Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what was the a) mean and b) median amount of housing support claimed by people in each local authority who were on i) Housing Benefit ii) the Housing Element of UC and iii) either Housing Benefit or the Housing Element of UC.

I) The information requested for Housing Benefit (HB) mean amounts are available on Stat-Xplore (link below).

II) Universal Credit (UC) is a single integrated benefit made up of different elements, such as Housing. Benefit units receive one combined monthly payment, and any deductions apply to the total award, not individual elements. Breakdowns of the UC Housing Element are available at national level in the Benefit Expenditure Tables (link below). However, the underlying data is not sufficient to produce these breakdowns at a sub-national level, such as local authorities. As a result, it is not possible to robustly estimate mean or median element of UC at a local authority level.

III) Due to data quality limitations that prevent calculation of (ii), it is not possible to estimate the population receiving either HB or the housing element of UC.

Stat-Xplore

Benefit Expenditure and Caseload Tables: Benefit expenditure and caseload tables 2025 - GOV.UK