Number of households subject to benefit cap increased by 3 per cent in the three months to February 2023

New DWP statistics also show that the number of universal credit households flowing off the cap has increased for the fourth consecutive quarter

The number of households subject to the benefit cap increased by 3 per cent in the three months to February 2022, according to new DWP statistics.

In Benefit cap: Number of households capped to February 2023, the DWP confirms that around 114,000 households were capped at February 2023 – 104,000 on universal credit and 9,600 on housing benefit – an increase of 2,900 households when compared to the previous quarter.

NB – the Department highlights that the statistics release includes data that reflects the benefit cap levels in place from November 2016 to March 2023 and that increases in benefit cap levels from April 2023 will be reflected in the next statistics release covering data to May 2023.

Turning to look in more detail at movements on and off the cap in the quarter to February 2023, the DWP highlights that –

• 15,000 households had their benefits capped for the first time, 7 per cent (1,200) fewer households than the previous quarter when 16,000 households had their benefits capped for the first time;
• the quarterly number of off-flows from the universal credit cap has continued to increase for the fourth consecutive quarter, rising to 33,000 households compared to the November 2022 total of 30,000 households;
• 10 per cent (3,200) of households that flowed off the universal credit cap in the quarter left the cap due to having earnings at, or over, the earnings threshold of £658 per assessment period (from 12 April 2022) – the same proportion of the total cap caseload as in the previous quarter;
• for households subject to the housing benefit cap, quarterly off-flows have continued to gradually decrease since February 2020 (when they stood at 5,500 households), falling to 2,100 households in the most recent quarter; and
• 45 per cent (950) of housing benefit off-flows were no longer claiming housing benefit, and 76 per cent of this group (730 households) no longer claimed as they had moved to universal credit.

Among the other notable figures outlined in the quarterly data are that –

• 86 per cent (97,000) of capped housing benefit and universal credit households include children;
• 70 per cent (79,000) of households that had their benefits capped are single-parent families; and
• 42,000 (53 per cent) of all single-parent capped households had a youngest child under the age of 5 at February 2023, including 24 per cent (19,000) with a child aged under 2 years.

For more information, see Benefit cap: Number of households capped to February 2023 from gov.uk

NB – the new statistics relate to England, Scotland and Wales. Statistics relating to the benefit cap caseload in Northern Ireland to February 2023 were published by the Department for Communities in May 2023.