Families 'cutting back on food and fuel to pay the mortgage or rent'

The homelessness charity Shelter reports a 60% increase in the number of families who are cutting back on essential spending, so they can afford their mortgage or rent, since 2008.

According to the charity, more than one in five has cut back on how much gas and electricity they used in the last twelve months for the same reason. Even more people are cutting food spending to pay housing costs - just over one in three of us are doing so, a rise of 44% since 2008.

The YouGov survey of 4,014 UK adults paints a picture of families all over the UK cutting back on essential spending just to keep a roof over their heads. The survey could suggest that as many as 10 million people are cutting back on fuel for their home and 16 million are cutting back on food to stay in their homes.

A spokesperson for debt management company Gregory Pennington commented: "Many families need to rein in spending from time to time and it's more likely to happen during a recession. However, most people would agree that there's a limit to how much anyone can cut back their spending, particularly on essentials like food and fuel. If you are being forced into debt to pay your living costs, we recommend speaking to a debt expert."

Lucy Bower