Modernising support for independent living: the health and disability green paper - PIP consultation

The government announced significant proposed changes to PIP and are now consulting on their proposal.

The consultation will be open for 12 weeks and you are invited to share your views. The findings of the consultation, which closes on Tuesday 23 July, will inform future reforms.

How to respond -

Read the 'Modernising support for independent living: the health and disability' green paper so you understand the proposed changes and then respond online via the form.

If you are unable to use the online form email consultation.modernisingsupport@DWP.GOV.UK or respond by post, please mark your correspondence ‘Modernising Support: The Health and Disability Green Paper’ and send to:

Disability and Health Support Directorate
Department for Work and Pensions
Level 2
Caxton House
Tothill Street
London SW1H 9NA

Work and Pensions Select Committee has called on the National Audit Office (NAO) to investigate problems with the carer's allowance system

Committee chair says investigation merited given the scale of the problem, the cost to the taxpayer of a system that fails to prevent or rectify overpayments, and the lack of progress being made to address the issue.

Last month, Carers UK called for the wholescale reform of carers' benefits - following reports of claimants who have earned above the earnings limit while claiming carer's allowance being pursued for large overpayments and, in some cases, prosecuted for fraud - and the government confirmed that the DWP has issued almost 100,000 civil penalties in respect of overpaid carer's allowance over the last four years amounting to almost £5 million.

With the Chair of the Work and Pensions Select Committee Stephen Timms having said in a debate in Westminster Hall on 29 April 2024 that the DWP has 'done nothing' to stop carers building up huge overpayments despite knowing what people are earning, he has now written to Gareth Davies, NAO Comptroller and Auditor General, to say -

'This year we have held two evidence-sessions on carer’s allowance, in part looking at progress made since the NAO’s 2019 investigation report into this matter and our predecessor’s report. That evidence, alongside correspondence last year with the Department and information provided in response to parliamentary questions (see, for example, recent PQ responses, UINs 23249, 23251, 23252 and 23253), has led the Committee to conclude that problems remain with carer’s allowance.
We appreciate the NAO has limited resources, but we think a further investigation is merited, given the scale of the problem, the lack of progress made since 2019 and the cost to the taxpayer of a system that fails to prevent or rectify overpayments.'

Mr Timms' letter to Gareth Davies, NAO Comptroller and Auditor General is available from parliament.uk

DWP has confirmed that it plans to begin notifying employment and support (ESA) claimants of their move to universal credit in September 2024

Department says however that its delivery approach and timelines will be informed by detailed planning and engagement with stakeholders.

With the government having recently announced an acceleration of the 'Move to UC' for income-related ESA claimants, in the latest issue of its LA Welfare Direct newsletter the DWP says that, while its delivery approach and timelines will be informed by detailed planning and engagement with stakeholders -

'... our current planning assumption is that we would begin notifying this group in September 2024, with the aim of notifying everyone to make the move by December 2025.'

Note: the DWP also provided an update on its Move to UC communications campaign that launched in March 2024 -

'The campaign aims to tackle claimant fear and anxiety about moving to universal credit, using the headline ‘Keep things smooth by making the move to Universal Credit’.
Advertising also signposts to www.gov.uk/ucmove, which is a new website containing supportive information, real life case studies and advice on how to prepare for the move.'

LA Welfare Direct 5/2024 is available from gov.uk

Government has confirmed that the Work and Health Programme (WHP) will continue to be delivered until July 2026

Update follows news that the programme is being 'quietly scrapped' to be replaced by elements of the government's new Back to Work Plan.

While the WHP was originally scheduled to stop taking all referrals at the end of October 2022, the DWP extended the deadline for the Disability and Early Access Groups (people who may need support to move into employment and are in one of several priority groups, for example homeless, ex-armed forces, care leavers, and refugees) to autumn 2024.

However, reports in the media last month said that the programme is being 'quietly scrapped' - to be replaced by elements of the government's new Back to Work Plan including Restart - and Maximus, who deliver the WHP in parts of the country on behalf of the DWP, said that as a result of the ending of the programme -

'This is the first time for a long time that ... there is no specialist disability provision in place for people who require it, from November of this year.'

However, responding to a parliamentary written question, Work and Pensions Minister Mims Davies confirmed that, while the DWP plans to deliver a range of other support to put in place an 'offer' to a broader range of disabled people -

'The Work and Health Programme will continue to be delivered until July 2026 [and] further announcements on the programme will be made in due course.'

For more information, see Written question: Work and Health Programme from parliament.uk

Government announced the 15 areas that will trial its new WorkWell integrated health and work advice service from October 2024

Joint DWP and Department of Health and Social Care programme will connect almost 60,000 people to local support services so they can get the 'tailored help they need to stay in or return to work.'

As part of the government’s plan to get people with health conditions back to work - that also includes proposed changes to personal independence payment entitlement rules, reform of the fit note process, and boosting support programmes such as NHS Talking Therapies - the new £64 million WorkWell pilot will deliver -

'... joined-up work and health support [that] will connect 59,000 people ... to local support services including physiotherapy and counselling so they can get the tailored help they need to stay in or return to work.'

Providing further details, the government confirmed that WorkWell is a voluntary service and that participants do not need to be claiming any government benefits. After self-referring, or being referred through their GP, employer or the community sector, people will receive personalised support from a Work and Health Coach to understand their current health and social barriers to work and draw up a plan to help overcome them. Work and Health Coaches will also -

• provide advice on workplace adjustments, such as flexible working or adaptive technology;

• facilitate conversations with employers on health needs; and

• provide access to local services such as physiotherapy, employment advice and counselling.

In addition, the government confirms that it is also rolling out 'fit note trailblazers' in some of the WorkWell pilot areas to ensure people who request a fit note have a work and health 'conversation' and are signposted to local employment support services so they can remain in work -

'The trailblazers will trial better ways of triaging, signposting, and supporting people looking to receive a fit note and will be used to test a transformed process to help prevent people with long-term health conditions falling out of work, including referral to support through their local WorkWell service.'

The 15 pilot areas - that will each decide the exact support to be made available that’s best suited to the needs of their local area - are -

• Birmingham and Solihull

• Black Country

• Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire

• Cambridgeshire and Peterborough

• Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly

• Coventry and Warwickshire

• Frimley

• Herefordshire and Worcestershire

• Greater Manchester

• Lancashire and South Cumbria

• Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland

• North Central London

• North West London

• South Yorkshire

• Surrey Heartlands

With the pilots covering a third of Integrated Care Boards across England, the government advises that the success of the testing phase will inform the possible future rollout of a national WorkWell service.

Announcing the pilot areas in a written statement in Parliament, Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride said -

'Good work is good for people’s physical and mental health, wellbeing and resilience. We want to make sure more people can reap these benefits by getting the timely health and employment advice and support they need to remain in work or return quickly...
WorkWell will remove existing silos between work and health to improve work outcomes, for the benefit of individuals, communities and the economy... The reforms will be brought together by testing a new fit note process in some WorkWell pilot areas to offer better triage, signposting and support to those who need it. This will mean more people have easy and rapid access to specialised work and health support to help them stay in or get back to work.
WorkWell has employment at its heart; integrating work and health services locally to improve health outcomes, reduce health disparities, and help people get timely access to the support they need to return to and remain in work.'

For more information, see New £64 million plan to help people stay in work from gov.uk

Lords Committee criticises ‘inexplicable’ lack of data evaluating previous Administrative Earnings Threshold increases in light of new regulations that implement a further increase this month

A House of Lords Committee has criticised the ‘inexplicable’ lack of data evaluating previous increases in the Administrative Earnings Limit (AET) in September 2022 and January 2023 in light of new regulations that implement a further increase of the threshold from 13 May 2024.

With the DWP having refused to delay or slow down the implementation of a third increase in the AET in universal credit this month - as recommended by the Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) to give the Department more time ‘to build the evidence base’ for the changes - the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee of the House of Lords has drawn the new regulations to the 'special attention of the House' on the ground that -

'… the explanatory material laid in support provides insufficient information to gain a clear understanding about the instrument’s policy objective and intended implementation.'

In particular, the Committee highlights that –

'At paragraph 5.24 of the Explanatory Memorandum (EM) to this latest instrument, DWP states that evaluations of the previous increases to the AET are ‘currently ongoing.’ We find the lack of data inexplicable, since [the then Minister of Employment] Mr Opperman’s letter said that 'earnings increases will take around 6-9 months to materialise', and the two preceding instruments took effect in September 2022 and January 2023 respectively. We intend to seek oral evidence from the Minister on this point.'

The Committee also restates the conclusion from its report on the January 2023 AET increase - that without proper evaluation of the impact of previous increases, further legislation is 'premature' - and adds that the SSAC's report on this third increase follows similar lines. For example, the Committee highlights the SSAC's recommendation that the Department needs to present more information about the impact of the changes on vulnerable claimants -

'While DWP states in its response to SSAC that there is guidance to inform work coaches of the available easements and support paths for all customers with complex circumstances, Parliament may wish to have information on how often these mechanisms have been used in the last two years. It would also be useful to have information on how many claimants have successfully increased their earnings and how many have ceased to claim universal credit or moved into sickness benefits.'

The Committee adds that -

'We intend to seek oral evidence from the Minister to provide more information on the wider impacts of this initiative, better to inform the House.'

For more information, see Drawn to the special attention of the House: Universal Credit (Administrative Earnings Threshold) (Amendment) Regulations) 2024 from parliament.uk

DWP launches a new digital service to allow disabled people to apply for Access to Work grants online

Digitisation of process further modernises the programme and will make it easier to apply for help, says DWP Minister.

The DWP says that it is making the funding for help with workplace adjustments available through the gov.uk website for the first time as part of its wider commitment to improve the lives of disabled people in the workplace. The DWP adds that it anticipates that, as a result, the customer experience will be a lot easier and more efficient, with no difference in the information requested from the department.

Introducing the new service, Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, Mims Davies, said -

'Access to Work helps thousands of disabled people and those returning to work who are sick by giving them and their employers the resources to help introduce suitable workplace adjustments.
Digitisation of Access to Work further modernises the programme to make it easier to apply for grants or claim payments.'

NB - this announcement on 8th May follows the government having recently confirmed that there were almost 30,000 people waiting for a decision on their Access to Work application in March 2024.

For more information, see DWP's Access to Work applications go digital from gov.uk

DWP is undertaking research to explore options for enabling appointees to complete personal independence allowance (PIP) forms online

Evidence sought from local authorities, charities and support organisations to better understand appointees’ current processes and difficulties.

In the latest issue of its LA Welfare Direct newsletter, the DWP says -

'We are ... looking to conduct some research to better understand appointees’ current processes and difficulties. The intention of this research is to inform future design of the online service.
The research will include speaking to appointees from local authorities, charities, support organisations or similar; rather than those acting personally (for example, for a friend or relative).
Therefore, if you have acted as an appointee for PIP in this capacity for one or more applicants within the past 12 months, then we would really appreciate talking to you.

To help in collecting evidence, the Department has launched a PIP Appointees user research survey that is open until 31 May 2024.

LA Welfare Direct 5/2024 is available from gov.uk

Note: earlier this year, the DWP advised the Work and Pensions Committee as part of the Committee's inquiry into safeguarding vulnerable claimants, that it is building a digital solution to 'strengthen and improve' its appointee system.

While Restart Scheme provides tailored support for some participants it is less able to help those with physical or severe mental health conditions, the long-term unemployed and the more highly skilled

Evaluation of the scheme also reports mixed views about the value of mandatory participation, and presents clear evidence that the administrative process of mandation did not work effectively.

Launched in June 2021 with the aim of providing up to 12 months of support to people who are long-term unemployed to help them return to work, the Restart Scheme was established in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, with £2.9 billion of funding announced in November 2020. However, this cost estimate was reduced to around £1.7 billion following the DWP's reassessment of expected demand for the programme to be around 0.7 million people, far lower than original projections.

The new report published on 9th May, The Evaluation of the Restart Scheme, sets out a wide range of evidence from surveys of participants and Restart providers, and case study research with Jobcentre Plus staff, participants, Restart providers, employers, and wider stakeholders.

Findings in relation to the effectiveness of the scheme and recommendations for future delivery of employment support include -

Participant outcomes

The report highlights that participants have achieved positive outcomes both in terms of sustainable employment outcomes and wider outcomes (including well-being, qualifications, proximity to the labour market and job-searching skills), with those with a more consistent work history, women, those with a child aged under 19, those with English as a second language and those with higher qualifications more likely to gain employment.

However, the report also finds that -

• those with health conditions or caring responsibilities (such as caring for someone with a health condition, disability, or an older person) are less likely to achieve an employment outcome;

• while nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) of participants found the Scheme useful, findings from the survey suggest that participants with higher qualifications, those who had worked more since leaving school and the self-employed are less likely to find it useful; and

• while a greater proportion of Restart participants are in work than non-participants, similar proportions of participants and non-participants are claiming universal credit, suggesting that the outcomes achieved from participating in the programme are not always sufficient to move eligible participants off universal credit.

Wider findings

Among the report’s wider findings are that -

• referral volumes are generally lower than expected and participants are presenting with higher needs and more substantial barriers than anticipated;

• providers are concerned about what they see as high levels of ‘unsuitable’ referrals;

• the referral process generally works well after some initial challenges but there is some evidence of a lack of clarity on the part of both Jobcentre Plus and providers, particularly over which participants should be referred to which programme of support;

• participants’ relationship with their Restart Employment Advisor is a key determinant in participant experience, with poorer outcomes reported where they feel their needs are not understood, or that their advisor does not have the skills needed to help them;

• while there is some evidence of tailoring for individual participants - such as to help with childcare needs or for those with transport barriers - the scheme is less able to help those with physical health conditions or more severe mental health conditions, the longer-term unemployed (generally more than two years) and the more highly skilled;

• there is less evidence of providers designing or tailoring their support service in accordance with the local labour market;

• communication between Jobcentre Plus and providers is important in determining participant experience;

• there is mixed evidence on whether mandation is effective for encouraging engagement, with some providers and Jobcentre Plus seeing it as essential, while others are much less sure of its value; and

• there is clear evidence that the administrative process of mandation has not worked effectively, with providers not generally understanding the process, finding it time-consuming, and having to wait a long time for responses from Jobcentre Plus.

Considerations for future delivery

Going forward, the report sets out key lessons to be learnt from the research findings and issues that the DWP should give further consideration to, including -

• whether more targeted referral criteria in future programmes would allow for more effective support;

• how people with health needs are supported within future employment support provision;

• the effective management of the end-to-end mandation process;

• the effectiveness of Customer Service Standards and performance management to ensure future programmes deliver a minimum service standard to all participants;

• how guidance on referral criteria is communicated to Jobcentre Plus and providers;

• how the more highly skilled or those with specialist qualifications can be supported;

• sharing good practice in how to recruit, train, and retain Employment Advisors with providers; and

• how to encourage good communication between Jobcentre Plus and providers, and between providers and employers.

For more information, see The Evaluation of the Restart Scheme from gov.uk

Scotland - Scottish Parliament consents to UK Parliament legislating for DWP’s new powers to access claimants’ bank account data on its behalf

Social Justice Minister says providing legislative consent ‘allows us to maintain the Agency Agreements for the delivery of social security payments in Scotland and safeguard the important work that Social Security Scotland does’.

The Scottish Parliament has agreed that the UK Parliament can consider the social security bank spying measures within the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill on its behalf.

In preparation for a debate in the Scottish Parliament on a 'legislative consent motion' on the Bill - that provides (or refuses) consent for the UK Parliament to pass legislation on a devolved issue over which the devolved government has legislative authority - the Social Justice and Social Security Committee reported on the Scottish Government's position in relation to powers proposed by the Bill including the power to require information for social security purposes.

Note: Clause 131 and Schedule 11 of the Bill require third parties throughout the UK, such as banks, to provide information on accounts they hold linked to those in receipt of social security benefits.

The Committee confirmed that -

'The Scottish Government is recommending legislative consent to the social security measures … because –
the implications are 'theoretical' only and unlikely to be applied to devolved benefits; and
if refusing consent led to DWP ending Agency Agreements that would put case transfer at risk.'

In addition, the Committee set out the Scottish Government's reasons for considering the implications for devolved benefits as 'theoretical' -

• full rollout of the information-seeking powers will not occur until Agency Agreements for devolved benefits have ended; and

• the initial focus is on universal credit, with no intention to use the powers for devolved Agency Agreement benefits.

On the legislative consent motion debated in the Scottish Parliament, Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice Shirley-Anne Somerville reiterated the government's position on the social security measures in the Bill, saying -

'... agreement with clause 131 of the bill, regarding the power to provide information for social security purposes, would allow us to maintain the Agency Agreements for the delivery of social security payments in Scotland and safeguard the important work that Social Security Scotland does.'

Following the debate, MSPs agreed to pass the motion without a vote -

'That the Parliament agrees that the relevant provisions in the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, introduced in the House of Commons on 8 March 2023 and subsequently amended, so far as these matters fall within the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament should be considered by the UK Parliament.'

The Official Report of the meeting of Parliament: 9 May 2024 is available from parliament.scot