Malcolm Sayers, Scotland Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer, Independent Age
Today sees the publication of the Older People’s Economic Wellbeing Index: Scotland 2026.
This is the second year of the Index based on a poll of 1,800 people over State Pension age. Participants share their feelings and experiences of financial security, essential costs, homes, general quality of life and political representation.
The results begin to outline what life is like for pensioners and provides insights into the issues many face.
They highlight what we should already know, but what too often can be forgotten – inequalities and hardships carry on for too many who have reached State Pension age.
As with all age groups, pensioners are a diverse range of people and the Index spotlights where age intersects with other characteristics.
Those most likely to struggle financially include;
- women, who are much more likely to live on low incomes,
- carers, who are more likely to struggle with energy bills,
- renters, who are half as likely to report their financial situation as good,
- people with long-term health conditions being more likely to live in our most deprived areas, and
- people in those most deprived neighbourhoods (SIMD 1) who are around half as likely to have any workplace or private pension wealth compared to those in the least deprived (SIMD 5).
As this is the second year of the Index we can begin to look for changes.
Notably, there is an increasing inequality of wealth with a slightly greater portion of people in SIMD 1 with incomes under £15,000, while a growing portion of those in SIMD 5 have incomes over £40,000 (fig.1). Older carers are more likely than last year to be cutting back on energy use, while at the same time there has been a slight improvement in awareness of devolved social security entitlements.
Figure 1. Proportion of each SIMD grouping with income under/over (2025&2026)
However, the main finding is one of stability, with the numbers cutting back on essentials, and reporting concerns about the affordability of their homes and energy costs, remaining stubbornly high.
It is clear these results are not showing only fleeting moments of hardship, but rather the outlines of the lives and long-term coping mechanisms of pensioners in financial hardship and that change is needed.
These struggles are perhaps reflected in feelings of political abandonment, with 62% of older people feeling unrepresented by the Scottish Government (no change from 2025), and 81% feeling unrepresented by the UK Government (up 5 percentage points from last year).
Unsurprisingly, there is strong support for policy responses which could help tackle this financial hardship and the lack of representation including;
- ensuring the adequacy of social security support for those who need it (across UK and Scottish Governments),
- financial support for older carers who are currently excluded from Carers Support Payment when they reach SPa,
- proposals for a Commissioner for Older People, and
- the development of a Strategy to tackle poverty among pensioners,
Encouragingly, support for such policies is seen across the wealth spectrum with pensioners in SIMD 5 almost as likely to support pro-poor policies as those in SIMD 1.
With our new representatives recently elected to Holyrood we hope to see a greater focus on older people’s experiences and concerns. With 130,000 older people in Scotland living in poverty, and significant demographic changes on the horizon, a strategic approach to tackling pensioner poverty and a strong independent voice to drive forward change will be vital if we are to see positive changes in next year’s Index results.
We look forward to working with the Parliament and together with organisations across the sector to make this a reality.
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