Guardian Invites UK Residents Under 30 to Share Experiences on Affording Pension Contributions Amid Cost-of-Living Crisis
The Guardian community team is inviting UK residents under the age of 30 to share their experiences regarding the affordability of contributing to a pension scheme. This call for contributions seeks to understand the financial pressures influencing young people's decisions about saving for retirement.
The context for this invitation reflects ongoing challenges, including a cost-of-living crisis in the UK. Notably, approximately 150,000 people have student loan debts exceeding £100,000, while renters typically spend around 36.3% of their income on rent. These factors are thought to significantly affect the ability and willingness of young people to contribute towards pensions.
Participants are encouraged to address questions such as how tax obligations and student loan repayments impact their capacity to save into pensions, the influences of rent and general living costs, as well as their views and concerns about retirement prospects.
Eligibility for submissions is open to individuals aged 18 and over who reside in the UK and are under 30 years old. Contributions can be submitted anonymously through an online form. Participants will be asked for details such as their name, location, age or background, current pension situation, reasons affecting affordability, and have the option to upload a photo. They will also be able to specify their preference for publication, including the choice to have their responses published in full, with contact details, or anonymised.
All responses will be encrypted upon submission, with data accessed only by Guardian staff and used exclusively for the feature. The information will be deleted when it is no longer required.
The Guardian plans to publish this feature on 31 December 2025, aiming to shed light on the real-life financial experiences and concerns of young people regarding pension contributions in the current economic climate.
