However, while the best paid pensioners did well, single pensioners at the bottom of the pile saw just a 2% annual increase - equivalent to only £1 a week for some.

Independent consultancy Broadstone says its analysis of the DWP’s Pensioner Income Series found a “growing income gap” between the poorest and richest pensioners.

The research revealed that single pensioner incomes in the bottom 20% grew by only 2% before housing costs between 2010/11-2011/12 and 2020/21-2022/23, an average increase of just £208 a year.

In marked contrast, those in the top 20% enjoyed annual income growth over the same period of 9%, equivalent to £2,496 every year – an additional £2,288 more than those with the lowest incomes.

Broadstone said the contrast was even more marked after housing costs, with single pensioners in the bottom income quintile seeing their income increase by just £1 a week over the past decade. Those in the top quintile recorded income growth of £55 a week, or £2,860 a year.

A single pensioner in the bottom 20% saw 88% of their gross income before housing costs provided by the State Pension and benefits – a slight increase from 87% a decade earlier. Broadstone says this suggests they entered retirement with little in the way of pensions or other savings.

Damon Hopkins, head of DC Workplace Savings at Broadstone, said: “These figures show that the gap between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ in retirement has widened sharply.

“Single pensioners already face significant income pressures, especially as they must pay bills via a single income, but they have barely seen any increase in their income over the past 10 years.”