Official Statistics

Analysis of households potentially eligible for Pension Credit, and eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit, 2023 to 2024

Published 30 October 2025

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

1. Introduction

This ad-hoc statistics publication provides analysis of the characteristics of eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit and households potentially eligible for, but not claiming, Pension Credit. It includes a more granular level of detail than has previously been possible. Analysis is presented at a sub-national and local authority level, as well as across a range of characteristics.

Official Statistics relating to Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up have been published by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for many years, using primarily the Family Resources Survey (FRS) and DWP’s administrative data. They are produced using a well-established methodology which has been refined and improved over time.

They continue to provide the definitive source of official, national take-up estimates, with a time series that goes back to 2010. Further, the FRS data captures household financial data including savings, to better identify Pension Credit entitled non recipients (a family that is modelled to be entitled to Pension Credit but is not receiving it). However, the dataset is not designed for regional analysis. Due to the sample sizes the data does not allow the take-up estimates to be broken down beyond national level.

These Ad-Hoc Statistics have been developed to provide a complementary set of data which can add to the information available and understanding of households that are potentially eligible for Pension Credit. The dataset covers almost the entire pensioner population^{[footnote 1]}. As the analysis is based on administrative data, it allows for more granular and detailed level analysis than the modelled survey data permits, focusing on lower levels of geographical areas.

2. Methodology

These Ad-Hoc statistics have been developed using data from a variety of administrative data sources. Winter Fuel Payment data has been used as a base of virtually all^{[footnote 2]} pensioner households in Great Britain. This has been merged with additional information from other DWP administrative data sources and HMRC data on employment, tax credits, and occupational pension incomes. This has allowed the estimation of the number of pensioner households who are eligible for, but have not (yet) claimed, Pension Credit.

A key assumption that has been made is how much Pension Credit each household is eligible for. Based on the administrative data available, Pension Credit eligible income is assessed for an individual (i.e. the income that is considered when determining Pension Credit eligibility), then Pension Credit eligibility criteria are applied to see if they are entitled to Pension Credit and how much they are entitled to.

It is important to note that these figures are not directly comparable with the current published estimates of take-up in the official statistics. The official statistics estimates entitlement for a benefit unit to Pension Credit on the day the interview took place. Whereas the ad-hoc statistics look at entitlement for a household across the full financial year (2023 to 2024), so will result in a greater number of those estimated to be entitled to Pension Credit, than in the official statistics.

A further reason is a lack of individual level data relating to savings and housing costs in the administrative dataset used for the ad-hoc statistics. These are both considered when determining the eligibility to Pension Credit within a household and are used in the creation of the entitled non-recipient (ENR) estimates in the official statistics. The lack of savings data is the larger of the two (savings, and housing costs) data issues and is particularly important at a sub-national level in more affluent areas. As the data do not include the savings of each household, this analysis is more likely to incorrectly classify a household as being entitled to Pension Credit and therefore underestimate the receipt-rate in more affluent areas in particular. The issue around the lack of housing costs^{[footnote 3]} would have the opposite effect, leading to underestimating the number of potentially eligible households and overestimating the corresponding receipt-rate in areas where payment of housing costs is more prevalent.

It is for these reasons that it has been made explicit in the naming of the metrics, that the potentially eligible households measure used within these statistics, differs from the entitled non-recipients measure in the official statistics. As mentioned previously, the official statistics

The Official Statistics relating to Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up continue to provide the definitive source of official, national, Pension Credit take-up estimates. Therefore, the figures in these ad-hoc statistics should not be used to derive national estimates of Pension Credit take-up; doing so would not result in an accurate estimate of Pension Credit take-up. Rather these figures should be used to provide insight into the differences in potential Pension Credit receipt-rate at local levels of geography and other characteristics to support policy and practice.

3. What you need to know

The following definitions are used in these statistics.

	Definition
Household	These Ad-hoc statistics report at household level. Pension Credit is paid on a household level, where a single person or couple household is classified as one household. (Please note that the official statistics report at benefit unit level. So, in the example of a pensioner couple with adult non-dependent children living at home, this would be classed as two benefit units and one household, in the take-up statistics). However, given these statistics report on pensioners, in most cases there will be one pensioner benefit unit per household.
Eligible households in receipt	These are the number of households in receipt of Pension Credit at any point during the financial year.
Potentially eligible households	These are the estimated number of households who despite being estimated to be eligible to claim Pension Credit, have not received Pension Credit at any point during the financial year.
Receipt (rate)	Unless specified otherwise, receipt refers to the estimated caseload receipt-rate of Pension Credit based on the administrative data approach. This is the number of eligible households in receipt, divided by the total Pension Credit eligible population (i.e. eligible households in receipt plus potentially eligible households).
Take-up	In the official statistics (Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up), take-up (caseload) compares the number of benefit recipients, averaged over the year, with the estimated number who would be receiving if everyone took up their entitlement for the full period of their entitlement.
Expenditure receipt-rate	The amount of Pension Credit that is received by eligible households in receipt, as a proportion of the total amount of Pension Credit that is available for the eligible Pension Credit population.

4. Main Stories

Compared to eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit, potentially eligible households were more likely to:

• not be in receipt of Housing Benefit
• receive an Occupational Pension (and receive a higher amount than eligible households in receipt)
• not receive a disability benefit
• be entitled to smaller amounts of Pension Credit
• have not claimed an out-of-work benefit in the last 20 years
• live in a rural area (only based on analysis in England and Wales)
• live in the South West

This analysis finds that in 2023 to 2024, over a third (34% – 282,000) of potentially eligible households were entitled to a weekly amount of less than £15. This appears to be a “tipping point” amount after which an eligible household is more likely to be in receipt of Pension Credit. Generally, as the weekly eligible amount decreases, the number of potentially eligible households who were not claiming Pension Credit increases. Conversely, as the weekly eligible amount increases, the number of eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit increases. In other words, as the amount that households could receive decreases, the less likely they were to be receiving Pension Credit.

Furthermore, there is regional variation in the receipt-rate of Pension Credit; London aside, there were higher Pension Credit receipt-rates in the North (high of 71% in the North East), compared to a low of 55% in the South West. Rural areas have far lower Pension Credit receipt-rates than urban areas.

Headline statistics in 2023 to 2024:

• differences in Pension Credit receipt at a Local Authority (LA) level, with London having 5 of the top 10 LAs with the highest receipt-rates (highest receipt-rate of 83% in Tower Hamlets), compared to a low of 44% in Cotswold, in the South West, (excluding Isles of Scilly –   which has the lowest receipt-rate of 29%)
• large disparity in receipt-rate between urban and rural areas in England, with this difference being larger as the level of rurality increases: Majority Rural (majority of population further away from major town or city) areas have a receipt-rate of 54% compared to a receipt-rate of 67% for Urban (majority of population nearer to major town or city) areas
• 32% of potentially eligible households were missing out on claiming more than £50 per week
• 21% were “new” potentially eligible households, i.e. they were not a potentially eligible household during the previous financial year
• 45% of potentially eligible households have an Occupational Pension, compared to 30% of eligible households in receipt
• 37% of potentially eligible households have at least one person in the household receiving a pensioner disability benefit, compared to 58% of eligible households in receipt
• 36% of potentially eligible households have previously received an out-of-work working-age benefit, compared to 63% of eligible households in receipt
• 13% of potentially eligible households were in receipt of Housing Benefit, compared to 56% of eligible households in receipt

5. Pension Credit receipt-rate (2023 to 2024)

Figure 1a: Pension Credit receipt-rate, by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

Pension Credit receipt-rate is highest (86%) amongst households entitled to more than £150 per week whereas it is lowest (30%) for households entitled to less than £5 per week, showing that generally as the weekly eligible amount of Pension Credit increases, the receipt-rate increases.

55%^{[footnote 4]} of potentially eligible households were entitled to less than £30 weekly and 45% were entitled to more than £30 per week. On the other hand, only 29% of eligible households in receipt were entitled to amounts of less than £30 per week but 71% were entitled to amounts larger than £30 weekly. This highlights that the majority of eligible households in receipt were eligible for larger amounts of Pension Credit whereas the majority of potentially eligible households were eligible for lower amounts of Pension Credit.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, table 1a.

Figure 1b: Pension Credit Expenditure receipt-rate, by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

Around 263,000^{[footnote 5]} (32%) of potentially eligible households were not claiming at least £50 per week in Pension Credit. This equates to around £1.38bn^{[footnote 6]} per year, which is around 72% of all unclaimed Pension Credit.

Figure 1b shows that the expenditure receipt-rate was highest (85%) for weekly eligible amounts of £150 and over.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, table 1b.

Figure 1c: Potentially eligible households and eligible households in receipt by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

Generally, as the weekly eligible amount increases, the number of potentially eligible households who were not claiming Pension Credit decreases and the number of eligible households in receipt increases. More specifically, this has been identified the point after which an eligible household is more likely to be claiming Pension Credit. Figure 1c illustrates this “tipping point” of £15 per week that has been identified. This is the amount after which the number of eligible households in receipt exceeds the number of potentially eligible households. Up until weekly eligible amounts of £15, the number of potentially eligible households is greater than the number of eligible households in receipt.

Country and regional analysis

Figure 2: Pension Credit receipt-rate by country and region

London aside, there were higher Pension Credit receipt-rates in the North (high of 71% in the North East), compared to a low of 55% in the South West. As mentioned in the introduction, the lack of savings data and housing costs data could contribute to some of the regional and sub regional geography differences seen in this analysis.

Across the three countries of Great Britain, Scotland has the highest receipt-rate at 67%, followed by Wales with 64% and England with 63%.

There were significant variations in Pension Credit receipt at a Local Authority (LA) level^{[footnote 7]}, with London having 5 of the top 10 LAs with the highest receipt-rates (highest receipt-rate of 83% in Tower Hamlets), compared to a low of 44% in Cotswold, in the South West, (excluding Isles of Scilly – which has the lowest receipt-rate of 29%). See supporting tables published alongside this statistical release for receipt-rates for all LAs and Parliamentary Constituencies.

Among regions with high receipt-rates, there were small pockets of LAs with far lower receipt-rates (and vice-versa). For example, Ribble Valley in the North West is among the 10 LAs with the lowest receipt-rate.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, tabs 2a – 4b.

Rural / Urban analysis – England and Wales only^{[footnote 8]}

Figure 3: Pension Credit receipt-rate by rural/urban status

Figure 3 shows the receipt-rate of Pension Credit in England and Wales, broken down by whether those eligible for Pension Credit live in a rural or urban local authority.

Those living in rural areas have far lower receipt-rates of Pension Credit than those living in urban areas. This difference increases as the level of rurality increases.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, tab 5.

6. Comparing entitled amounts and characteristics of Pension Credit eligible households in receipt and potentially eligible households (2023 to 2024)

Figure 4: Proportion of Pension Credit potentially eligible households and eligible households in receipt by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

Potentially eligible households have varied entitled amounts, with 32% entitled to £50 and over per week, and 23% being entitled to less than £10 per week.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, tab 6.

Figure 5: Potentially eligible households of Pension Credit and eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit, receiving an Occupational Pension, by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

The proportion of potentially eligible households and eligible households in receipt that have at least one person in the household receiving an Occupational Pension, decreases as the amount of Pension Credit they were entitled to increases; 45% of potentially eligible households have an Occupational Pension, compared to 30% of Eligible households in receipt. Potentially eligible households also receive a slightly higher median weekly amount of Occupational Pension than eligible households (£34 vs £27).

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, tab 7.

Figure 6: Proportion of potentially eligible households of Pension Credit and eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit, receiving a pensioner disability benefit, by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

The receipt of a pensioner disability benefit (Attendance Allowance (AA)/Disability Living Allowance (DLA)/Personal Independence Payment (PIP)) within the household, has been used as a proxy to there being a disabled person present. Therefore, there is a possible undercount of disabled households because of the disability benefit-based definition, which is not as broad as the equality analysis definition of disability (that is used in the FRS, for example). This disability benefit-based definition has been used because this is the data that is available as part of the administrative dataset.

37% of potentially eligible households have at least one person in the household receiving a pensioner disability benefit, compared to 58% of eligible households in receipt. The proportion of potentially eligible households and eligible households in receipt who have at least one person in the household receiving a pensioner disability benefit, increases in line with how much Pension Credit they were eligible to receive.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, tab 8.

Figure 7: Potentially eligible households of Pension Credit and eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit, who have previously received an out-of-work working-age benefit, by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

Data over the past 20 years has been analysed, to see if at least one person in the household has ever claimed an out-of-work working-age benefit:

• Incapacity Benefit

• Severe Disablement Allowance

• Employment and Support Allowance

• Income Support

• Jobseekers Allowance

• Universal Credit (not in employment

36% of potentially eligible households have previously received an out-of-work working-age benefit, compared to 63% of eligible households in receipt.

The proportion of eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit who previously claimed an out-of-work working-age benefit increases with the amount of Pension Credit they were entitled to. For potentially eligible households, the likelihood is lower, but is fairly constant around the 33 to 41% mark, regardless of how much Pension Credit they were estimated to be entitled to.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, tab 9.

Figure 8: Proportion of potentially eligible households of Pension Credit and eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit receiving Housing Benefit, by weekly bands of eligible Pension Credit amounts

Potentially eligible households were far less likely to be receiving HB (13% vs 56%). The likelihood of receiving Housing Benefit increases in line with the amount of Pension Credit they were entitled to, increasing further for potentially eligible households entitled to more than £50 per week in Pension Credit.

Note: See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, tab 10.

7. About these statistics

This ad hoc statistical summary gives an overview. Key points are presented using charts and commentary.

The information underlying the charts and further additional information is available as supporting tables published alongside this release.

Rounding

Numbers are rounded to the nearest 1,000. Expenditure amounts are rounded to the nearest £1,000,000 and expressed in millions and billions. Percentages are calculated using unrounded numbers and rounded to the nearest whole percentage point. For these reasons, some totals may not sum to 100. 

How can this data be used?

You can use this data:

• for estimating Pension Credit receipt at a sub-national level
• for analysing the differences in characteristics of eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit and potentially eligible households.

You cannot use this data:

• For comparing with previously published or the latest Official Statistics relating to Pension Credit take-up

Statement of compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics

The Code of Practice for Statistics is built around 3 main concepts, or pillars:

• trustworthiness – is about having confidence in the people and organisations that publish statistics
• quality – is about using data and methods that produce statistics
• value – is about publishing statistics that support society’s needs

The following explains how we have applied the pillars of the Code in a proportionate way.

Trustworthiness

These figures have been published to provide, for the first time, Pension Credit receipt at a sub-national level. Releasing them via an ad hoc publication will give equal access to all those with an interest in them.

Quality

The data which underpins these statistics is taken from DWP administrative benefit data and HMRC data on employment, tax credits, and occupational pensions. The methodology and calculations have been quality assured by DWP analysts to ensure they are the best estimates using information available at the time.

Value

Producing and releasing these figures is in the public interest and provides organisations (such as Local Government) and the wider public, granular level details and characteristics of eligible households in receipt of Pension Credit and potentially eligible households, that previously was not available.

Further information and feedback

Contact DWP Press Office if you have any questions or feedback.

1. A small proportion of pensioner households are omitted from the dataset for the following reasons: a) due to being in a care home, b) they had opted out of receiving Winter Fuel Payment. The other small group of pensioner households not captured as they are not eligible for Winter Fuel Payments because: a) they were in hospital getting free treatment for the whole of the Winter Fuel Payment qualifying week and the year before that, b) need permission to enter the UK and their granted leave says that they cannot claim public funds, c) were in prison for the whole of the Winter Fuel Payment qualifying week. ↩

2. See footnote 1. ↩

3. Read further details about Pension Credit eligibility. ↩

4. See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, table 1a. ↩

5. See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, table 1a. ↩

6. See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, table 1b. ↩

7. See the supporting data tables published alongside this release, table 3a. ↩

8. This analysis uses the 2021 Rural Urban Classification by the ONS, and this methodology covers England and Wales. This is not available for Scotland. The Rural Urban Classification is an official statistical classification for England and Wales, used to distinguish Rural and Urban areas. The Scottish Government has a different Urban Rural classification, and is not comparable to the 2021 Rural Urban Classification by the ONS for England and Wales. Rural/Urban analysis for Scotland is not presented in this analysis for this reason. ↩