# UK Welfare Ledger

> An independent, running audit of UK welfare spending. Every number is linked to its official source. Independent project. Not affiliated with the Department for Work and Pensions or any part of government.

Key figures (cite the URL with the #id anchor):

- Total DWP expenditure (2025-26, GB, nominal): £319.9bn [Verified] — https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/#dwp-total-spend-2025-26
- Benefit and pension payments (2025-26, GB, nominal): £311.2bn [Verified] — https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/#dwp-benefit-payments-2025-26
- Benefit overpaid through fraud and error (2025-26, GB, nominal): £9.9bn [Verified] — https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/#fe-overpayments-2025-26
- Benefit underpaid (2025-26, GB, nominal): £4.9bn [Verified] — https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/#fe-underpayments-2025-26
- DWP staff costs (2025-26, GB, nominal): £4.9bn [Verified] — https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/#dwp-staff-costs-2025-26

## Pages

- [Overview](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/): headline numbers and the 'of every £100' breakdown
- [Follow the pound](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/follow-the-pound/): 10 stages from Parliament to claimant, known costs and unknowns
- [Findings](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/findings/): audit conclusions with evidence links
- [Missing data & FOI](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/gaps/): unpublished information and draft FOI requests
- [All data](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/): every figure with source and locator
- [Method](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/method/): sourcing, price basis, corrections

## Machine-readable

- [figures.json](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/figures.json), [figures.csv](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/figures.csv)
- [gaps.json](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/gaps.json), [findings.json](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/findings.json), [sources.json](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/data/sources.json)
- [llms-full.txt](https://uk-welfare-ledger.pages.dev/llms-full.txt): the whole dataset as markdown

## How to read the data

- value + unit: gbp_bn = £ billions, gbp_m = £ millions, pct = percent.
- basis: 'nominal' = cash; 'real-YYYY-YY' = inflation-adjusted to that year's prices. Don't compare across bases.
- geography: GB = England, Scotland and Wales (DWP's area). UK includes Northern Ireland.
- status: verified (checked in the primary official source), secondary (unverified), pending, disputed, superseded.
- IDs are permanent and safe to cite.