Figures from SDF’s Economic Wellbeing Explorer, a new, map-based research tool launched today in London, reveal that 43% of account holders in North East England had less than £100 in their bank accounts on two or more occasions in a single month.

This means that many households in places like Newcastle, Sunderland and Middlesbrough are struggling to cope with unexpected expenses, such as a broken appliance, a car or home repair, or a sudden loss of income.

South East Wales is close behind at 41%, followed by Yorkshire & The Humber at 40%. By contrast, in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, only 29% of account holders regularly fall below the £100 threshold.

Nationally, more than half of people aged 18 to 39 were found to have low financial resilience (56% in Scotland and England, and 59% in Wales), compared to just 10% of those aged 70 and over in all three nations.

Dougie Robb, CEO of Smart Data Foundry, said: “This is the first time we’ve been able to track, on a monthly basis, where the cost-of-living crisis is hitting hardest across Great Britain.

“Almost half of people in the North East have very little financial resilience, which is deeply concerning and reflects the mounting pressure of long-term price inflation, despite wages rising.

“However, the data also shows there has been a significant decrease in people living beyond their means (spending 120% of income) between September 2024 and September 2025 across GB. In England it has dropped from 20% to 13%, in Wales from 19% to 12% and in Scotland 19% to 12%. We believe these two trends show that whilst rising wages have helped to keep people afloat, rising costs are eating into their ability to build a financial buffer.”

The data, which is updated monthly, is the first to be released by the new GB-wide Economic Wellbeing Explorer (EWE), developed by Smart Data Foundry. It was unveiled to parliamentarians, researchers and the public during Evidence Week in Westminster.

It uses near real-time data from 5 million bank accounts and tracks economic resilience and wellbeing at national, regional, and local levels, and between age groups and income ranges.

Mr Robb added: “We launched the Economic Wellbeing Explorer in Scotland earlier this year and the response was so positive from local authorities and researchers that we have extended its reach further to include England and Wales too.

“This map-based platform gives policymakers near real-time insight into the areas and age groups who are struggling most, so that changes of policy and interventions can be made quickly when necessary.

“In the past, many policy and funding decisions were made using lagging statistics from surveys or censuses. Now we can use real-world data to show how economic trends are impacting people’s lives from month to month and from area to area. From that information, researchers and policy makers can build an accurate picture of the impact of financial shocks like the increase in the energy price cap or inflation spikes, and be more responsive in their decision making.”

The platform is now open for registration, offering trusted insights to help public institutions, NGOs, and researchers make evidence-based decisions on poverty and inequality.

Topline insights are available for free at a national and regional level, with deeper insights at a local level (Local Authority and neighbourhood level) available via subscription.

The launch follows a successful pilot with East Renfrewshire Council, where financial data was integrated with council data such as requests for financial support, and other public sector data such as DWP data on children living in poverty, to better understand the impact of the cost-of-living crisis. The council was able to target interventions more effectively, uncovering hidden pockets of deprivation that were previously missed. This allowed the council to target support in these emerging areas, intervening before financial struggles escalated further.

A spokesman for the council said: “The Economic Wellbeing Explorer has influenced decision-making around how and where we deliver supports, such as the Thrive Under 5 project.

“As the dashboard highlighted widespread need, we took the decision to open this project to families from any part of the authority and not just limit it to the most deprived areas. This has meant families who might not previously have been known to us have been supported by the project.

“We will continue to use the Economic Wellbeing Explorer to monitor changes by area, age, income level or over time. This will allow us to best understand need and make informed decisions based on the needs of our residents.”

The Economic Wellbeing Explorer is powered by data from NatWest Group, alongside contextual open data sources such as housing, education and demographic data. All data supplied to Smart Data Foundry is deidentified at source and is held and managed within a strict information governance framework to ensure security, privacy, and ethical standards.