Essex foodbank calls for independent review of universal credit basic rate: "it doesn't correlate with the cost of living"
Figures show approximately 5 out of 6 low-income households on Universal Credit in the UK are currently going without essentials
An Essex foodbank is calling for an "Essentials Guarantee", to raise the current Universal Credit Standard Rate to £120 a week, enough to afford the essentials.
It's as figures show approximately 5 out of 6 low-income UK households on Universal Credit (UC) are currently going without essentials,
This guarantee would include an independent review of the cost of living in the UK, which currently does not correlate to UC rates.
The basic rate of Universal Credit could then be adjusted accordingly.
As part of their recently adjusted Welfare Reform Bill, the government has said it would increase the benefit’s main rate above inflation benefitting nearly 4 million households.
But Cass Francis from Southend Foodbank says this won't go far enough.
Cass tells Greatest Hits Radio "We're calling for the increase to be in line with the cost of living, rather than in line or slightly above inflation."
"Universal Credit should protect people from going without essentials."
"The newly reformed Bill would not do this.
Universal Credit is now at around its lowest ever level as a proportion of average earnings.
The Standard Rate for an individual over 25 rose by 1.7% in April 2025 equating to £400.14 per calendar month (£92.34 per week).
The "Essentials Guarantee", which has been backed by foodbank charity Trussell and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, is calling for this to be raised to at least £120 a week.
As per JRF calculations, this would ensure everyone has a protected minimum amount of support in Universal Credit to afford essentials.
Research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows 66% of the public think the basic rate of Universal Credit is too low and almost half of households see their payments reduced by deductions and caps.
For example, from April 2025 a household can lose 15% of their standard allowance to repay debts to DWP.
Cass Francis adds: "the basic rate of universal credit has no correlation to how much things actually cost.
"The Government have not measured how much it costs to live in the UK right now on basic essentials.
"That's why we're calling for an independent review, and to modify the benefit budgets accordingly."
Between April 2024 & March 2025, Southend Foodbank received 7,701 referrals, and gave out enough food to feed 18,845 people for 3 days.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation have written: "If the standard allowance was set exactly at the Essentials Guarantee level, then any deduction would leave people unable to afford essentials."
"If UK Government set the standard allowance above the Essentials Guarantee level, support could be reduced (such as for debt deductions or the benefit cap), but only down to the Essentials Guarantee level.
As part of the newly-adjusted Welfare Reform Bill, which has a second reading and Commons vote on July 1, the Government have said it would uprate the Universal Credit standard rate.
These plans for incremental increases to Universal Credit would take effect in 2029/2030 and would have no correlation to the cost of living in the UK.
A government spokesperson said if the Welfare Bill passes, the uprate would be "the largest, permanent real-terms increase to basic out of work support since 1980."
They add: "we have introduced a Fair Repayment Rate on Universal Credit deductions, helping over one million households keep more of their benefit award.”