HUNDREDS of people die in poverty in south Essex every year, according to new estimates.

End-of-life charity Marie Curie said it was "shocking" that more than 90,000 people across the UK pass away while living in poverty annually and called for urgent action from the Government.

And the findings could be an underestimate as research by Loughborough University on behalf of the charity analysed data from before both the coronavirus pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis.

Here is what the estimates suggest for each part of south Essex:

Basildon

Around 189 people in Basildon died in 2019 having experienced poverty in the last year of their life – around 12 per cent of the total number of deaths in the area.

Of the 189 deaths, 135 are estimated to be pensioners, and 54 working age.

Southend

Around 235 people in Southend died in 2019 having experienced poverty in the last year of their life – around 13 per cent of the total number of deaths in the area.

Of the 235 deaths, 164 are estimated to be pensioners, and 71 working age.

Castle Point

An estimated 88 people in Castle Point died in 2019 having experienced poverty in the last year of their life – around 8 per cent of the total number of deaths in the area.

Of the 88, 67 are estimated to be pensioners and 21 working age.

Thurrock

In Thurrock, around 152 people died in 2019 having experienced poverty in the last year of their life – around 13 per cent of the total number of deaths in the area.

Of the 152 deaths, 107 are estimated to be pensioners, and 44 working age.

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More than 15 per cent of the nearly 605,000 people who died in the UK in 2019 are estimated to have experienced poverty in the last year before their death.

Researchers modelled estimates using a combination of data from a survey which closely followed the lives of thousands of people from 2009 to 2019, and local figures on deprivation.

For most of the findings, the Social Metrics Commission's definition of poverty was used which examines how much someone’s resources, after housing costs, meets their needs – including "inescapable costs" such as childcare and disability.

Marie Curie is calling for urgent action to give terminally ill people of working age access to their State Pension, and warned the benefits system is failing to keep working-age people out of poverty at the end of their lives.

Matthew Reed, chief executive of the charity, said: "No one wants to imagine spending the last months of their life shivering in a cold home, struggling to feed themselves, their children, and burdened with the anxiety of falling into debt.

"But for 90,000 people a year that is their reality.

"We are staggered to see the scale of poverty among dying people – it is shocking."

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The Department of Work and Pensions said those nearing the end of their lives can get fast-track access to a range of benefits without needing a face-to-face assessment or waiting period.

A DWP spokesman said policies announced in the Queen's Speech mean more people at the end of life will be able to access some benefits earlier.

He added: “The Government is taking decisive action to ease pressures on the cost of living, including spending £22 billion across the next financial year to support people with energy bills and cut fuel duty, and our £1 billion Household Support Fund is helping the most vulnerable with essential costs.”