Families on the Brink in Stoke-on-Trent: How austerity and the cost-of-living is driving poverty and destitution

Before the COVID-19 crisis, Stoke-on-Trent was the 14th most deprived district in England (out of 317 districts) and possessed one of the highest rates of people on low-pay and with low-skills. The COVID-19 crisis has caused rising unemployment and alarmingly high numbers of people claiming Universal Credit and legacy benefits. As benefits are set at an extremely low level, the key issue is that large sections of the population are reliant upon insufficient incomes to maintain a basic standard of living. In this report, following the 2022 Autumn budget statement, we update the position in relation to poverty and hardship in Stoke-on-Trent. We seek to capture the impact of recent economic changes, including an assessment of the impact of austerity in the form of cuts to public services as well as the ‘cost-of-living crisis.’ The report follows a series of joint reports undertaken with Citizens Advice Staffordshire North and Stoke-on-Trent (CASNS) on the poverty crisis in the city. This update highlights deeper and more widespread issues of individuals and families struggling.