Poverty continues to be a central feature in the lives of many older people in Britain. This was confirmed in a recent report that found that nearly half of older people in deprived city neighbourhoods were going without items regarded as everyday necessities by most people.¹ In some cases, this even included cutting back on basics such as food, heating and clothing.

Coping with poverty is a challenge for older people wherever they live. However, our research suggests that the task of managing on a low income is made harder still by living in a deprived urban environment. Such communities place additional costs on their older residents. For example, the withdrawal of public and commercial services from areas deemed to be unprofitable or unsustainable means that shops and services that remain have less competition and can charge more.

Older people often have to leave their neighbourhood to reach cheaper shops or a post office. Concern about crime means that many will not leave the house alone, or they rely on expensive taxis to travel around. Fear of crime also leads many older people to make costly housing adaptations. Fitting window bars, effective door and window locks or a burglar alarm consumes a large part of some people's budgets. Many older people do not insure the contents of their home because of high premiums and low incomes. Poor quality housing inevitably costs more to heat and maintain.

How older people manage on incomes at or below the poverty line can be illustrated with examples from interviews we conducted with 130 people aged 60 or over in deprived areas of Liverpool, Manchester and Newham, in east London.

Enid Brown (all names of older people have been changed in this article), a widow in her mid-70s, has lived in Liverpool since birth. Having spent her adult life working as a cleaner, she finds it very difficult to manage on a modest retirement income. Like most older people, Brown prioritises paying household bills over outgoings: "One week I pay £14 a fortnight for the electric and £14 a fortnight for the gas, that's £28. The next week I pay for the television. The following week is £28 water rates, and then rent on top, so that's £35. And then the next week is the television licence and cableÉ there's not much left afterwards. So you've got to budget."

One way Brown copes is to limit her use of the telephone: "I'm on incoming calls only for the phone, but I can ring 999 if I need to. I was getting big bills so I had it put on incoming calls only." Another way is to cut back on food. Brown's budget only allows her to buy the cheapest food. When shopping, she seeks out special offers and discounted items: "It's not only two-for-one. Sometimes it's just reduced pricing - they knock £1 off this and £1 off that, you know, so you buy it when it's cheap."

Brown said that being more socially active would improve her quality of life: "Some people go to bingo, but I can't afford to. Because we're just on state pension, we don't get any extras." Her current income seriously curtails this aspect of her life: "It makes you feel so mean. People invite you over and you sort of shy clear because you think, well I'd have to have people here, you know."

Our research shows that poverty is particularly acute among older people from ethnic minorities. The case of Saeed Raza and his wife is typical. They have lived in Manchester for more than 30 years, since migrating from Pakistan. In retirement, Raza finds the task of making ends meet particularly stressful: "I find it really hard. Sometimes I stay awake at night thinking about how we will pay these bills and manage with what we are on. I feel so helpless."

When asked if he goes without necessities, Raza replies: "All the time! Do you know, I haven't bought any new clothes for myself in the past year. My shoes are wearing down, my clothes are thinning and don't keep the cold out much. But we need the money to buy food and pay our bills."

However, he did not see his situation as being unusual: "Everyone is in trouble nowadays. There is so much debt and financial problems. But you have to cope as best as you can."

Ali Khalid is in a similar situation. A retired seafarer, Khalid has lived in Liverpool since migrating from Somalia more than 40 years ago. One way of managing his low income is to let out rooms in his house. This allows him to keep up with the bills: "It's difficult when you are paying all the utilities, such as gas and electricity, you can just manage to survive. You have to always try to cover all the bills not to receive any court injunctions or anything like that."

Following a break-in, Khalid had security bars fitted to his windows. He also feels some financial responsibility towards his family, and would rather go without himself than be unable help his children. He often cuts back on food: "I mean it's possible that you will make less food than you will normally need in order to cover other expenses. I mean meat, for instance, is part of my diet and it's very important for me. So sometimes I have to reduce the amount of meat that I've bought and also the amount of rice that I cook or the amount of spaghetti." Gas and electricity are also restricted: "Sometimes I don't in fact use the gas or the central heating. If I don't do that, I won't be able to manage financially".

Our research, illustrated here with a handful of cases, raises important policy issues. The minimum income guarantee (MIG) is the cornerstone of government attempts to target benefits at pensioners in greatest need. However, many people taking part in this research were simply not aware of the MIG. Older people from ethnic minorities experienced particular difficulty in negotiating their way through the complexities of the benefits system.

There is an urgent need to tackle barriers to the take-up of benefit entitlements. However, our research suggests that raising the level of the basic state pension would be a better way of lifting older people out of poverty, ensuring that all pensioners receive a decent retirement income.

Putting more money into the pockets of older people could have benefits beyond the alleviation of poverty. Such a strategy could also play a role in regenerating inner city areas. Older people are more likely to spend money in their own locality, thus helping to sustain local services and amenities, and our research demonstrates that they are often highly committed to improving their neighbourhoods. Long-time residence can produce an attachment to an area that can be a positive benefit if used in the right way. In conclusion, regeneration initiatives that consider the needs of older people and engage with older residents could prove a valuable ally in promoting social inclusion.

Thomas Scharf, Chris Phillipson are professors and Allison Smith a research fellow, school of social relations, Keele University; and Paul Kingston is professor in the school of health, University of Wolverhampton 

References

1 T Scharf, C Phillipson, A E Smith and P Kingston, Growing Older in Socially Deprived Areas: Social Exclusion in Later Life, Help the Aged, London, 2002