In May 2022, 49 percent of people in the United Kingdom advised that they were highly dissatisfied with the government's response to the cost of living crisis. High inflation has caused an economic crisis in the UK, with 87 percent of people reporting an increase in their cost of living as of March 2022.

In response to the cost of living crisis, the government of the United Kingdom announced a series of measures to help households in the country. The most widespread of these packages was a 400 British pound energy bill grant announced in 2022, which was allocated to all households in the country. The measure with the highest overall value was the cost of living payment, which will saw approximately eight million UK households on low income receive 650 pounds in two separate payments in 2022, and a further 900 pounds paid in three installments throughout the 2023/24 financial year.

In 2022/23, the government of the United Kingdom spent approximately 20 billion British pounds on the energy price guarantee policy, the most out of any other support policy announced to combat the Cost of Living crisis.

As of April 2025, 20 percent of people in the UK thought that the Labour Party would be the best at handling the economy, compared with 16 percent who believed that the Conservatives would be the best, while six percent thought the Liberal Democrats would handle the economy the best.

According to a survey conducted by Voxburner in 2022, approximately 69 percent of students in the UK thought that the government should be responsible for providing financial support during the Cost of Living Crisis.

The Local Government Administration industry faced challenging conditions from 2019-20 to 2021-22 due to issues presented by the pandemic. Demand for ancillary services like gyms and swimming pools plummeted, hindering local governments' ability to generate revenue from user-based charges, like service fees and fines. Despite a recovery in demand since restrictions were lifted, local governments have continued to face intense competition from private sector competitors. Rife inflation in the Australian economy has constrained local governments' ability to increase their revenue. The cost-of-living crisis has added another layer of consideration for local governments contemplating policy changes, as councillors try to avoid voter backlash at local council elections. The Victorian and New South Wales state governments have also enforced rate caps, limiting local authorities' power to increase household rates in line with high inflation. Despite an industrywide revenue decline, local governments have managed to expand their operating margins thanks to increased funding from upstream government grants and subsidies, as well as from outsourcing services, which has lowered wage costs. Revenue is expected to have crept downwards at an annualised 0.2% over the five years through 2024-25, to $61.4 billion. This trend includes an anticipated drop of 1.3% in 2024-25. Improvements in Australian economic conditions are forecast to foster revenue growth in the coming years. Rising economic activity is set to benefit local governments, as increased tax income in upstream government bodies places upwards pressure on funding and grants for local governments around the country. While increased consumer spending and government funding promise higher revenue, local governments’ not-for-profit nature is likely to escalate capital expenditure, driving up depreciation costs and pressuring operating margins over the next five years. The number of local governments is projected to remain stable due to the absence of planned council amalgamations. However, population growth trends may dictate future council mergers or demergers. Overall, industry revenue is forecast to grow at an annualised 2.2% over the five years through 2029-30, to total $68.5 billion.

The economy was seen by 49 percent of people in the UK as one of the top three issues facing the country in June 2025. The ongoing cost of living crisis afflicting the UK, driven by high inflation, is still one of the main concerns of Britons. Immigration has generally been the second most important issue since the middle of 2024, just ahead of health, which was seen as the third-biggest issue in the most recent month. Labour's popularity continues to sink in 2025 Despite winning the 2024 general election with a strong majority, the new Labour government has had its share of struggles since coming to power. Shortly after taking office, the approval rating for Labour stood at -2 percent, but this fell throughout the second half of 2024, and by January 2025 had sunk to a new low of -47 percent. Although this was still higher than the previous government's last approval rating of -56 percent, it is nevertheless a severe review from the electorate. Among several decisions from the government, arguably the least popular was the government withdrawing winter fuel payments. This state benefit, previously paid to all pensioners, is now only paid to those on low incomes, with millions of pensioners not receiving this payment in winter 2024. Sunak's pledges fail to prevent defeat in 2024 With an election on the horizon, and the Labour Party consistently ahead in the polls, addressing voter concerns directly was one of the best chances the Conservatives had of staying in power in 2023. At the start of that year, Rishi Sunak attempted to do this by setting out his five pledges for the next twelve months; halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce national debt, cut NHS waiting times, and stop small boats. A year later, Sunak had at best only partial success in these aims. Although the inflation rate fell, economic growth was weak and even declined in the last two quarters of 2023, although it did return to growth in early 2024. National debt was only expected to fall in the mid to late 2020s, while the trend of increasing NHS waiting times did not reverse. Small boat crossings were down from 2022, but still higher than in 2021 or 2020. .

While current revenue figures have seen continued growth for the five years through 2024-25, inflation has meant that it has materially declined over the same period. Currently, revenue for the Government Schools industry sits at an estimated $70.5 billion, reflecting an annualised contraction of 1.2% since 2019-20 and a 2.5% drop compared to 2023-24 figures. As the Australian population aged between 5 and 18 grows, demand for public schools continues to swell. Government schools are mainly funded by state and federal governments, with education being a critical part of their budgets. Secondary to this, schools also receive funding from donations and fundraising. However, the cost-of-living crisis has threatened this additional revenue stream. Many parents perceive private schools as of a higher quality than government schools, partly because of marketing efforts to boost their reputation. This competition has meant that public schools have faced staff shortages as teachers move to private schools to receive the higher salaries offered. Private schools can offer these wages as, unlike public education providers, they receive sizable fees from parents. In contrast, public schools operate not-for-profit, limiting their ability to pay staff higher salaries. Looking to the future, government schools will continue to derive growing revenue from government funding. The 2024-25 Victorian budget contains $753.0 million for school maintenance and upgrades, and $139.0 million for getting more teachers into schools as the state attempts to fight staff shortages. The NSW 2024-25 budget includes $8.9 billion to continue the development of school infrastructure in both regional New South Wales and the rapidly growing Western Sydney. Overall, government schools' revenue is expected to climb at an annualised 1.5% through the end of 2029-30, to total $75.9 billion.

In June 2025, 59 percent of households in Great Britain reported that their cost of living had increased in the previous month, compared with 72 percent in April. Although the share of people reporting a cost of living increase has generally been falling since August 2022, when 91 percent of households reported an increase, the most recent figures indicate that the Cost of Living Crisis is still ongoing for many households in the UK. Crisis ligers even as inflation falls Although various factors have been driving the Cost of Living Crisis in Britain, high inflation has undoubtedly been one of the main factors. After several years of relatively low inflation, the CPI inflation rate shot up from 2021 onwards, hitting a high of 11.1 percent in October 2022. In the months since that peak, inflation has fallen to more usual levels, and was 2.5 percent in December 2024, slightly up from 1.7 percent in September. Since June 2023, wages have also started to grow at a faster rate than inflation, albeit after a long period where average wages were falling relative to overall price increases. Economy continues to be the main issue for voters Ahead of the last UK general election, the economy was consistently selected as the main issue for voters for several months. Although the Conservative Party was seen by voters as the best party for handling the economy before October 2022, this perception collapsed following the market's reaction to Liz Truss' mini-budget. Even after changing their leader from Truss to Rishi Sunak, the Conservatives continued to fall in the polls, and would go onto lose the election decisively. Since the election, the economy remains the most important issue in the UK, although it was only slightly ahead of immigration and health as of January 2025.

As of May 2025, 36 percent of people in Great Britain thought that Keir Starmer was better for the job of Prime Minister than the Leader of the Opposition, Kemi Badenoch, with 25 percent believing she would be better for the job. Although Starmer is currently seen as better suited for the job as Prime Minister, the approval ratings for his government have declined considerably since winning the election, sinking to a low of -54 percent in March 2025. Sunak vs Starmer Shortly after succeeding Truss as Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak was seen by 30 percent of people as the best person for the job, just four percentage points behind Keir Starmer. Twenty months later, however, on the eve of the 2024 general election, just 19 percent of people thought Sunak was the best choice, compared with 35 percent for Starmer. Despite pledging to address the main issues facing the country at the start of 2023, Sunak struggled to convince voters. Although inflation peaked in 2022, and declined throughout 2023, the cost of living crisis afflicting people in the UK lingered on, while progress on improving the NHS proved elusive. The Conservatives suffered a clear defeat in the 2024 election, winning just 121 seats, compared with 365 in 2019. Scandals and mini budgets After becoming Prime Minister in late 2019, a series of controversies harmed the popularity of Boris Johnson among voters, and eventually forced his resignation. The Partygate scandal, which revealed that senior government officials held parties at Downing Street, during the COVID-19 lockdown, was the most severe. When the issue came to a head in Summer 2022, Johnson survived the initial political backlash, including an attempted vote of no-confidence in his leadership, but he was forced to resign his position after a wave of senior ministers resigned from his government between July 5-7, 2022. Although Liz Truss won the leadership contest that followed the resignation of Johnson, her time in office was by far the shortest of any Prime Minister. After an unorthodox mini-budget resulted in an acute economic crisis, she resigned her position after less than 50 days in the job

Over the five years through 2024-25, the nightclub industry’s revenue is expected to tumble at a compound annual rate of 14.2% to £764.4 million, including a 5.1% drop in 2024-25. The nightclub industry experienced immense revenue volatility due to the COVID-19 outbreak, which resulted in clubs closing temporarily over 2020-21. Following COVID-19, skyrocketing inflation led to consumers, especially younger demographics, becoming more budget-conscious, resulting in decreased spending on nightlife activities or avoiding clubbing altogether. The combined impact of COVID-19 and the cost-of-living crisis severely weighed on the performance of nightclubs. When COVID-19 was at its worst, stay-at-home and trading restrictions on the hospitality sector prevented nightclubs from generating revenue, with operational costs becoming unmanageable and pushing many nightclubs to close permanently. The lifting of restrictions on nightclubs led to a resurgence in revenue in 2021-22. However, the cost-of-living crisis has plagued the industry’s recovery, as many Britons reduced their spending on nightclub outings. COVID-19 also boosted the UK's downward trend in alcohol consumption, weighing on industry revenue. Persistent inflation and supply disruptions have severely impacted the industry's profitability. Clubs have faced significantly higher operational costs, primarily driven by increased energy, rent and labour expenses, resulting in many nightclub closures. With a lack of government assistance to support the industry, the future of nightclubs hangs in the balance. Industry revenue is forecast to dip at a compound annual rate of 0.2% over the five years through 2029-30 to £756.5 million. Nightclub owners will continue to face challenges. Without government intervention, like VAT reductions to offer financial relief, many clubs will close their doors due to financial losses and diminishing demand from consumers as alcohol consumption declines. With inflation subsiding, consumers will expand their spending as a growing number of clubs expand their offerings, including non-alcoholic options, in a bid to capitalise on this trend. Moreover, fierce competition from substitutes will persist, encouraging nightclubs to innovate their club experiences by investing in high-tech light and sound systems. However, many consumers will likely turn to bars, pubs and other social activities rather as nightclubs’ appeal diminishes.

Since the early 1970s the European Commission´s Standard & Special Eurobarometer are regularly monitoring the public opinion in the European Union member countries. Principal investigators are the Directorate-General Communication and on occasion other departments of the European Commission or the European Parliament. Over time, candidate and accession countries were included in the Standard Eurobarometer Series. Selected questions or modules may not have been surveyed in each sample. Please consult the basic questionnaire for more information on country filter instructions or other questionnaire routing filters. In this study all question modules are in the standard Eurobarometer context: 1. Standard EU and trend questions, 2. Europe 2020 strategy, 3. Financial and economic crisis, 4. European citizenship, 5. Living conditions in the EU.
Topics: 1. Attitudes towards the EU (standard EU and trend questions): life satisfaction; assessment of the current situation in the following areas: national economy, European economy, personal job situation, financial situation of the own household, national employment situation, quality of life in the own country, quality of life in the EU; expectations for the next twelve months regarding: personal life in general, national economic situation, financial situation of the own household, national employment situation, personal job situation, economic situation in the EU; most important problems in the own country, personally, and in the EU; assessment of the own country’s assumed membership in the EU as a good thing; trust in selected institutions: political parties, national government, national parliament, European Union, United Nations, regional or local public authorities; image of the EU; meaning of the EU to the respondent; most suitable attributes for describing the EU: modern, democratic, protective, efficient, bureaucratic, remote; approval of the following statements on the EU: creates conditions for more jobs in Europe, is responsible for austerity in Europe, makes doing business easier in Europe, generates too much bureaucracy, will emerge fairer from the crisis, makes the financial sector behave more responsibly, makes the cost of living cheaper in Europe, makes quality of life better in Europe, helps tackle global threats and challenges, helps protect its citizens, needs a clearer message; knowledge of and trust in selected institutions : European Parliament, European Commission, European Central Bank; knowledge test on the EU: number of member states, direct election of the members of the European Parliament by the citizens of each member state, Switzerland is a member of the EU; attitude towards the following issues: European economic and monetary union with one single currency, common foreign policy of all member states, further enlargement, common defence and security policy; satisfaction with the democracy in the own country and in the EU; approval of the following statements: respondent understands how the EU works, globalisation as an opportunity for economic growth, better development of the own country outside the EU, further development into federation of nation states, more decisions to be taken at EU level, need for a united Europe; current and prioritized main objective in building Europe; optimism about the future of the EU.

1. Europe 2020 strategy: likelihood to reach the following objectives by 2020: three quarters of people between 20 and 64 years of age having a job, share of funds invested in research and development reaching 3% of the wealth produced in the EU each year, reduction of EU greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20% (compared to 1990), increase of the share of renewable energy in the EU by 20%, increase of energy efficiency in the EU by 20%, reduction of the share of young people leaving school without qualifications to 10%, at least 40% of the people aged 30 to 34 having a higher education degree or diploma, reduction of the number of people living below the poverty line by a quarter; EU is going in the right direction to exit the crisis and face new global challenges.

2. Financial and economic crisis: impact of the economic crisis on the job market has already reached its peak; most effective institution to fight the effects of the financial and economic crisis: national government, EU, United States, G20, International Monetary Fund; approval of the following statements: own country needs reforms to face the future, EU member states should increase cooperation to tackle financial and economic crisis, measures to reduce public deficit and debt in the own country cannot be delayed, measures to reduce public deficit and debt in the own country are not a priority for now, EU has sufficient power and tools to defend its economic interests globally; assessment of the effectiveness of selected measures to tackle the current financial and economic crisis: more important role for the EU in regulating financial services, EU...

Organisations in the Community Services subdivision play an integral role in Australia's wider care and support economy. Subdivision operators help to arrange paid and unpaid care and counsel for individuals in need, including the economically disadvantaged and other vulnerable members of society like children and the elderly. Favourable demographic trends and ongoing government funding - especially funding associated with the staged aged care reforms, the 2023 Cheaper Child Care policy and the National Disability Insurance Scheme - have supported the subdivision's performance in recent years. With a growing number of Australians experiencing persistent social and economic disadvantages, housing insecurity and associated mental health challenges, the Community Services subdivision has become increasingly overstretched and underfunded, especially as government indexation continues to lag cost inflation. At the same time, recent national inquiries have exposed several failings in Australia's aged care, disability and mental health systems, with the subdivision being the subject of several Royal Commission reviews, including the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability. Sweeping regulatory reforms stemming from these Royal Commissions are now underway, shaking up the subdivision's operating environment. The subdivision's not-for-profit organisations and private enterprises are expected to receive $115.1 billion from government funding, donations and private income in 2025-26, following annualised growth of 7.3% over the past five years. This includes expected revenue growth of 2.0% in 2025-26, with legislative uncertainty and funding shortfall concerns constraining the ability of community service providers to help disadvantaged Australians grappling with the ongoing housing and cost-of-living crisis. Cost pressures, combined with increased regulatory burdens, will impact already slim profit margins during the year. Rising demand from Australia's ageing population and ongoing demand for child care services will support future industry growth, as will continued disadvantages for Australia's most vulnerable members of society. At the same time, labour shortages and profit margin pressures arising from long-term chronic underfunding will hamper the ability of the subdivision to meet demand. Further changes to the industry's operating backdrop in view of rising concerns over former government policies favouring the privatisation of aged care and child care may be imminent. Despite these challenges, revenue for the Community Services subdivision is forecast to climb at an annualised 4.0% through the end of 2030-31 to total $145.2 billion.

Since the early 1970s the European Commission´s Standard & Special Eurobarometer are regularly monitoring the public opinion in the European Union member countries. Principal investigators are the Directorate-General Communication and on occasion other departments of the European Commission or the European Parliament. Over time, candidate and accession countries were included in the Standard Eurobarometer Series. Selected questions or modules may not have been surveyed in each sample. Please consult the basic questionnaire for more information on country filter instructions or other questionnaire routing filters. In this study all question modules are in the standard Eurobarometer context: 1. Standard EU and trend questions, 2. Europe 2020 strategy, 3. Financial and economic crisis, 4. European citizenship.
Topics: 1. Attitudes towards the EU (standard EU and trend questions): life satisfaction; frequency of political discussions with friends; assessment of the current economic situation in the country, the european economy, and the world; assessment of the personal professional situation, the financial situation of the government budget and the labour market situation in the country; expected development in the above fields, as well as the own life; comparison of economic situation, labour market situation, cost of living, quality of life, quality of environment, public finances, perspectives for future, and situation of youth in the country with the average of the EU member states; main problems in the country and in the EU; own experience of these problems; future membership of own country in the EU as a good thing; advantages from the membership of country in the EU; development of own country and of the European Union in the right direction; institutional trust (parties, government, national Parliament, EU, UN, public services); assessment of the EU (image); importance of the EU for the respondent; image of EU: modern, democratic, efficient, protective, technocratic; attitudes towards selected statements on the EU (creates conditions for more jobs in Europe, responsible for austerity measures in Europe; facilitates transactions, creates too much bureaucracy, will be more equitable after the crisis, EU shares costs for crisis with financial sector, reduced the cost of living and improves the quality of life in Europe, helps containing global threats and challenges to protect citizens, requires a clearer message; awareness of selected institutions of the EU (European Parliament, European commission, council of the European Union, European Central Bank, European Court of Justice); trust in these institutions; knowledge about the EU (Number of Member States, direct election of the members of the European Parliament, EU membership of Switzerland); attitude towards the European Monetary Union with the euro as its common currency, EU enlargement, common foreign policy and security policy, European political parties present their candidates for the Office of President of the European Commission in the elections to the European Parliament; satisfaction with democracy in the own country and in the EU; attitudes towards selected statements (understanding of the functioning of the EU, political efficacy: own voice counts in the EU, voice of EU counts in the World, globalisation as an opportunity for economic growth, own country can cope alone with the negative consequences of globalisation, taking into account national interests in the EU, European Union protects from negative effects of globalisation (split A) or allows European citizens to benefit of the positive effects of globalisation (split B), better prospects for future for own country outside the EU, demand for development of the EU into a Federation of nation states); ask all: perceived and desired main objective for the construction of Europe; assessment of the current speed in the construction of Europe and desired speed; optimism with regard to the future of the EU.

1. Europe 2020 strategy: importance of selected initiatives to overcome the economic and financial crisis in the EU (scale: research and product development, improved quality of higher education in the EU, further development of the internet and IT industry by ultra-fast internet connections, support the economy in harmony with the environment, strengthening the competitiveness through business support, modernization of the labour market, support for poor and socially excluded); assessment of the likelihood of reaching selected targets the EU 2020 (jobs for three-quarters of men and women between 20 and 64 years, spending three percent of its annual wealth for research and development, reduction of greenhouse gases by at least 20% compared to 1990, boost the share of renewable energy and energy efficiency 20%, decline in the school-leavers without conclusion on 10%, increase the share of academics on 40%, reduction in the number of Europeans living in poverty to a quarter;...

Over the five years through 2024-25, revenue is projected to tumble at a compound annual rate of 1.9% to £4.2 billion. Coach and bus transport companies have been grappling with challenging operating conditions. High inflation has driven up fuel prices and staffing shortages have hindered both profitability and revenue. The lack of targeted government policies and funding for coaches and long-distance buses has further weighed on revenue. Despite these challenges, rail strikes and the cost-of-living crisis have created income opportunities, with more passengers turning to coach and bus travel as due to it being more reliable and affordable, boosting revenue prospects. While government schemes like the Bus Service Improvement Plan+ support some regional bus services, they fall short in assisting long-distance intercity bus and coach services. This lack of support underscores the government's limited backing of the industry. One major challenge facing the industry is a widespread shortage of drivers. To tackle this, coach and bus companies are intensifying efforts to attract and retain workers through initiatives like paid training programmes and expedited application processes. However, with limited government intervention, bridging this gap remains challenging. The driver shortage also adds to wage pressures, exacerbating the inflationary challenges companies face, including high vehicle and maintenance costs and volatile fuel prices. However, coach and bus operators are expanding their electric and hybrid fleets to meet net-zero emission targets, helping to reduce their reliance on fuel. Revenue is projected to climb by 1.4% in 2024-25 as ongoing cost-of-living pressures convince many customers to opt for cheaper travel options like coaches. Revenue is anticipated to swell at a compound annual rate of 1% over the five years through 2029-30 to reach £4.4 billion. Ongoing income pressures will persist in the medium term, bolstering demand for coach and bus services as alternatives to rail transport. Potential future rail strikes could further heighten demand. Government funding to improve roads and bus services, including implementing simpler and cheaper fares and more bus lanes, will support revenue. As the government continues introducing and expanding low-emission zones across major UK cities, bus and coach companies will keep investing in upgrading their fleets to hybrid and electric vehicles. The increasing number of inbound visitors and plans to expand the UK's airports will create more opportunities for airport shuttle services and contract hire options for day trips and excursions.

Retirement homes have faced a challenging period. They depend on self-funders or local council funding that covers the retirement needs of people who satisfy financial assessment means tests. Tightening government budgets have meant publicly funded fees have failed to cover providers’ operating costs in recent years, forcing retirement homes to cross-subsidise local authority beds with fees from self-funded residents. Revenue is anticipated to inch down at a compound annual rate of 0.2% over the five years through 2024-25 to £10.3 billion, but it’s set rise by 1.1% in 2024-25. Much of this is down to care homes fees mounting to cover costs and being paid for by self-funders, who are seeing their disposable income levels tick upwards in 2024-25. Although the ageing population supports revenue, constrained government spending, delayed reform changes and rising costs (particularly for labour) have put pressure on profit. Demand for beds far outstrips the supply, which is driving investment into the industry. The COVID-19 pandemic caused revenue to decline significantly in 2020-21, but the successful roll-out of vaccinations significantly reduced the death rate in care homes. This, combined with mounting demand from residents who had delayed joining a retirement home during the lockdowns, contributed to strong growth in revenue in 2021-22. Care homes fees then edged up in the three years through 2024-25 to cope with enhanced staffing costs, mounting mortgage payments and heightened energy costs – these were all the result of high inflation. This has been to the dismay of many retirees whose purse strings have tightened thanks to the cost-of-living crisis, making hit harder for them to afford to move into retirement homes. Higher fees have therefore dampened some of demand for beds, but they’ve also increased the overall takings of care homes. Retirement home revenue is expected to climb at a compound annual rate of 1.9% over the five years through 2029-30 to £11.3 billion, driven by an ageing population. By 2036, the number of people aged 85 and over will hit 2.6 million, representing 3.5% of the UK population, according to the Office for National Statistics. However, medical advances will make an older population healthier, allowing people to live independently for longer, dampening growth.

The Crisis and Care Accommodation industry forms part of Australia's community welfare sector and provides services for some of the most economically vulnerable people in Australian society, including children, those with long-term disabilities and the elderly. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis, a growing number of Australians were at increased risk of homelessness, with many experiencing financial hardship, persistent disadvantage and social exclusion. Stagnant wage growth in inflation-adjusted terms, heightened housing stress and associated incidences of family breakdown and family violence have boosted demand for crisis and care accommodation over the past few years. Given high inflation and rising rental costs, many of the industry’s clients have become increasingly vulnerable and their needs are also becoming more complex. Rising disability prevalence is creating additional challenges for residential care providers, with the Australian Bureau of Statistics finding that 5.5 million Australians had a disability in 2022 (latest data available). However, the ability to meet increased demand hasn't necessarily been matched by additional funding, constraining industry and profit growth. In light of these socio-economic variables and supply constraints, industry revenue growth is expected to be a modest 4.3% annualised over the five years through 2024-25 to $5.7 billion, including anticipated growth of 4.0% in the current year. Solid demand for residential care services will persist in the coming years, bolstered by a strong need for homelessness services as high rents and inflation exacerbate Australia’s housing crisis. An ageing population is set to continue driving demand for palliative care and respite services, while the existence of deep and persistent disadvantage among Australia’s most vulnerable population cohorts will continue to sustain demand for crisis and rehabilitation care. Government policies and associated regulatory reforms – including those stemming from the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability – will dictate the industry's operating environment. Industry growth rates will remain modest at 2.7% annualised through 2029-30, to reach $6.5 billion.

In December 2024, 11 percent of survey respondents said that the most important problem facing the United States was the high cost of living and inflation. Another 20percent said that the government and poor leadership was the most serious concern for the nation.

Following significant government support, 81.9% of secondary schools are now academies according to the government, with maintained schools increasingly converting. Both types remain under strict government guidelines, but academies can decide term dates, curriculums, subject choices and budget decisions. Despite several years of economic turmoil, government funding has remained strong because of the importance of maintaining and improving UK education standards. Secondary education revenue is expected to have grown at a compound annual rate of 1.4% to £66.1 billion over the five years through 2024-25, growing by 2.1% in 2024-25. The COVID-19 outbreak severely disrupted the day-to-day running of schools throughout 2020-21, with temporary closures forcing pupils to stay at home and learn online. The Educational Recovery Fund has supported educational catch-up, totalling around £5 billion in February 2022, preventing a significant drop in revenue during the COVID-19 outbreak. In cash terms, total funding for all state-funded schools totalled £60.7 billion in 2024-25 due to a £3.9 billion funding increase in 2024-25. Private school pupil numbers have marginally dipped, with the ISC recording a 0.1% decline in independent secondary school pupil numbers over the year through January 2024, with the cost-of-living crisis having squeezed some parents' purse strings. For the start of the 2024-25 academic year, private school enrolments were down, especially for new starters in their first year of secondary school, with the potenital for fee hikes if VAT is added in January 2025 looming. This could pose a threat to profit and place more pressure on state schools to open up available places. Secondary education revenue is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 2% to £72.9 billion over the five years through 2029-30. The number of international students attending independent schools has not fallen with immigration policies, as many independent schools hold Student Visa Sponsors. With school costs still continuing to grow by 4% in 2024-25, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, school funding per pupil will remain stretched.