How does my area compare?

Islington is furthest above the expected level of spending on pensioner benefits per person aged 66 and over in 2024-25.

Actual spending per person aged 66 and over minus the level we would expect from the area's ages, deprivation, typical pay and nation. A figure above zero is above the expected level, and a figure below zero is below it. Shown in 2026-27 prices, using CPI inflation, adjusted for inflation so that years can be compared.

Below the expected level, then above it

Under −£479
−£479 to −£342
−£342 to −£205
−£205 to −£68
−£68 to £68
£68 to £205
£205 to £342
£342 to £479
£479 and over

Estimated value
No value

Spending on pensioner benefits, compared with the expected level, per person aged 66 and over, 2024-25, by local authority. Boundaries are simplified. London is also shown larger, in a separate box. Northern Ireland is not covered. Every value is in the table below.

More ways to look at itHow ranks change, why spending changed, and spending compared with the expected level

What changed

More people, more claims or bigger payments?

Great Britain, State Pension: yearly spending at the rate in February 2023 and in March 2026. The chart splits the change into three parts: the number of people in the age group, the share of them claiming, and the average payment. 2026-27 prices, using CPI inflation.

What changed: State Pension
February 2023	£119.8bn
Population	+£2.5bn
Share claiming	+£5.2bn
Payment size	+£16.3bn
March 2026	£143.9bn

The share claiming is the number of people claiming per person aged 66 and over. Yearly spending here is the number claiming, times the average weekly payment, times 52. It is not the amount paid out over the year. Population after mid-2024 stays at the mid-2024 figure, so later growth shows in the share claiming.

Compared with similar areas

Is spending higher or lower than expected?

Spending on pensioner benefits per person aged 66 and over, 2024-25. We compare it with the level we would expect from each area's share of children and of people aged 66 and over, how deprived it is compared with the rest of its nation, and the typical pay of people who live there. 2026-27 prices, using CPI inflation.

Expected level = £12,909 + £3,353 × share aged 0 to 15 − £1,419 × share aged 66 and over − £40 × deprivation decile − £91 × ln(median pay) + £207 × Wales + £80 × Scotland. Fitted by ordinary least squares across 346 local authorities. R² = 0.35. Gold dots are above the expected level and grey dots are below it.

Every local authority

Spending on pensioner benefits, compared with the expected level, 2024-25. Rank is for per person aged 66 and over, and 1 is the highest. Areas with fewer than 1,000 people in the age group have no rank. The first 50 of 350 rows are shown.

Spending on pensioner benefits, compared with the expected level for every local authority, 2024-25
Rank			Notes
1	Islington	£1,093	Estimated
2	Glasgow City	£965	Estimated, Includes Scottish benefits
3	Hartlepool	£842	Estimated
4	Hackney	£715	Estimated
5	Broxbourne	£691	Estimated
6	Liverpool	£664	Estimated
7	North Lanarkshire	£638	Estimated, Includes Scottish benefits
8	Knowsley	£576	Estimated
9	West Dunbartonshire	£497	Estimated, Includes Scottish benefits
10	Rochford	£488	Estimated
11	Tower Hamlets	£479	Estimated
12	Lambeth	£453	Estimated
13	Redditch	£450	Estimated
14	Blaby	£439	Estimated
15	Hinckley and Bosworth	£426	Estimated
16	South Tyneside	£422	Estimated
17	Southwark	£391	Estimated
18	Castle Point	£384	Estimated
19	South Lanarkshire	£383	Estimated, Includes Scottish benefits
20	East Hertfordshire	£362	Estimated
21	Three Rivers	£348	Estimated
22	Basildon	£336	Estimated
23	Broxtowe	£315	Estimated
24	St. Helens	£308	Estimated
25	Charnwood	£305	Estimated
26	Salford	£304	Estimated
27	Halton	£298	Estimated
28	Gateshead	£296	Estimated
29	Swansea	£295	Estimated
30	Caerphilly	£294	Estimated
31	Camden	£292	Estimated
32	Newcastle-under-Lyme	£286	Estimated
33	Dudley	£280	Estimated
34	Tamworth	£279	Estimated
35	Bromley	£278	Estimated
36	Welwyn Hatfield	£273	Estimated
37	Stockport	£272	Estimated
38	Brentwood	£271	Estimated
39	Tonbridge and Malling	£270	Estimated
40	St Albans	£270	Estimated
41	Chelmsford	£269	Estimated
42	Erewash	£267	Estimated
43	Sunderland	£265	Estimated
44	Gravesham	£262	Estimated
45	Harlow	£256	Estimated
46	Vale of Glamorgan	£245	Estimated
47	Tendring	£244	Estimated
48	Bristol, City of	£236	Estimated
49	Staffordshire Moorlands	£233	Estimated
50	High Peak	£232	Estimated

League table of every local authority for the latest period

Values are per person aged 66 and over unless a column says otherwise. Sources: Department for Work and Pensions, Social Security Scotland, Office for National Statistics, National Records of Scotland, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Welsh Government, Scottish Government.

Every measureThe full list, as plain links

More people, more claims or bigger payments?

Is spending higher or lower than expected?

Every local authority

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