London workers are the most pension-confident in UK, Sheffield the least

New Penfold research maps pension confidence across UK cities

Workers in London are more confident about their pension savings than those in any UK city, according to new research from workplace pension provider Penfold. Penfold’s UK Pension Map found that 61.6% of London workers believe their pension savings will be enough for retirement, compared with just 36.9% in Sheffield.

Across the UK, Liverpool (57.0%) and Manchester (56.2%) also ranked among the most confident cities. Glasgow (37.3%) joined Sheffield at the foot of the table, with more workers in both cities saying they lack confidence in their pension savings than those who say they have it.

Nationally, just over half of UK workers (52.85%) feel confident about whether their pension savings will be enough for retirement, while 42.45% do not. The research also found that fewer than one in five workers (17%) describe themselves as very confident about their retirement, while more than a quarter (26%) say thinking about their pension leaves them feeling anxious or confused.

Chris Eastwood, CEO and co-founder of Penfold, said: “It’s striking to see such a difference in pension confidence between workers in different parts of the UK. Auto-enrolment has got millions of people saving, but being enrolled does not necessarily mean people understand whether they’re on track for the retirement they want.

“The confidence gap between cities like London and Sheffield isn’t just a pension problem. The challenge for the industry is to make pensions easier to understand wherever people live. Giving people a clearer picture of what they’re building towards, and access to guidance when they need it, can help them feel more informed about their financial future,” concluded Eastwood.

UK city confidence rankings

UK Pension Map is Penfold’s ongoing study of pension confidence across the UK, based on a survey of 2,000 UK employees.