The Minister for Employment (Jo Churchill)
The Department for Work and Pensions would like to announce the outcome of the grant competition to identify an organisation to continue providing support for customers making a new claim to universal credit.
Citizens Advice and Citizens Advice Scotland will continue to deliver the support independently across England, Scotland and Wales, with up to a further £38 million investment planned for two years from April 2024. This means that free confidential and impartial support will continue to be available to help people make a new universal credit claim, including those invited to move from legacy benefits to universal credit, and manage their claim, up to receiving their first correct payment.
As there is no change in the substance of support provided, the “Future Support Offer 2024” name, used during the competition to indicate that DWP was looking for future provision, will revert to “Help to Claim”. The decision to retain the name reflects the fact that Help to Claim is a recognisable brand, both to people who will be using the support and to the people who will be providing that support.
Since April 2019, Help to Claim has supported nearly 900,000 people, with nine in 10 people rating their overall experience as good or very good and saying they would recommend it to friends and family, providing a strong rationale for the decision to keep the name.
The support will continue to be provided through telephony and digital channels. Those individuals who are unable to access support via these channels will be able to go to their local jobcentre, where jobcentre staff will identify the right support to meet their needs. This support is already in place and available to those individuals who choose to seek advice from the Department directly in making a claim to universal credit.
The Department is committed to providing the best possible support for all our customers, including the most vulnerable in society, in both making and maintaining their claim.
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