People over the age of 60 hold nearly £3 trillion of wealth in the value of their homes, almost all of it mortgage free. That is more than half of all housing wealth in the UK. Under 35s by contrast control only £600 billion and half of that is mortgaged. These startling figures were published recently by the upmarket estate agent Savills which has analysed housing data in Britain for many years. It says this disparity between young and old has never been bigger.MPs, charities and free debt advice providers are calling for an urgent change in the law to help protect the finances of thousands of domestic abuse survivors. At the moment people, mainly women, who are left in debt after fleeing abusive relationships normally have to have their names and addresses published as part of the process of getting that debt written off. Something campaigners say not only puts their personal safety at risk, but can also put them off addressing financial problems altogether. The government has said its currently reviewing this matter and will update in due course.And, annuities are a safe, regular income in retirement. You can use your pension fund to buy one and a growing number of people are doing just that. Sales of annuities have seen an 83% increase since 2020, based on figures from the Association of British Insurers. We'll discuss what's behind that rise.Presenter: Paul Lewis
Reporters: Dan Whitworth and Jo Krasner
Researcher: Catherine Lund
Editor: Jess Quayle(This programme was first broadcast at 12pm Saturday 3rd May 2025)
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24:56
Pensions Minister and Poor Bereavement Service
In an exclusive interview with this programme the Pensions Minister has talked about the government's plans to reform the UK's pension system. Torsten Bell has said that pension schemes should be moving more of members' money out of shares and into infrastructure projects where returns are higher. And he announced a new plan this week to bring millions of small pension pots together into one multibillion pound so-called 'consolidator scheme'. Hear that interview with Paul Lewis in full.Banks, building societies, utility suppliers and pension providers "must do far better" when it comes to helping people deal with the finances of loved ones who've died. That's what the Chief Executive of Hospice UK, Toby Porter, has told this programme. We'll discuss best practice and what can be done to improve poor service.And a government savings scheme designed to help people on low incomes is being extended and widened. How does Help to Save work?Presenter: Paul Lewis
Reporter: Dan Whitworth
Researchers: Catherine Lund and Jo Krasner
Editor: Jess Quayle(This programme was first broadcast 12pm Saturday 26th April 2025)
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25:23
Money Box Live: School Wraparound Care
Parents typically pay an average of more than £80 per week for a childminder and £66 per week for after-school club, to cover the hours they're working. That's according to the latest data from the charity Coram Family and Childcare.This week a new trial of free breakfast clubs launched at 750 schools across England, and the government says it'll save parents as much as £450 in childcare costs. Wales and Scotland already have programmes to provide free breakfasts to children in some primary schools. In this programme Money Box Live discusses what help is available to try and cut the costs of wraparound care.Felicity Hannah is joined by Lydia Hodges, Head of Coram Family and Childcare, and Laura Suter, Director of Personal Finance at the investment platform AJ Bell.Presenter: Felicity Hannah
Producer: Sarah Rogers
Editor: Jess Quayle(The episode was first broadcast at 3pm on Wednesday the 23rd of April 2025).
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28:18
Investing in Gold and Accessing Child Trust Funds
Money Box investigates fees being charged of teenagers who are struggling to access their child trust funds. We speak to an 18 year old who agreed to pay a claims management firm 25% of his fund plus VAT, not realising he could do it for free. Lord David Blunkett was in government when Child Trust Funds were created in 2002, he tells Money Box that the unclaimed public money sitting in CTFs should be going to young people not firms looking to cash in.
Gold has seen rising prices this week in response to global markets turmoil. The precious metal is traditionally seen as a safe investment during times of economic turbulence. We look at the pros and cons of investing in gold and the different ways to do it.
Bank branches continue to close and in some remaining branches hours or services are being reduced. We hear from a Money Box listener who struggled to make a face to face appointment at his local bank branch. Presenter: Paul Lewis
Reporter: Sarah Rogers
Researchers: Eimear Devlin and Jo Krasner
Editor: Beatrice Pickup(First broadcast at 12pm Saturday 19th April 2025)
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25:14
Money Box Live: Social Housing
New analysis shows that some parts of England have waiting lists for social housing that exceed 100 years. Recently the government pledged £2 billion of new investment to build up to 18,000 new social and affordable homes. But will that be enough? Felicity Hannah is joined by Jasmine Basran of the housing charity Crisis, and Alastair Smyth of the National Housing Federation.Presenter: Felicity Hannah
Producer: Neil Morrow and Sarah Rogers
Editor: Beatrice Pickup
New Zealand