Less Britons are struggling financially, new figures reveal.

According to the latest cross-government Opportunity for All (OfA) report released by the Department for Work and Pensions, “significant progress” has been made over recent years in lifting both children and older people out of poverty. The ninth annual study revealed that 1.1 million fewer pensioners are now living in destitution, while there has been a drive in employment rates for many disadvantaged members of society. As a result, the OfA study suggests that more people are able to get to grips with their finances, which could extend to them being in a better position to meet demands for payment on utility bills, rent costs, loans and other avenues of credit.

The study also revealed that 600,000 less children are now living in poverty, with the proportion of young people living in households which do not meet set requirements of decency falling from 41 per cent to 23 per cent.

Peter Hain, secretary of state for Work and Pensions, said: “Tackling poverty and promoting equality of opportunity for all lie at the heart of the government’s policy making and vision for the future. These figures show that through direct help with the creation of the national minimum wage to ensure that work pays and working family tax credits, we have helped to target money directly to those who need it.

“We believe however that work represents the most sustainable route out of poverty. [Some] 2.5 million more people are in work than in 1997 helping them to provide for themselves and their families.”

He also pointed towards initiatives such as free TV licences, winter fuel payment schemes and pension credits as having “helped target money at those poorest pensioners”, moves which Mr Hain claimed are helping older people “spend money on the essentials”. As a result of such moves, it is possible that such consumers find that their finances are in a more advantageous position when it comes to servicing other demands on their spending, for instance mortgages and personal loans. However, the secretary asserted that more needs to be done to tackle poverty and help get people into work in an attempt to address financial exclusion.

And in spite of such moves by the government, many Britons may still be struggling with handling their money as research released by Credit Action reveals that the country’s personal debt stood at some 1,363 billion pounds as of the end of August and is growing at a rate of some 1 million pounds every four minutes. Meanwhile, the typical adult owes some 4,524 pounds via personal loans, credit cards, overdrafts and other forms of consumer borrowing.

However, those consumers who find that they have struggled in the past to make borrowing repayments could well discover that they have damaged their credit report, cutting off their access to cheap loans should they wish to apply again. Yet those who believe that they are in a position to successfully make repayments may wish to apply for a bad credit loan. Earlier this year, James Jones, consumer affairs manager for Experian, advised those looking to take out a loan to get a copy of their financial record first. Doing so, he claimed, may help judge what rate of interest loan lenders choose to set.

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