![\"Pensioner\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/pensioner.jpg\")
<\/p>\nLow-income pensioners across England, Scotland and Wales will see an increase in their income from April 6 as the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) raises Pension Credit payments.<\/p>\n
The standard minimum guarantee will rise by 4.8 per cent, in line with average earnings growth.<\/p>\n
For single pensioners, weekly payments will increase from \u00a3227.10 to \u00a3238, an uplift of \u00a310.90 per week.<\/p>\n
As the benefit is typically paid every four weeks, this equates to up to \u00a343.90 more per payment period.<\/p>\n
Couples will see their joint weekly rate rise from \u00a3346.60 to \u00a3363.25, an increase of \u00a316.65 per week.<\/p>\n
Over a full year, single pensioners receiving the maximum entitlement could gain \u00a3566.80, while couples could receive an additional \u00a3865.80 annually.<\/p>\n
Pension Credit also provides access to wider financial support, which can significantly increase its overall value.<\/p>\n
On average, the total support available through the benefit is estimated to be worth around \u00a33,000 per year, when additional entitlements are included.<\/p>\n
Pension Credit rises by 4.8 per cent from April 6 with boost worth up to \u00a3865 a year<\/p>\n
| <\/p>\n
GETTY<\/p>\n
Claimants aged 75 and over may qualify for a free TV licence, alongside support such as Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction.<\/p>\n
Additional help with heating costs is also available, particularly during colder months.<\/p>\n
The benefit is paid separately from the state pension, and eligibility is not limited to those without other income or savings.<\/p>\n
Applicants may still qualify even if they have other pensions, earnings or own their home.<\/p>\n
![\"Skyrocketing](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/skyrocketing-state-pension-age-will-you-be-affected.png\")
When the increase was confirmed in November, Baroness Sherlock said: “The Standard Minimum Guarantee in Pension Credit will increase by 4.8 per cent in line with the increase in average earnings.”<\/p>\n
She added: “From April, it will be \u00a3238.00 a week for a single pensioner and \u00a3363.25 a week for a couple, ensuring the incomes of poorest pensioners are protected.”<\/p>\n
Pensions Minister Torsten Bell added: “We’re committed to supporting harder-up pensioners however we can.”<\/p>\n
Mr Bell added: “Pension Credit is a simple way to give those who need it the most some extra support with bills or a free TV licence.”<\/p>\n
He said: “I’d urge anyone who thinks they, or anyone they know, might be able to claim Pension Credit, to take a few minutes out of their day to check and apply.”<\/p>\n
To qualify for Pension Credit, individuals must have reached state pension age and live in England, Scotland or Wales.<\/p>\n
The DWP assesses income when calculating eligibility, including state pension payments, other pensions, earnings and most benefits.<\/p>\n
Applications can be made up to four months before reaching state pension age.<\/p>\n
Claims can also be backdated by up to three months, meaning those already eligible may be able to receive payments for a previous period.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Low-income pensioners across England, Scotland and Wales will see an increase in their income from April 6 as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":511027,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[84,4176,2222,6215,4178,4174,4175,2221,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-511026","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-finance","10":"tag-money","11":"tag-pension-credit","12":"tag-pensions","13":"tag-personal-finance","14":"tag-personalfinance","15":"tag-state-pension","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom","18":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=511026"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511026\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/511027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=511026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=511026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=511026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}