Working families can’t afford a decent life in the UK: Report reveals even full-time jobs leave parents and single workers thousands short
Minimum Income Standard figures lay bare the grim truth: wages, benefits and government promises are failing to keep families afloat in 2025
A new report has exposed the brutal reality facing millions of households across Britain—even those working full-time are falling miles short of what’s needed for a basic decent life.
Researchers at Loughborough University have calculated the Minimum Income Standard (MIS)—the level of earnings the public agrees is essential for food, housing, transport and participation in society. The 2025 figures are damning: a single adult needs £30,500 a year to scrape by, while a couple with two children needs a staggering £74,000 between them.
Workers falling short
Yet the findings reveal that vast swathes of the population, including families where both parents work, cannot reach this threshold. A single worker on the new National Living Wage of £12.21 an hour is still nearly £7,000 short of what’s needed, covering just 76 per cent of the MIS. Couples with children are even worse off.
If only one parent is working full-time, they reach just 66 per cent of the target income. Even when both parents slog away all week at National Living Wage, they still achieve only 82 per cent of the standard—still falling thousands short. For lone parents, the outlook is bleakest of all: working flat out, they reach just 69 per cent of what is required to raise children with dignity.
Those on benefits screwed
Those reliant on state support are left utterly adrift. A single jobseeker has only 27 per cent of the necessary income, while couples with children living on benefits make do with 37 per cent—a catastrophic shortfall of over £500 every week. Lone parents on out-of-work benefits are left hundreds adrift too, their disposable income amounting to just 44 per cent of MIS. These figures have barely shifted since last year, underscoring how little has changed for Britain’s poorest households.
Impact of inflation
The report accuses government policy of not only failing to close the gap but of actively making the situation worse. Despite inflation running at 3.5 per cent in April, benefits rose by just 1.7 per cent, leaving families unable to keep pace with rising costs. Housing support is frozen, condemning thousands of private renters to ever larger shortfalls, while the Benefit Cap and savings limits remain stuck in place, punishing those already struggling.
Meanwhile, the cost of daily essentials continues to spiral. Transport costs alone have soared by 10 per cent in the past year, with the price of a monthly bus pass jumping more than 10 per cent. Water bills have risen by a staggering 26 per cent. Families with children may own older cars, but even they face rising fuel and maintenance costs. It means no household escapes the squeeze.
Broken promises
The most shocking revelation is that work is no longer a guaranteed route to security. Two-thirds of households now falling short of MIS are in work, compared with just over half in 2009. Experts warn Britain has drifted into a new era of working poverty, where full-time jobs and relentless effort still fail to provide a decent standard of living.
Despite Labour’s promise to raise living standards, the report concludes that the gap between what people earn and what they need is not narrowing. Campaigners say that without bold reforms to wages, benefits and housing support, millions will remain trapped in hardship. For many, this is not simply about statistics—it is about whether they can put food on the table, pay their bills, and give their children a future.