The cities where people will never retire

One in five people in Scotland say they will never be able to afford to retire - and one in four Glaswegians say they cannot imagine a time when it will be affordable to stop work. They might be right too, because people in Glasgow have less money saved in their pensions than anywhere in the UK - at just £18,000.

The cities where most people expect a traditional retirement are Plymouth, Manchester and Newcastle. The study, by Selftrade, found that in Plymouth 92% of people expect to be ale to stop work at some stage - and in Manchester and Newcastle 85% do.

Londoners present a bit of a mixed picture. They are not particularly keen to work past retirement age - and the average age they expect to hang up their work boots is 63. However, those who do plan to stay on at work are the most likely to continue in full time employment - four times more than in Brighton and Manchester.

Positives

Londoners are also more likely to take on higher paid, more demanding work past state pension age - around one in five will do this kind of work, compared to less than one in ten nationally.

This keen approach to work is despite the fact that Londoners have the highest average pension savings - at £47,000. They are followed by people from Edinburgh who have saved £43,000.

Bristolians, meanwhile, don't intend to keep working for the man. A quarter of them say they plan to start their own business during the traditional retirement period. People in Southampton, meanwhile, are the most likely to try to turn their hobby into a career - 38% of them want to make money from their passions.

In fact, this upbeat approach to working in retirement is more widespread than you might imagine, some 35% of people want to keep working in retirement because they believe it will keep their mind active. Those in the South East are most likely to want to keep their mind active through work (42%), compared to only 20% in the North East.

An enjoyment of working is also a popular reason for expecting not to retire. Those in Plymouth take the greatest enjoyment in their work (31%), while those in Nottingham take the least, at only 16%.

Not the only answer

While we show an impressive enthusiasm for working until we drop, Richard Donegan, Managing Director of Selftrade, is keen to point out that this isn't the only answer to shortfalls in retirement savings.

The research also found that a current account with a bank or building society is the most common way people save their money - with three quarters of people saving this way. Few people invest their savings, with just 15% holding their money in stocks and shares, 11% in Stocks and Shares ISAs, and 6% in SIPPs.

This is understandable, because there's an enormous fear of investing and a lack of understanding. However, people are not aware of the risks they are taking by holding their savings in this way. In the vast majority of current accounts - and most savings accounts - people are losing money after inflation, which means that each year your retirement savings are worth less and less.

When you invest in stocks and shares, there's a chance that you will see some major fluctuations in the short term, but studies have shown that in by far the majority of cases, if you have invested in the stockmarket instead of a bog standard savings account over a 10 year period, your money would have grown far more.

It's not for everyone, but at the very least we all need to look into this option - investing through an ISA or a pension - to see whether it would suit us for at least a portion of our savings.

Donegal says: "We're often surprised how much people have saved up, but hold in cash, our own research has revealed UK adults have £735 billion sitting in cash. While a cash buffer is important, current low interest rates mean that those who can afford to should consider other investment alternatives which could generate greater returns, particularly if they are thinking long-term".