2025/01/19 by Natalija Atas, Vicki Dabrowski · 1 voice
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Health Professions · Social Sciences · #Global Health Care Issues #Housing, Finance, and Neoliberalism #Social Policy and Reform Studies
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/spol.13124
openalex publication_date 2025/01/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/12
Since 2021, millions of households across the United Kingdom have experienced a significant fall in living standards due to rapid increases in living costs, including prices of essential goods and services. This phenomenon is widely regarded as one of the most significant declines in living standards in modern British history and is commonly known in the public discourse as the cost-of-living crisis. The crisis is on-going; as of September 2024, 52% of households reported an increase in their cost of living over the previous month, up from 45% in late July (Clarke 2024). This was attributed to a significant rise in electricity, fuel and food costs. While this has fallen from the peak of 91% in the summer of 2022, it remains clear evidence of “a persistent problem facing the country” (ibid). This financial strain has translated into mounting challenges for many households. According to ONS data collected in October 2024, around a third of adults (35%) admitted they found it very or somewhat difficult to afford rent or mortgage payments, while an equally significant portion (33%) reported similar struggles with their energy bills (Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2024). Rather than being understood as a stand-alone phenomenon, the crisis should be perceived as a consequence and symptom of neoliberal policies implemented in the United Kingdom in the last few decades—particularly austerity and welfare state retrenchment (Farnsworth 2020). Such policies promoted the growth of poverty and inequality, leaving the most vulnerable groups within society without the essential safety nets needed to withstand challenges like the cost-of-living crisis. Consequently, the sharp rise in living costs has imposed immense hardship on these households, highlighting the unequal burden faced by the most vulnerable groups and communities across the United Kingdom. ONS data (2023) for example, shows that households with the lowest incomes experience a higher-than-average inflation rate, while the highest-income households experience lower-than-average inflation (Harari et al. 2023). In light of this, according to the JRF (2024a) by May 2024, 7 million low-income households were being forced to make sacrifices on one or more essentials—such as heating, toiletries or a hot shower. Within this number, 5.4 million reported experiencing food insecurity. As a consequence, food bank charities expressed concern about the unprecedented surge in demand for food parcels. The Trussell Trust distributed more than 1.4 million emergency food parcels to people experiencing hardship between 1 April and 30 September 2024. This is 69% higher than the same period five years ago (Trussell Trust 2024). Debt is also escalating, with figures from October 2024 showing that 4 million low-income families hold £9.6 billion worth of debt through loans initially taken to cover necessities such as food, housing, council tax or energy bills in this period (JRF 2024b). Taking on debt to pay for essentials has not been enough to prevent hardship, with nearly 9 in 10 of these families going without essentials in October 2024 and 7 in 10 behind on their bills (ibid). In response to this on-going crisis, this special issue presents a timely and unique collection of 12 interdisciplinary articles. Together, these contributions illustrate the crisis's multidimensional impact, shedding light on its profound effects on diverse populations and social structures. The issue draws attention to the compounded challenges faced by low-income groups, such as women, higher education students, and benefit claimants, as they navigate food insecurity, indebtedness, and everyday hardship. The intersection of financial insecurity and health and well-being emerges as a central theme in several articles. Attention is also directed towards the necessity for systemic reforms and policies that prioritise long-term economic stability and address structural inequalities and needs of diverse groups. This issue opens with ‘Visualising the 2020s UK cost-of-living crisis’, Danny Dorling's article that captures the crisis through a visual narrative, providing a clear picture of how the crisis has negatively impacted the UK's economic and social fabric. This broader context is further explored by Ciara Fitzpatrick et al. and Morven G. McEachern et al. who highlight different issues related to food insecurity amongst low-income women in Northern Ireland and older ethnic minority populations across the Greater Manchester region. This work reveals the barriers these groups face in accessing adequate nutrition, often due to systemic inequalities and unmet culturally specific needs. Hannah Lambie-Mumford and Kelli Kennedy enhance this exploration by looking at the role of corporations in responding to poverty and how these corporations influence public perceptions and policy on hunger and poverty. They do so by analysing the food charity-related activities of the leading food retailers and casual dining brands in the United Kingdom. Camila Lewis et al. explores the broader socio-economic impacts of the crisis on older ethnic minority groups in Greater Manchester, situating their vulnerabilities within the context of austerity and the pandemic. Similarly, our article, Vicki Dabrowski et al. on higher education students in Liverpool analyses the financial precarity and mental health challenges young people face, linking their experiences to the broader societal impacts of rising costs. Daniel Nettle et al. underscore the immediate psychological toll of the crisis, documenting increased anxiety and depression across the United Kingdom and France. Lucia D'Ambruoso et al. further contribute to the knowledge of the effect the crisis has on health by examining smoking-related health inequalities in rural northeast Scotland. The paper links financial stress to harmful coping mechanisms and calls for community-driven, locally tailored solutions to these challenges. In their London-based study, Kirstie Hewlett et al. examine how the cost-of-living crisis has shifted public concern from immediate financial survival to the long-term erosion of resilience, stressing the importance of systemic reforms and involving vulnerable populations in policy development. Meanwhile, Sarah Irwin draws on a small exploratory study in Northern England to address the perceived tension between short-term social welfare concerns and long-term climate goals. The paper argues that policies should treat social hardships and climate priorities as interconnected based on the views of marginalised citizens who are facing both cost-of-living concerns and climate-related challenges. Joshua Blamire and James Rees examine how two local authorities, ‘Metaltown’ and ‘Milltown’ (in the North West and West Midlands), responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study emphasises the need for locally driven governance and suggests that lessons from the pandemic should inform national policy responses to future crises, such as the cost-of-living crisis. Finally, drawing on research undertaken in a city in the North of England, Daniel Edmiston explores how benefit deductions in the UK social security system worsen debt and hinder employment for low-income claimants. Such policies, he argues, hinder the capacity of social security to address poverty, and as a result, deepen the poverty-debt cycle and increase market-driven inequalities. Together, the articles in this special issue highlight the need for holistic strategies that address immediate economic hardships while tackling the underlying systemic issues that perpetuate inequality. Drawing on diverse methodologies, locations and perspectives, the research articles provide invaluable insights into the experiences of those affected and propose pathways for inclusive, sustainable and equitable solutions. In compiling this issue, the collection highlights the value of collaborative knowledge exchange and underscores the benefits of interdisciplinary academic analysis in tackling one of today's most urgent challenges. We extend our gratitude and appreciation to all the authors who shared their valuable knowledge and contributed to this special issue, as well as, to the Journal of Social Policy and Administration for allowing us to examine this crucial theme. Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analyzed in this study.