Southampton: A city in debt

Southampton has been revealed as the UK’s most indebted city, and it isn’t only students who are to blame. According to a survey by the British Bankers’ Association, the city has the […]


Southampton has been revealed as the UK’s most indebted city, and it isn’t only students who are to blame. According to a survey by the British Bankers’ Association, the city has the highest level of personal lending per head in the country.

The average personal loan a Southampton citizen held was £1,880 – followed by £1,869 in Peterborough, and £1,550 in Newcastle. Broken down by into over 9000 postcode sectors, the data relates to debt at the end of 2013.

SO32 3 – which covers Eastleigh, Bishop’s Waltham, Corhampton, Droxford, Durley and Wickham – was the postcode that hit the highest amount of personal loan debt of the UK. Southampton also beat areas of central London, Preston, Leeds and Milton Keynes in the rankings, Manchester came 10th with a £1,259 average.

However, high lending figures do not necessarily mean poor financial health – people are more likely to be granted personal loans if they have a comparatively high income.

When your student loan comes in

Here are the top 10 postcode sectors with the highest amount of personal loan debt per person:

  1. Southampton (SO32 3)- £1,880
  2. Peterborough (PE7 0)- £1,869
  3. Newcastle upon Tyne (NE13 9)- £1,550
  4. East Central London (EC1V 2)- £1,440
  5. Preston (PR7 7)- £1,386
  6. Leeds (LS17 0)- £1,375
  7. Milton Keynes (MK42 6)- £1,331
  8. Galashiels (TD12 4)- £1,296
  9. Western Central London (WC1X 8)- £1,291
  10. Manchester (M3 3)- £1,259

It would seem that students aren’t the only ones in debt! What do you think of this news? Let us know in the comments!