Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to help those with (a) severe health conditions and (b) disabilities complete the Personal Independence Payment application process.

The Department is regularly in contact with claimants who are vulnerable. Many, particularly those with severe heath conditions and disabilities, already have support in place from third parties (friends, relatives or appointees for example). However, for those who don’t, DWP provide a range of information and services to support customers through the application process.

Applications for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) are normally registered by telephone. To support hearing and speech impaired applicants, DWP uses the Video Relay Service to communicate in real time through a British Sign Language interpreter over a video connection. DWP also uses Relay UK, previously known as Next Generation Text, to correspond through typed messages via a BT agent.

DWP offers a claims completion service over the telephone to help PIP applicants without support from another source.

For the most vulnerable customers, support – including help with form completion – is offered through the Visiting Service:https://www.gov.uk/support-visit-benefit-claim

DWP has also produced a series of videos to support understanding of and navigation through each part of application and assessment: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/personal-independence-payment-customer-journey-films