Family finances most stretched in the UK - report

Households in Hull have the least amount of spare money when compared with other areas of the UK, a study has shown.

The city has been ranked at the bottom of a report into financial resilience by financial services company Hargreaves Lansdown.

The report said households in Hull were found to have relatively low amounts of money left at the end of each month along with emergency funds and pension savings.

Clive Da Silva, assistant manager at Hull Foodbank, said "more help is needed for people to manage their finances".

He said: "It is sad that people in Hull are in this position, and we want to help lift people out of this type of financial situation by offering them food, clothing and even shelter.

"Without support from foodbanks we would see a lot more people, particularly mothers and children on the streets.

"We don't want to go back to Victorian times, so more help is needed for people to manage their finances."

A Hull City Council spokesperson said: "While the council does its best to support local residents, Hull's people continue to experience the negative effects of decisions made by national governments – and these decisions can only truly be fixed by those national decision makers.

"Hull City Council offers cost of living help to residents through a number of initiatives from providing free school meals to supporting the elderly affected by cuts to Winter Fuel Payments.

"But to fix the issues people face here we need a comprehensive plan from the government."

The BBC has contacted the government for a response.

Economic modelling by Oxford Economics was used in the study to determine people's financial resilience.

Hull, Nottingham and Liverpool occupied the bottom three places in the table, while Wokingham, Elmbridge and St Albans were at the top.

Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "There's a vast gulf between the capitals of resilience and the tougher areas where money is stretched and the future looks much harder.

"Among the top 10 most resilient local authorities, 79% of households have enough cash left at the end of the month to be resilient, compared to 54% among the bottom 10."

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