Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to support disabled people to access employment by (a) ensuring that the Access to Work scheme is properly resourced and (b) addressing delays in (i) award decisions and (ii) reimbursements.

Access to Work has been providing support for over 30 years, and we know that for many, this support has been invaluable. Demand for the service has increased. In 2024/5 the number of customers in receipt of payment reached 74,190. This is an increase of 10% compared with 2023/24.

Access to Work will continue to be funded as part of the Spending Review 2025. This will ensure continued support for disabled people and people with health conditions to stay and remain in the workplace.

We recognise the importance of clearing the backlog, which is why we increased the number of staff working in this area by 27%.

In the Pathways to Work Green Paper, we consulted on the future of Access to Work and how to improve the programme to help more disabled people into work and support employers. We are currently considering responses to the consultation that closed on 30 June and we will set out our plans as soon as we are in a position to do so.