Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many individuals have had to wait (1) three to six months, (2) six to nine months, (3) nine to 12 months, and (4) over 12 months for their Personal Independence Payment (PIP) appeals to be heard in each year since PIP was introduced.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
The information requested is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the level of support available to disabled people while making a claim for Universal Credit in the natural migration process.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
We are continuously reviewing and improving the service for vulnerable people who claim UC to ensure that it is supportive and responsive to their needs. Where claimants are unable to make or manage their claim on-line, telephone and face to face support to support these claimants. In exceptional circumstances, home visits can be arranged for those claimants whose disability prevents them from attending their local Jobcentre or accessing telephone and online services.
For those claimants requiring help, assistance is available through Assisted Digital Support, part of our Universal Support offer. This provides help, support and skills claimants need to make and maintain their digital account online.
Universal Support also includes a Personal Budgeting Support component, which is delivered via face to face by Local Authorities. Additionally, online support is available via Money Manager, a Money Advice Service tool.
We have also increased the numbers of Disability Employment Advisers who now provide additional support to the work coaches so they can better personalise support as we continuously improve the offer available.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to promote alternative ways for disabled people to make a claim for Universal Credit apart from an online application.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
Anyone who need helps making their claim online can call our Freephone helpline to find out what help and support is available. Claimants can also access the internet for free at their local Jobcentre, Council or library. If a claimant needs more intensive or specific support, face-to-face and other help is available through our current Universal Support Assisted Digital service offer, which provides bespoke help, support and skills for claimants to make and maintain their digital account online.
Universal Credit has been designed with accessibility in mind and we are committed to providing personalised support for all claimants, including vulnerable groups, so we ensure that we make reasonable adjustments to meet claimant’s individual needs to allow them to access our services and information. This means that for example, the Department can communicate with customers in a variety of different formats such as Braille, audio, large print, or by arranging for a member of staff to visit the customer in their home.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that disabled people receive sufficient support to make a claim for Universal Credit if they are unable to access the internet at home or at public internet locations.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
Anyone who need helps making their claim online can call our Freephone helpline to find out what help and support is available. Claimants can also access the internet for free at their local Jobcentre, Council or library. If a claimant needs more intensive or specific support, face-to-face and other help is available through our current Universal Support Assisted Digital service offer, which provides bespoke help, support and skills for claimants to make and maintain their digital account online.
Universal Credit has been designed with accessibility in mind and we are committed to providing personalised support for all claimants, including vulnerable groups, so we ensure that we make reasonable adjustments to meet claimant’s individual needs to allow them to access our services and information. This means that for example, the Department can communicate with customers in a variety of different formats such as Braille, audio, large print, or by arranging for a member of staff to visit the customer in their home.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have identified the locations for the managed migration "test and learn" process for Universal Credit, beginning in July 2019.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
As part of our design process for managed migration we are considering different approaches for how to best migrate claimants onto Universal Credit. We are currently working closely with a large and diverse range of stakeholders to co-design migration processes that work for everyone and most effectively support those who will need more help. We will begin managed migration on a small scale in 2019 to pilot our processes and ensure that they are working by adapting them and building on feedback before we begin to take on larger volumes of claimants.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that consent procedures enable charities and support organisations to give practical support to Universal Credit claimants.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
Given Universal Credit is delivered on a different platform to legacy benefits, and it replaces six major benefits, the approach taken to consent needs to be different. The amount of personal data available on Universal Credit is far greater than the individual legacy systems, meaning that any data breach has far reaching consequences for claimants. We therefore need to balance consent against this risk.
We have agreed to explore options for improving the process of consent in collaboration with the Committee in order to consider how current practices could be enhanced, and we will publish a report on our joint conclusions.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how the additional funding announced in the Budget will be used to support disabled claimants in their transition to Universal Credit.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
At Autumn Budget 2018 we announced that payment of income related legacy benefits (Income Support, income related Employment and Support Allowance and income based Jobseeker’s Allowance) will continue for two weeks after a claim for Universal Credit has been made. This change will support vulnerable claimants financially when moving to Universal Credit. From April 2019, the amount people with disabilities (and also households with children) can earn before their Universal Credit award begins to be withdrawn – the Work Allowance – will be increased by £1000, meaning they can keep an extra £630 per year.
Earlier this year we announced transitional payments for former recipients of Severe Disability Premium (SDP), and protections for those who are receiving SDP as part of their existing benefit entitlement. Claimants will now only move to Universal Credit under managed migration with transitional protection. Those who have already moved to Universal Credit will receive transitional protection back-dated to the start of their Universal Credit claim and will also receive on-going monthly payments. The regulations that include these provisions are currently before Parliament for scrutiny and approval. Universal Credit provides a higher level of support for the most severely disabled people than the benefit it replaces, worth up to £328.32 per month.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether legacy benefits provided to claimants transitioning to Universal Credit will come to an end within a fixed time period.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
We are working collaboratively to ensure that managed migration works for everyone, building in safeguards so that all claimants are fully supported and that we cater for the diverse needs of the different claimant groups, including the most vulnerable, moving to Universal Credit.
Using feedback on the draft regulations we have made a change to the regulations, laid in Parliament on 5 November, which propose to give claimants a minimum of three months to make a claim for Universal Credit and set no maximum period in which a claim must be made. With unlimited flexibility to extend claim periods we will work with representative groups to produce guidance that will ensure adequate support for each individual claimant’s needs.
In the Autumn Budget 2018 we also announced a further £4.5bn package of support across the next five years. This includes a £1bn package of changes, providing 2 additional weeks of DWP legacy benefits for those moved onto Universal Credit – a one-off non-repayable sum that will provide claimants with extra money during the period before they receive their first Universal Credit payment.
Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what process they plan to use to identify vulnerable claimants who will require additional support to transition to Universal Credit.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
We are committed to delivering managed migration in a way which supports claimants. In 2019, we will have a preparation period before testing and refining our approach with no more than 10,000 claimants from July 2019, to ensure it supports claimants onto Universal Credit, before we take on larger volumes in 2020.
As part of this, we are engaging with claimants, charities, experts and other stakeholders, on the design, making sure that it works for everyone and building in safeguards to ensure that vulnerable claimants are fully supported. To complete managed migration successfully, we will continue to engage with key stakeholders, experts and claimants throughout the process.
As announced at the Autumn Budget 2018 we will put an extra £1.7bn a year into work allowances, increasing them by £1,000 a year, resulting in 2.4m families keeping substantially more of their earnings before the earnings taper applies. Furthermore, it was announced that payment of Income Support and the income related elements of Employment and Support Allowance and Jobseeker’s Allowance will continue for two weeks after a claim for Universal Credit has been made, effective from July 2020, benefitting 1.1 million households. Claimants will therefore receive one two week run-on payment when being migrated to Universal Credit. This builds upon the similar two week run-on of Housing Benefit that was announced at Autumn Budget 2017, and which was introduced in April this year.
We have also improved how our work coaches and case workers view the claimant’s Universal Credit account so they clearly know when a claimant is vulnerable and what support they may need.