Financial wellbeing in South East England
For many people in South East England, managing money day to day is a challenge, and outside of London it is the least affordable region to live in the UK. Our partnerships manager for the region, Claudine Bell, shares how the Money and Pensions Service can help your customers, colleagues and community.
About Claudine
Claudine is passionate about supporting the financial wellbeing of residents, customers and employees. She has over 15 years of experience working with stakeholders and organisations, particularly across the medical, dental and legal sectors.
Her focus has been around providing information and educational content regarding financial services including income protection and pensions.
What is financial wellbeing?
For us at the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), financial wellbeing is about feeling secure and in control. It’s about making the most of your money from day to day, dealing with the unexpected, and being on track for a healthy financial future. In short: financially resilient, confident and empowered.
The regional economy of South East England
For many people in the South East, managing money day to day is a challenge, as it is the least affordable region to live in in the UK. Partnerships manager for the region Claudine Bell shares how the Money and Pensions Service can help your customers, colleagues and community.
It's close proximity to London and its rail network and connections to several national motorways have led to South East England becoming a prosperous economic hub, with the largest economy of any region in the UK after London.
It is also one that is more varied than many other regions: The diversity of the region includes employment sectors such as agriculture and fishing, to high tech industry such as aerospace, biotech, pharmaceuticals, engineering and IT.
The region is home to Gatwick, the UK’s second-busiest airport, and to Southampton Airport. Heathrow Airport (the UK’s busiest) is adjacent to the region’s boundary with Greater London and provides business and employment opportunities for organisations and residents living in local areas.
Impact of EU exit on the local economy
The Channel Tunnel connection from Folkestone provides access to mainland Europe and the coastline along the English Channel provides many ferry and freight crossings to Europe and beyond. 10,000 freight vehicles pass through the Port of Dover alone on peak days.
There is a high propensity among businesses in the region to export. The UK region with the highest value of exports was the South East, which exported £46.7 billion of goods, equal to 13% of the UK’s total value of goods exports. (HMRC, Regional Trade Statistics 2020) The region maybe more vulnerable than most to the impacts of the UK’s EU exit on export trade.
Impact of the pandemic on South East England
Levels of debt
Despite the strong regional economy, before the Covid-19 outbreak, over 1.1 million people in the South East were over-indebted, of whom 43% live in Hampshire and Kent.
Most affected sectors
There is a strong correlation between workers on low-income and those being furloughed or made redundant and across the region. It is estimated that over 530,000 jobs are at risk due to Covid-19. (HMRC Job Retention Scheme, March 2021)
Tourism is a key economic benefit to the region, and was worth over £13 billion pre-Covid-19, and second only to the capital city. Over 1 million people are employed in retail, accommodation and food services, arts, entertainment and recreation, and transport, some of the sectors hardest hit by the economic impact of Covid-19.
"Average pay in the five sectors hardest hit by the pandemic is around £10.60 per hour."
Source: McKinsey
Because of the impact that Covid-19 has had on the travel sector, Crawley, the home of Gatwick Airport, has the highest employment vulnerability of any town or city in the UK. 80% of the town’s jobs are impacted or vulnerable. (Consolidated data, West Sussex County Council).
Effect on small businesses
There are almost 1 million small and medium enterprises in the South East. Across the UK 24% are unsure about whether they’ll still be trading next year, due to the impact of the pandemic. Over half remain concerned about the future of their business and the impact on employment. (Simply Business, June 2021).
How MaPS can help your organisation
We offer a wide array of free support to businesses including:
- A dedicated partnership manager based in your location, with managers in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and regions across England.
- Bespoke support to help you build and implement your financial wellbeing strategy.
- A selection of guidesOpens in a new window available in English and Welsh, and in print, braille or audio format, for free.
- A help with the cost of living hubOpens in a new window featuring articles, tools, calculators and a printable guide to support your colleagues and customers.
- Our annual Talk Money Week awareness campaign, which provides a platform for conversations about money in all walks of life.
- MoneyHelper offers a bi-lingual service via a variety of channels, with tools and helplines in EnglishOpens in a new window and WelshOpens in a new window
- Guidance on life events, such as a section on losing your jobOpens in a new window or about divorce and how this affects pensionsOpens in a new window
- Help employees plan for later life with a section dedicated to pensions and retirement guidanceOpens in a new window
- Various tools and calculatorsOpens in a new window offer personalised guidance for topics including debt advice.
Contact Claudine
If you would like to know more about how to embed financial wellbeing in your organisation, please contact Claudine via this form.Opens in a new window
UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing
Over the decade, the UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing is aiming to help people gain more confidence to manage their money. The vision is for everyone to make the most of their money and pensions in the short, medium and long term.
Read our UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing 2020-2030Opens in a new window (PDF, 7MB)
Our other partnership regions
Also see
- Find out more about the UK Strategy for Financial Wellbeing Delivery Plans across the UK