Seven million households in England, Scotland and Wales are expected to miss out on about £24.1 billion of financial help and support in 2025-26 because they do not claim benefits and social tariffs, new analysis by Policy in Practice shows.

The research, which covers central benefits such as universal credit and pension credit, local authority help including free school meals and council tax support, and social tariffs from water, energy and broadband providers, attributes most unpaid support to three barriers: lack of awareness, complexity of the claiming process and stigma around applying.

"There are three main barriers to claiming — awareness, complexity and stigma," said Deven Ghelani, founder and chief executive of Policy in Practice. He said people often do not know benefits exist, assume they will not qualify, find the forms and evidence requirements too difficult to complete repeatedly, or feel ashamed or distrustful of the organisations administering support.

Policy in Practice estimated £19 billion went unclaimed in 2023-24 and about £23 billion in 2024-25; the group said the latest calculations are more detailed than in previous years. The organisation also noted some positive trends: growing take-up of pension credit among older people and local authorities reaching up to 95% of eligible students for free school meals through better use of data.

Personal accounts cited by BBC News highlight the practical difference claimed benefits can make. Andrea Paterson in London said she persuaded her mother, Sally, to apply for attendance allowance on behalf of her father, Ian, after hearing about the benefit on Radio 4's Money Box in December. The family later received the higher rate of £110 per week, which Andrea said helped compensate for the loss of winter fuel payment and eased daily financial worries before Ian died in May.

"£110 per week is a lot of money and they weren't getting the winter fuel payment anymore," Andrea said. "I think it eased that worry a little bit and it did allow them to keep the house [warmer]."

Campaigners and analysts point to pension credit as a key "gateway" benefit because it can unlock additional support such as council tax reductions, free dental treatment, help with spectacles and eligibility for warm home discounts. Robin, from Greater Manchester, told the BBC pension credit was essential to his finances and that it enabled him to access a range of other supports.

The government said it is promoting benefits through public campaigns and funds a free Help to Claim service. A government spokesperson said ministers are developing skills and opening up opportunities so more people can move into work while ensuring the welfare system remains available to those who need it.

Government figures show forecasted spending on the social security system in England, Scotland and Wales is £316.1 billion in 2025-26, equivalent to about 10.6% of GDP and 23.5% of the total government spend.

Mr Ghelani said making claiming harder does not reduce costs and warned against relying on complexity to contain spending. "On the one hand you've designed these systems to get support to people and then you're making it hard to claim. That doesn't make any sense," he said.

Policy groups and advisers recommend that people who think they may be eligible should apply, particularly for pension credit, because of the cascade of additional assistance it can produce. The analysis underscores longstanding concerns that a significant proportion of public support remains unclaimed and highlights ongoing efforts by some authorities to improve identification and outreach.

The findings come as policymakers and charities consider how best to increase access to existing support amid rising living costs, and as officials balance outreach efforts with broader welfare and employment policy objectives.