‘I shed many tears, with no one to talk to, about my financial worries. It’s no life’

Every time Yvonne Bailey, 81, heads to the shop or receives a bill, she is reminded of how the cost of everything has gone up in recent months. 

“Everyday things like bread, washing-up liquid, toilet rolls, shampoo, meat, vegetables, fruit, milk, cheese, eggs and so on have gone up,” Yvonne, who lives in a housing association bungalow in West Oxfordshire, tells Big Issue. “I think all of these have risen in price by more than 60%.”

She says she now rarely buys meat or fish (her favourite) – “now it is only fish fingers when they are reduced”. To keep food costs low, she only has one small meal a day, and then a small sandwich or soup. 

Her fuel, water and electricity prices have gone up too. “I limit my fuel use in the winter by using blankets and layered clothing,” she says. “I wash up once a day, only flush the loo at the end of the day, and do washing on the energy-saving cool setting.”

Yvonne’s mental health has taken a hit due to constant anxiety about money.  

“I always put on a happy front,” she says,  “but at home alone I shed many tears, feeling isolated with no one to talk to about what this is doing to me. It’s all down to financial stress and worry about how much I can cut down and out again. This is no life.”

Yvonne isn’t the only elderly person worrying about money right now. Latest DWP figures show that one in seven – equivalent to 1.7 million older people – were living in relative low-income poverty after housing costs in 2024/25. 

Research by Age UK found that one in four (28%) pensioners are struggling to manage financially, with three million adults over the age of 66 saying they find energy bills unaffordable. 

Marios Leptos, director of services at Independent Age, a charity supporting older people facing financial hardship, tells Big Issue that every day, they hear from older people who are anxious about how to “make ends meet”.

“They tell us that they can hardly sleep at night, that they’re cutting back to dangerous levels or simply feeling hopeless about their situation,” Leptos says. 

“The high cost of living has become a permanent feature of life that is stretching the budgets of older people on low incomes beyond levels they can manage.”

Read more:

• Here’s where to get help if you can’t afford to pay your energy bills in the cost of living crisis
• Elderly people’s lives in danger without winter fuel payment, Labour warned: ‘This is a mistake’
• Homeless and hungry elderly people have become a silent crisis. We must help those who need it most

Rapid price increases after global events have hit many over the state pension age “really hard”, Leptos adds. “Many live on a fixed income with little ability to increase this throughout the year, despite the cost of so many essentials like food and rent increasing. And we know that annual and quarterly price rises in energy and water can be hard to absorb.”

For older people, there are “incredibly dangerous” risks when unable to afford heating, electricity, and food. 

“Certain health conditions can become more acute as we age and also worsen when we’re not warm enough,” he says. “There is a greater risk of falls, and we hear worrying stories of older people who aren’t using the lights at night. We know that when you are worrying about whether you can afford to turn the heating on or wash in warm water, thoughts of socialising over a cup of coffee go out the door, despite the fact that we all know this type of interaction is really important for older people, who can sometimes be more isolated.”

Leptos says that if an elderly person is struggling to make ends meet, help may be available. “Independent Age has a free helpline [0800 3196789], where you can receive a welfare benefits check to make sure you’re receiving all the help you’re entitled to,” he said. “Some people ring us and find out they’re missing out on thousands of pounds a year.” 

Older people could be eligible for pension credit, attendance allowance, housing benefit, council tax reduction, and winter fuel payments.

Independent Age, Age UK and Citizens Advice can also help with benefits checks, wellbeing, debt, cost of energy bills, housing issues, and accessing local grants and support. 

StepChange Debt Charity and National Debtline are two charities specialising in debt support.

Energy suppliers might offer hardship funds, payment plans and priority services for vulnerable customers. National Energy Action may be able to help if you’re worried about gas or electricity bills. Local councils sometimes provide emergency assistance, so it is worth having a look around their websites or asking a local Citizens Advice branch if they can support you to do this. 

There are discounts available to older people to help cut costs: Pensioner council tax discounts, water company social tariffs, broadband social tariffs, warm home discount eligibility and free NHS prescriptions for people aged 60 and over. 

Independent Age is calling on the government to develop a strategy to ensure all older people receive the financial support they are entitled to from the social security system, such as pension credit.

“We also want to see the government create national social tariffs for energy and for water,” Leptos says. “We have a live petition calling on the government to end the postcode lottery when it comes to water bills. These would provide comprehensive, standardised and consistent financial support for some of the most financially vulnerable. 

“The government must also uprate Local Housing Allowance so it covers at least the cheapest 30% of the market, so that it keeps pace with rising rents.”

Yvonne tells Big Issue she doesn’t feel people understand what pensioners struggling financially are going through. 

“A large majority love telling me how great a life I have, only paying for one,” she says. “They forget my fuel bills are the same whether there are one or four people living in my home.”

She doesn’t have high expectations for change until “people in power” start to understand poverty and its impact on the elderly. “It will get worse,” until they do, she says. “I feel fed up with false promises and platitudes, saying there is no money but often finding millions in finances to allocate elsewhere, making older people in financial hardship feel invisible and forgotten.”

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more. 

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