Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of training provided to assessors who consider Personal Independence Payments and the Work Capability Assessments for disabled claimants.

All assessment providers are required to ensure that all health professionals (HP) carrying out assessments have sufficient training and knowledge of the clinical aspects and likely overall functional effects of a wide range of health conditions and impairments.

To ensure a high standard is maintained the department has an Independent Audit function that continually monitors performance and provides feedback to providers. Audit refers to a comprehensive check of the elements of the assessment, including the evidence collection, further evidence provided, and the assessment report completed by the HP. The check is completed against a set of guidelines to ensure a consistent approach is taken. This ensures that assessment reports are fit for purpose, clinically justified and sound, and provide sufficient information for the department to make an informed decision on entitlement to benefit.

Providers work with the department to continuously improve assessment quality through a range of measures including audit procedures. We also measure the adequacy of HP training through customer satisfaction surveys undertaken by independent third parties. All providers have consistently exceeded their customer satisfaction targets of 90% for Personal Independence Payment and 92% for the Work Capability Assessment.