Credit where it’s due: where are we now?

There are currently two million older people living in poverty. That’s two million people who are being forced to choose whether to buy food or get a birthday card for a family member; whether to enjoy an extra cup of tea, or turn on the heating.

These sort of decisions are all too familiar for 86-year-old Anisah who I met last year. She shared with me the impact of being forced to live on a low income after retiring early due to an injury:

Anisah, Independent Age campaigner

“I retired from my career as a nurse when I was 56 — I had major problems with my back after lifting a patient at work and had to wear a steel corset for years. I have many other health issues too, some caused by the malnutrition I suffered during the war. For some reason, I was given a low pension. I often had to choose between eating or turning on the heating. I just didn’t have enough money.”

Eventually, after years of not having enough money to live a healthy and dignified life, Anisha finally found out about a benefit called Pension Credit by chance. Pension Credit is a UK-wide means-tested benefit for people of State Pension age. It is a lifeline to pensioners most in need of financial support.

Thanks to Pension Credit, Anisah’s life transformed and she now supports Independent Age as a campaigner. There are currently 850,000 people entitled to Pension Credit but not receiving it. Anisah wants to help ensure that the UK government address this problem and lifts these people out of poverty.

“Social services told me about Pension Credit. I’ve been receiving it for ten years now, and that’s when I started to live again. I’ve been able to eat healthier food and keep myself warm. Pension Credit has also changed my life because of the other benefits I’ve been able to access, such as the free eye care and dental treatment. If you’re not coping with the amount of money you have, asking for Pension Credit is not asking for charity: it’s asking for what’s rightfully yours.”

You can watch Anisah’s video on Independent Age’s YouTube channel.

Each year, the UK Government sets aside money to give Pension Credit to the older people who are eligible for it. But in 2019/20 alone, over £1.7 billion pounds of this money did not reach them.

The campaign so far

Since 2019, we have been calling on the UK government to tackle the unacceptably low levels of Pension Credit up-take. Our Credit where it’s due campaign highlights include:

• In June 2019 we released our Credit where it’s due report, sharing the awful take up rates of Pension Credit and explaining why it was so important to ensure more older people received this benefit. The report launch received national and local media coverage and over 100 MPs shared their support for our campaign publicly.
• Following the launch, over 3,000 campaigners wrote to their MPs and asked them to contact the UK government department responsible for Pension Credit and ask them to improve the take up. More than 600 MPs were contacted in total.
• In July 2019 we worked with Chris Elmore MP to secure a debate in parliament on this important issue. We sent out information to MPs in political parties across Parliament, encouraging them to attend this debate and shine a spotlight on this issue.
• In September 2019 we were pleased to see the Scottish Government focus on this issue. We shared our evidence with the Scottish Parliament’s Social Security Committee for their inquiry on benefit take up. Though the Scottish government are not responsible for giving out Pension Credit, people in Scotland do receive it, and we wanted to make sure the Scottish government were aware of the problems. This inquiry shared powerful evidence on the low uptake of Pension Credit and other benefits, and the Scottish government has contacted the UK government urging them to find solutions.
• In Autumn 2019 we gathered more evidence on the barriers to claiming Pension Credit to help inform the solutions needed. Over 1,600 campaigners aged 65 and over responded to our survey sharing what they thought of Pension Credit and if they had ever claimed it. The findings from this survey were used during a roundtable we organised with other organisations who have an interest in this area. We also shared them directly with UK government officials to inform their plans.
• During the run up to the 2019 General Election we produced materials to support individuals and local groups to quiz their parliamentary candidates on how they would improve Pension Credit. This kept the Pension Credit problems on the radars of politicians across Great Britain. We were pleased to see the Scottish National Party manifesto commitment to call for a take-up and awareness campaign for Pension Credit.

Our Credit where it’s due general election information for campaigners

• Following the election, we engaged newly elected politicians by sending them a snakes and ladders game to catch their attention. It showed the highs and lows of the progress of our campaigns, including Credit where it’s due, and explained how they could help. This resulted in numerous meetings with new MPs wanting to hear more.

• Thanks to our sustained pressure, in February 2020 the UK government invested in a 12-week Pension Credit awareness raising campaign where they put adverts about the benefit in GP surgeries and post offices. But we know more is needed than just blanket awareness raising campaigns.
• In September 2020 we released new research done in partnership with Loughborough University. This showed that if the UK government ensured that everyone eligible for Pension Credit received it (i.e they spent that left over money each year) they could save the state £4 billion a year in health and care costs, because not receiving Pension Credit can mean that people’s health suffers.
• Over 1400 of our campaigners invited their MPs to attend our parliamentary event to hear more about our campaign and recommendations. We had a really well attended parliamentary reception with almost 50 people in attendance including MPs, peers and MP researchers.
• Over 70 politicians across all parties are supporting us to press the UK Government to increase uptake of Pension Credit. And across the last two years we’ve worked with MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask the UK government questions in parliament about Pension Credit and what could be done to increase the number of people receiving it.

• In February 2021, we released new analysis highlighting that people missing out on Pension Credit were also missing out on more than £88million due to not receiving the Warm Home Discount, which is a benefit you also qualify for if you get Pension Credit.
• In Summer 2021 we released new analysis about the number of older people living in poverty, and the fact this number was rising. We received hundreds of pieces of national and local media coverage. 1,300 of our campaigners asked their MP to sign a joint letter to the Minister in charge. As a result, we secured signatures from MPs from all parties which showed the strength of support for this issue.
• The UK government has now set up a working group to tackle low Pension Credit uptake, which we are attending with other organisations who support older people. In addition, they’ve conducted a communication review to ensure Pension Credit is signposted across the UK government’s websites and publications, and they have run more awareness raising activities.

While we have seen positive progress, there’s still more to be done to ensure everyone receives the Pension Credit they are entitled to. We will continue to campaign on this, but I’d like to take this moment to thank all of our supporters for everything they’ve done as part of our Credit where it’s due campaign.

If you are reading this, and are worried about the income of yourself, a friend or family member, you can contact our helpline to find out whether you’re entitled to Pension Credit or any other benefits. Just call our helpline on 0800 319 6789 or take a look at the information on our website.

You can find out more about our campaigns work on our website and can sign up to be a campaigner here. If you join our online network, we’ll send you emails letting you know what we’re up to and how you can help. Every action, big or small, makes a difference.