A NEW STUDY SHOWS WHY DISABLED PEOPLE are so exposed to rising costs, and why it is critical that Government uprate benefits in line with inflation.
Sense, a charity that supports people with complex disabilities, partnered with NatCen Social Research to carry out detailed analysis of the most recent Government data from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). The findings show that even before the current cost-of-living crisis, disabled people struggled to make ends meet, with the greatest challenges faced by those with the most complex needs.
According to the findings, disabled people were three times more likely to be behind on bills or in debt (13 per cent), compared to non-disabled people (four per cent); three times more likely to be unable to afford access to adequate food (17 per cent) than those with no disability (five per cent); and three times more likely to be unable to heat their home (eight per cent) than those with no disability (three per cent). Rising to eight times (24 per cent) for people with more complex needs.
With costs now spiralling, disabled people have less room to manoeuvre, with working age adults less likely to be in employment, and more likely to be earning a low income and have reduced savings, when compared to non-disabled people.
- Around half of disabled people are unemployed (55 per cent), rising to four out of five (82 per cent) people with more complex needs. Compared to under a quarter (23 per cent) of non-disabled people.
- Disabled people are more likely to be in receipt of benefits than non-disabled people. That includes income-related benefits like Universal Credit. One out of seven (15 per cent) of disabled people are on Universal Credit, rising to two out of seven (29 per cent) for people with complex disabilities. This compares to just five per cent of non-disabled people.
- Over half (55 per cent) of disabled people have less than £1500 in savings, rising to more than two thirds (69 per cent) for people with complex disabilities. This compares to a third (33 per cent) of non-disabled people.
The research also details the differences in the financial experiences of households that include disabled children and those that only include non-disabled children. It found that families with disabled children were disproportionately likely to have fewer savings and be struggling financially.
- Three in five (60 per cent) households with disabled children were more likely to have savings of less than £1500, compared to those in households with children with no disability (42 per cent).
- A smaller proportion of adults in households with disabled children worked full time (37 per cent) than those in households with children with no disability (49 per cent).
Sense have put forward series of recommendations to improve the situation for disabled people and their families, including a benefits system that meets disabled people’s needs. The charity say that the Government must recognise that inflation has already made life unaffordable for people on low incomes, including those unable to work.
As a result of successive benefits freezes, the standard rate of Universal Credit has increased by 7.5 per cent since 2013. In the same time period inflation has increased by 22.9 per cent.
Sense Chief Executive, Richard Kramer, said: “The current cost-of-living crisis has worsened an already precarious financial situation for disabled people across the country – with those with more complex needs, and their families, facing the hardest time.
“Disabled households are more likely to be in receipt of benefits, out of work with less income and savings. This is made worse by having to pay for disability-associated expenses, such as therapies and insurance, as well as facing higher energy costs to run essential equipment, like feeding machines and ventilators.
“While the Government decides whether or not to increase benefits, disabled people and their families struggle with spiralling bills and face agonising decisions, like choosing between heating and eating.
“The Government must recognise the scale of the crisis and impact on disabled people and commit to increasing benefits in-line with inflation.”
Earlier this year, Sense announced an emergency fund for children or adults with complex disabilities. The charity was overwhelmed with demand for support, and has provided a thousand families from across England, Wales and Northern Ireland with a £500 grant to help them cope with the cost-of-living crisis. It is the first time in the charity’s history, which spans more than six decades, that it has provided emergency financial support on this scale.
* The Family Resources Survey and associated documents can be downloaded here.
* Source: Sense