Ofgem has announced that household energy bills will rise to help fund a £28 billion investment to upgrade the UK’s energy network. The energy regulator said that it has approved more than £17.8 billion of spending plans to upgrade gas transmission and distribution networks in the five years from April 2026. The remaining initial investment…
Read moreThe Government has announced a new Child Poverty Strategy, which aims to lift 550,000 children out of poverty by 2030. The Government says that following the reversal of the two-child limit, the strategy tackles the root causes of poverty by cutting the cost of essentials, boosting family incomes, and improving local services so every child…
Read moreIE Hub has announced new partnerships. with Bristol Water and Wessex Water. The partnership will mean water customers looking for financial help will be directed to IE Hub to fill out their budget information. If they need further advice they will be signposted to National Debtline (NDL), a trusted provider of free, independent and expert…
Read moreAs people across the country battle an unrelenting living standards crisis, Citizens Advice has revealed reforming bill support across essential markets, including energy and water, could save eligible households a staggering £950 a year. That’s the equivalent of £79 a month, which amounts to an income boost of almost 6% for low-income households. Citizens Advice’s…
Read moreOnly 14% of households are worried about debt, but fewer than one in five (19%) are classed as resilient when it comes to their use of it, according to research by the HL Savings & Resilience Barometer. The data also showed that across the board, almost half (46%) of debt is used for consumption rather…
Read moreNearly one in three UK households are worried about paying their winter bills, according to new figures from Ocean Finance. With energy costs rising faster than many can cope with, families face a tough few months ahead whilst Ofgem warns that bills could rise by £75 next spring. The survey also revealed that 33% of…
Read moreNew YouGov polling by StepChange Debt Charity reveals more than one in four adults (27%), equivalent to around 14.3 million people, will struggle to afford Christmas this year, which rises to almost one in three (31%) among parents with children at home. With the cost of living still stubbornly high and millions struggling to make…
Read moreOfcom has fined Virgin Media £23.8 million, after it disconnected telecare customers during its programme to migrate customers to digital landlines. Landline phone calls have traditionally been delivered over a copper-based network known as the public switched telephone network (PSTN). This network is beyond its intended lifespan and is becoming increasingly unreliable, so it needs…
Read moreCredit Connect hosted its Autumn Credit & Collections events series in Manchester last week at the Midland Hotel. The event, which concludes the Credit Connect event series for 2025, included the Commercial Credit & Collection Conference, Credit & Collections Technology Think Tank and the 8th Credit & Collections Technology Awards. The day kicked off with…
Read moreChancellor Rachel Reeves has announced the autumn budget for 2025. Commenting on the Budget, Vikki Brownridge, CEO at StepChange said “Today’s announcement of the removal of the two-child limit is an immediate, cost-effective way to lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. It is a decisive move that will reduce the risk of…
Read moreWith possible income tax and threshold reforms expected in the Budget, new data from Howden Life and Health reveal families are already under pressure, with millions forced to borrow from friends and family, take out loans, and even cancel insurance policies to cover sudden costs. As part of its Health Gap report, Howden Life and Health surveyed 3,000…
Read moreOne in ten (8%) of people have no emergency savings at all, rising to one in ten women (10%) according to Hargreaves Lansdown (HL) Savings and Resilience Barometer. The research found that 11% of the squeezed middle (35-54), 12% of single people and 17% of renters do not have savings, whilst 11% have £100 or…
Read moreThe gap between the UK’s wealthiest and poorest consumers is widening, according to a survey of 20,000 European and 1000 UK consumers by credit management group Intrum. The European Consumer Payment Report is an annual survey across 20 countries found only 48 per cent of the UK’s low-income consumers are confident they can pay all of their…
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