People on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) could find out this Autumn whether the Labour Government will follow through on welfare reforms put forward by the Conservatives earlier this year. During the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) oral questions session in Parliament on Monday, several ministers confirmed that the ‘Get Britain Working’ White Paper will be published this Autumn and will reshape the welfare system in an effort to get 80 per cent of the country in work.
However, it may take the longer before a decision is made to adopt some, all or none of the measures proposed in the ‘Modernising support for independent living: the health and disability’ Green Paper.
The new Minister for Social Security and Disabilities at the DWP recently confirmed that over 16,000 people shared their views on the proposals outlined in the Green Paper, but gave nothing away about Labour’s future intentions regarding PIP, or any other benefit. Sir Stephen Timms MP also said that the DWP will review the responses while “considering our own approach to social security in due course”.
One of the major concerns of the Tory reforms was the removal of cash PIP payments for some people claiming for certain conditions.
Proposed alternatives in the Green Paper outline a move away from a fixed monthly cash payment system, which includes vouchers, a receipts system, one-off grants and making purchases for products or services through a catalogue scheme.
While on the other side of the House, Labour opposed these proposals, so it does seem unlikely they will remain. However, as Chancellor Rachel Reeves demonstrated in July when she announced that Winter Fuel Payments will only be issued to 1.5 million State Pensioners in receipt of an income-related benefit – nothing is guaranteed.
That move alone will see some 10m State Pensioners miss out on winter heating bill help of up to £300 this year.
It seems highly unlikely that such a move could be made to PIP, which is not means-tested, as the benefit is designed to help people with a disability, long-term illness, physical or mental health condition.
There are a few simple things all 3.6m people currently claiming PIP can start doing now to help protect their award, and more importantly, payments from any future changes to the disability benefit.
If you don’t already have a copy of your PIP 2 evidence form – the health questionnaire you filled in before getting an assessment – contact the PIP enquiry line on 0800 121 4433 and ask them to send you a copy.
Having a copy of this will help you with any future reviews for PIP, or Adult Disability Payment (ADP) if you are due to transfer to the Social Security Scotland system before the end of 2025.
The form can help remind you of the original responses you gave to the daily living and mobility questions, but more importantly, it can help you explain how your condition affects you now – especially if your circumstances have changed and your health has declined or you have developed other issues.
Keeping a diary is one of the most important tools all disability benefit claimants should keep, and it doesn’t need to be a paper-based document. Using your mobile phone, computer, laptop or tablet can be a simple way to make notes of ‘bad days’ and recording key moments when something relating to your condition happened.
Creating a specific note, with the time and date, where you can add things you might want to mention at a future PIP review, or just adding it to the calendar function.
This isn’t something that needs to be done daily, just things that are relevant to how your condition affects you. This could include everyday tasks you found difficult to do on your own, forgetting to take medication, or feeling low or frustrated as a result of your condition.
Other things to consider taking a note of would be if doing everyday things:
- Were painful for you
- Take you a long time
- Puts you or someone else in danger
- Makes you feel breathless
- Makes you unsteady
This type of note-taking, or diary keeping, is also a handy idea for people with fluctuating conditions, as it could make it easier to describe to a health professional ‘good days and bad days’. It can also help you see the frequency of significant health events, which are sometimes so regular that they are quickly forgotten.
It’s also important to keep any medical appointments relating to your condition so that your records are up to date. This can also include counselling or physiotherapy.
It might also be worthwhile getting in touch with a charity that has expert knowledge of your condition, even just to contact them to make sure you’re not missing out on extra support.
For people claiming ADP, you can list a charity or an organisation that you’ve sought help or advice from about your health condition, long-term illness, or disability, as supporting evidence.
These tips are just a few of the ways people on PIP, ADP or Attendance Allowance can take to start protecting their payment award by creating a personal evidence trail that can make it easier to recall specific examples of how their condition affects them.
Proposed alternatives to regular PIP cash payments
The Green Paper explains if DWP were to consider other ways of supporting people with disabilities and long-term health conditions – apart from providing regular cash payments – it could continue to contribute to people’s extra costs through alternative models.
These include:
- Catalogue/ shop scheme: in this kind of scheme, there would be an approved list from which disabled people could choose items at reduced or no cost. This would likely work better for equipment and aids rather than for services.
- Voucher scheme: in this kind of scheme, disabled people could receive vouchers to contribute towards specific costs. It could work for both equipment/aids and for services.
- A receipt-based system: this would involve claimants buying aids, appliances, or services themselves, and then providing proof of their purchase to claim back a contribution towards the cost. This could work in a similar way to Access to Work, which provides grants for equipment, adaptations, and other costs to help disabled people to start and stay in work.
- One-off grants: these could contribute towards specific, significant costs such as for home adaptations or expensive equipment. It could involve a person supplying medical evidence of their condition to demonstrate the need for equipment or adaptations.
There is no indication on when a statement will be made on the outcome of the Green Paper consultation, however, it could made along with the publication of the ‘Get Britain Working’ White Paper sometime this Autumn.
We will update this article with any further developments.