Finance and housing, UK armed forces Veterans: Veterans’ survey 2022, UK

Abstract: Among UK veterans who provided their gross personal income, 5.8% said their income was less than £10,400 a year, 43.6% said their income was between £10,400 and £31,099 a year, 29.7% said their income was between £31,100 and £51,949 a year, 16.3% said their income was between £51,950 and £99,999, and the remaining 4.6% said their income was £100,000 a year or more. The survey attracted a higher proportion of veterans with a disability than we would expect of the veteran population, based on estimates from Census 2021; disability has a known relationship with income, and when we consider those who were disabled, 7.9% said their income was £10,400 a year or less, compared with 3.7% of veterans that were not disabled. Just over half (50.1%) of veterans disagreed to some extent and nearly a third (30.5%) agreed to some extent with the statement “In the last month I have had money worries”. This aligns with comparable data sources that have reported on anxiety or worry around finances among UK adults. Around 1 in 400 (0.3%) veterans said they were homeless, rough sleeping or living in a refuge for domestic abuse, and 9 in 400 (2.3%) said they lived long-term with family or friends. Just over 1 in 10 (10.8%) veterans that were homeless or rough sleeping said they had received government support, such as from Veterans UK or local councils; just over 1 in 20 (5.7%) veterans that were homeless or rough sleeping said they had received support from charities, such as Citizens Advice, Shelter or SPACES, to help with housing. Qualitative responses from veterans that had been homeless or rough sleeping in this article give more depth and context to how veterans feel they could have been better supported.