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Universal credit

Anyone wishing to claim universal credit should go to the Gov.uk website.

Summary

Universal credit is a payment for people under state pension age and on a low income or out of work. It includes support for the cost of housing, children and childcare, and financial support for people with disabilities, carers and people too ill to work.

The latest complete figures are for April 2026.

In April 2026, the proportion of persons aged 16-65 on universal credit (UC) was 19.5% in the Lancashire-12 area, 21.7% in the Lancashire-14 area and 21.8% in the North West region. These were all higher than the England proportion of 19.1%.

Blackpool (33.7%) had the highest UC total proportion in Lancashire-14, followed by Burnley (29.2%), Blackburn with Darwen (28.5%), Pendle (28.0%), Hyndburn (27.8%), Preston (21.6%) and Rossendale (20.4%). All of these were above the England proportion. Ribble Valley (9.7%) had the lowest proportion.

Blackpool (30,299), Blackburn with Darwen (30,060), Preston (23,750), Burnley (18,507), and Pendle (17,332) had the largest UC totals in the Lancashire-14 area. Ribble Valley (3,895) had the lowest number.

Monthly change

Compared to the previous month, the total number of people claiming UC increased by 0.3% in Lancashire-12 and increased by 0.3% in Lancashire-14 (England = 0.3% increase). In Lancashire-14, all local authority areas saw increases in their UC totals between months, with the highest increase of 0.8% seen in Ribble Valley followed by Chorley (0.6%) and Blackburn with Darwen (0.5%).

Yearly change

Compared to the previous year, the total number of people claiming UC increased by 7.9% in Lancashire-12 and 7.8% in Lancashire-14 (England = 7.8%).

Blackpool (9.9%) had the largest yearly percentage increases, followed by Ribble Valley (9.7%), Chorley (9.6%), and Fylde (9.5%). Blackburn with Darwen (5.6%) had the lowest increase.

Universal credit sub-category

The 'not in employment' UC sub-category accounts for 61.5% of the total number of people on UC in England; in Lancashire-12 this percentage is 63.4% and in Lancashire-14 64.4%.

The yearly percentage increases for 'not in employment' in Lancashire-12 was 4.8% and in Lancashire-14 was 5.3%. In England, the number increased by 2.2%.

For 'in employment', the number of people claiming UC increased compared to the previous year in Lancashire-12 (13.6%) and increased in Lancashire-14 (12.8%). In England there was a 18.1% increase for this group of claimants.

In Lancashire-14, all areas recorded yearly increases to both the 'not in employment' sub-category of claimants and the 'in employment' sub-category of claimants.

Source: People on universal credit via DWP via Stat-Xplore and population estimates from the Office for National Statistics via the National On-line Manpower Information System (Nomisweb - population estimates and projections dataset), powered by LG Inform Plus.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) publishes universal credit statistics by local authority boundary. From May 2026, these figures are published quarterly, with the latest month not including the full breakdown by employment status. The chief statistician for the DWP designated these as official statistics from August 2023. The data can be sourced from the DWP Stat-Xplore online data selection tool. Further information on universal credit statistics can be found on the GOV.UK guidance page.

The bulk of the migration of claimants on the previous legacy benefits to universal credit was expected to be completed by March 2026, with an extension for certain legacy claims to July 2026.

Full service rollout

Lancaster became a universal credit full service area in July 2016 – the first in the Lancashire-14 area. Claims could then be processed online, rather than via the phone. More complex claims are also processed. The result was an acceleration in the number of persons claiming universal credit in Lancaster. This was followed by

  • Burnley, May 2017

  • West Lancashire, December 2017

  • Blackburn with Darwen and Hyndburn, February 2018

  • Preston and South Ribble, March 2018

  • Chorley, April 2018

  • Pendle, Ribble Valley and Rossendale, July 2018

  • Fylde, Wyre and Blackpool, September 2018

16-65 denominators

As from November 2024, the working age denominators have changed to those persons aged 16 to 65 (from 16 to 64). The working age proportions have been produced using the mid-year population estimates published by the Office for National Statistics.

Page updated 8 September 2026