The Impact Of Winter Pressures On Different Population Groups In Great Britain: 18 October 2023 To 1 January 2024

30th January 2024

In-depth analysis on how increases in the cost of living and difficulty accessing NHS services have impacted people's lives during the winter period.

The following results cover the latest pooled period (18 October 2023 to 1 January 2024).

Just under 1 in 5 (19%) adults reported they were occasionally, hardly ever, or never, able to keep comfortably warm in their home; this is lower than late autumn and winter 2022 (24%).

Around 1 in 25 adults (4%) said that they had run out of food and could not afford to buy more in the past two weeks; this is similar to late autumn and winter 2022 (5%).

A high proportion of adults who reported difficulties with their ability to keep warm in their home also experienced difficulties with paying their energy bills (76%), affording food (14%) or affording housing payments (59%).

With 3% of adults experiencing both heating and food insecurities, those more likely to report both measures included those with moderate-to-severe depressive symptoms (10%), those economically inactive for reasons other than retirement (8%), those living in the most deprived areas in England (7%), and disabled adults (6%).

Around 1 in 4 adults (24%) said that having to cut back on energy use at home in the past month had a negative impact on their mental health; a similar proportion (24%) reported that waiting too long for a GP or hospital appointment had a negative impact on their mental health.

Read the detailed ONS report HERE