Wellingborough and Corby workers among the lowest paid in Britain

Residents of Wellingborough and Corby are among the lowest paid in Britain, new figures from the Office for National Statistics have revealed.

Those living in the two towns have lower wages than all but four areas in the East Midlands - and are 19th worst paid of all listed local authority areas in Britain.

Median weekly earnings in both Wellingborough and Corby in 2020 were £491.20, nearly £100 less than the median weekly UK wage of £587.10

Worse still, Wellingbourgh and Corby both saw a drop in weekly pay with Corby residents’ pay falling by £18 from £509.20 in 2019 and Wellingborough residents’ pay dropping by £7.80 from £499.

Top earners in the county were South Northamptonshire residents, coining in £603.10 in weekly earnings, followed by East Northamptonshire with £586.4.

In third in the county Daventry came in at £566.30, pipping Kettering with weekly earnings coming in at £559.

Bringing up the rear were Northampton at £529.50 a week with both Corby and Wellingborough in joint last with £491.20.

With the tightening grip of coronavirus, latest figures also showed bad news in relation to unemployment with rates increased in all regions of the UK.

Comparing September to November last year compared to September to November 2019, according to the ‘Labour market in the regions of the UK: January 2021’ Office for National Statistics report, the East Midlands unemployment figure went from 3.9 per cent to 5.6 per cent.

UK redundancies also reached a record high of 14.2 per thousand in September to November 2020.

Money advice agencies have urged people to take action to increase their financial resilience and seek help if they get into difficulties.

Lorraine Charlton, senior debt expert at Citizens Advice, said: “The economic impact of coronavirus has had a huge impact on millions of people's finances and many will have fallen behind on essential payments.

“For anyone in debt, the first step is to work out how much you owe. Make a list of whom you owe money to and add up how much you need to pay each month.

“Next you need to prioritise your debts. Rent or mortgage arrears, energy bills and council tax are your priority debts as there can be serious consequences if you don’t pay them.

“Many organisations have put in place protections for people who’ve struggled to pay their bills during the pandemic, so you should contact them to talk about your problems as soon as possible.

“If you’re worried about debt, your local Citizens Advice office can offer free and independent support to help you deal with your debts and get back on your feet.”

Budgeting apps and other services are available to keep an eye on your personal finances. Click here to find out more about how to manage your finances using Open Banking.