Research by Age UK has found that an estimated 1.25 million women who are claiming State Pension are living below the breadline, the equivalent to one in five.
The charity says single female pensioners are at a much higher risk of being in poverty than single men and pensioner couples.
Their study also highlighted how pensioners from black and Asian communities, including men and women, are around twice as likely to be living in poverty as white pensioners - 33 per cent of Asian pensioners and 30 per cent of black pensioners compared to 16 per cent of white pensioners.
