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THE national average cost of retirement has been found to be £11,830 a year, figures reveal.

That’s how much pensioners pay for basic bills such as food, clothes and utility bills and on eating out and entertainment.

The weekly bill is £227.50 per person, 35 per cent more than the full basic state pension of £168.60 – available to those who qualify.

This highlights how vital it is that people have other sources of income during retirement to ensure they aren’t forced to attempt to exist on the state pension alone.

Equity release firm Key analysed the latest Government spending figures and found the two biggest weekly costs were gas, electricity and water bills and food costs.

Combined, they account for 20 per cent of spending – costing around £2370 a year on average. ■■ANALYSIS of the nation’s finances reveal the outlook is bleak for many people.

Three in 10 of us spent more than the income we received in the past month, while one in four of us does not have any savings to fall back on, according to research from insolvency trade body R3.

This follows data from the Office for National Statistics, which showed households have been in a budget deficit for a record nine consecutive quarters (from October 2016 to December 2018) and the average UK household spent £900 more than it received in income during 2017. ■■COMPETITION in the easy access savings market continues with banks tweaking rates to stay at the top of the best buy table.

Some of the best rates include Virgin Money’s E-Saver at 1.5 per cent, Marcus by Goldman Sachs online saver which pays 1.49 per cent and Paragon Bank, Sainsbury’s Bank and Tesco Bank, which all provide an annual return of 1.45 per cent. BY TRICIA PHILLIPS WHEN it comes to managing money, about 18million adults can’t count on numeracy skills to keep them out of debt.

They just muddle along getting deeper into trouble simply because they can’t do basic maths.

Whereas those who can do it have more savings and are better at staying out of debt, research by the Money Advice Service reveals.

Today is National Numeracy Day, an event to raise awareness of the importance of being confident with numbers, so you can improve your finances and everyday lives.

Too many of us simply shrug off the importance of this vital life skill, saying: “I’ve never been good at maths.”

But it can have a huge impact on so many people, even affecting their ability to get a decent job.

Not being able to do basic sums or percentages can also leave you stuck with duff financial deals as you can’t compare costs.

You’re more likely to get shortchanged when shopping – and pay over the odds for goods as you’re unable to understand discounts and work out the best prices.

Mike Ellicock, CEO of National Numeracy, says: “You don’t need to be a maths expert to manage your finances. You do need to have good “number sense” to have good “money sense”.

“Numbers are central to understanding how the decisions we make about borrowings and savings will play out over time and affect our monthly cash flow.

“Many of us are left behind. The average annual cost of poor numeracy is £460 a year per person. National Numeracy Day is about helping people find the confidence and skills to use numbers in everyday life.”

Don’t lose out – read our case study and top tips and take the National Numeracy Challenge at numeracyday. com – it’s free but could end up helping you save money.