on the residents of Hull.
That’s why, for the foreseeable future, every People’s Panel survey will include a voluntary question asking respondents to tell us about their current financial situation and how they are coping with bills and credit commitments.
Tracking The Results Over Time
We’ve already asked the question in the last two surveys, establishing a baseline from which we can monitor change over time.
| Indicator | March 2022 | May 2022 |
| Keeping up with bills / credit commitments without any difficulties | 45% | 43% |
| Keeping up with bills / credit commitments, but it is a struggle from time to time | 33% | 37% |
| Keeping up with bills / credit commitments, but it is a constant struggle | 10% | 10% |
| Falling behind with some bills / credit commitments | 3% | 3% |
| Having real financial problems, have fallen behind with many bills / credit commitments | 3% | 2% |
| Don’t have any bills / credit commitments | 2% | 1% |
According to our latest survey (May 2022):
• The majority of respondents (80%) are either keeping up without any difficulties (43%) or only struggling occasionally (37%).
• 15% find it a constant struggle to keep up (10%), are falling behind financially (3%) or are having real financial problems (2%).
• Compared to March 2022, there has been a small decrease in the proportion of respondents who are keeping up without any difficulties (-2 percentage points), and a small increase in those who are struggling occasionally (+4 percentage points).
• These changes are not currently significant but definitely worth keeping an eye on.
Who Is and Who Isn’t Being Affected?
We analyse the results of every survey by key demographics and our our customer segments. This means we can not only monitor changes over time, but also identify specific groups of residents who are or are not being particularly affected by the cost of living crisis.
At the moment the most financially secure are the following groups, who are more likely than average to be keeping up without any difficulties or to not have any bills / credit commitments at all:
• Older people aged 65 and over
• Segment G: Qualified Professionals in Large Owner Occupied Houses
• Segment I: Economically Active Families in Owner Occupied Detached and Semi’s
• East Riding residents
Those who are experiencing the most difficulty are typically those on universal credit, working tax credits and / or those who have a household income less than £15,000.
More specifically, the following groups of residents have been identified as currently being high risk:
| Group | Financial Status | Findings from Other Surveys |
| Group A: Pensioners in Small Public Rented Flats | • More likely to be having real financial difficulty and seriously falling behind • Less likely to be keeping up with no difficulties • Less likely to be only struggling from time to time |
• More likely to live to a very strict budget, to be struggling to pay bills and to be in debt • Less likely to have enough money to live comfortably • More likely than average to worry about their ability to pay off their current debts and to pay their utility bills • More likely than average to say they don’t know what they would do if they needed £500 quickly, and less likely to say they would use savings |
| Group C: Young Families with Dependent Children in Public Rented Houses in High Deprivation | • More likely to be having real financial difficulty and seriously falling behind • More likely to be falling behind with some bills / commitments • More likely to be struggling from time to time • Less likely to be keeping up with no difficulties |
• More likely to feel lonely and anxious /stressed • Less likely to feel happy, healthy, and worthwhile • More likely to worry about the amount of money they owe • Less likely to have enough money to live comfortably and to say they are good at managing money • More likely than average to worry about their ability to pay off their current debts, to pay their utility bills, to buy non-food essentials and to buy food • More likely than average to say they don’t know what they would do if they needed £500 quickly, and more likely to say they would ignore the problem |
| Group E: Low Income Residents in High Density Non-Council Terraced Houses | • More likely to be having real financial difficulty and seriously falling behind | • More likely to feel anxious /stressed • More likely to live to a very strict budget • Less likely to live to have enough money to live comfortably and to have money left over after paying bills • More likely to say their financial situation will get worse over the next year • More likely than average to worry about their ability to pay for / buy ALL things • Less likely to be able to cope in a financial emergency |
| Young People Aged 16 – 34 | • More likely to be having real financial difficulty and seriously falling behind • More likely to be struggling from time to time • Less likely to be keeping up with no difficulties |
• More likely to feel lonely and anxious /stressed • Less likely to feel worthwhile • More likely to struggle to pay bills, to be in debt and to worry about the amount of money they owe • Less likely to have enough money to live comfortably and to say they are good at managing money • More likely than average to worry about their ability to pay for / buy ALL things • Less likely to be able to cope in a financial emergency • More likely than average to say they would have to ask friends / family if they needed £500 quickly |
| Residents from BAME Backgrounds | • More likely to be having real financial difficulty and seriously falling behind | • More likely than average to worry about their ability to pay their rent / mortgage and to pay for travel • Less likely to be able to cope in a financial emergency • More likely than average to say they would use a credit card or take out a loan if they needed £500 quickly |
| Residents With a Disability or Impairment | • More likely to be having real financial difficulty and seriously falling behind • Less likely to be keeping up with no difficulties |
• More likely to feel lonely and anxious /stressed • Less likely to feel happy, healthy, worthwhile, optimistic and hopeful • More likely to live to a very strict budget, to be struggling to pay bills, to be in debt and to worry about the amount of money they owe • Less likely to have enough money to live comfortably and to have money left over after paying bills • More likely to say their financial situation has got worse over the last year and that it will also get worse over the next year • More likely than average to worry about their ability to pay for / buy ALL things • Less likely to be able to cope in a financial emergency • More likely than average to say they would take out a short term loan if they needed £500 quickly |
Now that we have identified those groups at the most risk from the cost of living crisis, we’ll be revisiting some of our previous People’s Panel results to understand more about them, specifically:
• Do they experience food poverty, and if so, in what way?
• Where do they currently do their food shopping?
• Do they have easy access to affordable fresh food, including fruit and vegetables?
• Do they live in a food oasis, food desert or food swamp?
• How do they travel around the city and what are they travelling for?
• How easy do they find it to travel to work / the shops / local services on foot, on a bicycle, or on a bus?