DWP Partnership News

DWP Partnership News London North & West January 2017

Partnership News Update:

Personal Independence Payment:

Appointees and Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

Since December 2016, representatives of corporate and individual appointees have been able to attend PIP consultation appointments with claimants. Representatives need to bring the appointment letter or, explain how they know the claimant, how they knew about the appointment and provide ID. The appointee must tell the representative straightaway, as PIP consultation appointments can be rearranged only once and the PIP Assessment Provider (Atos or Capita ) must be contacted before the current appointment takes place. Not attending appointments may affect benefit entitlement. Claimants with an appointee cannot attend consultation appointments on their own.

Personal Independence Payment Survey

On 11 July 2016 the department announced that it will conduct an evaluation programme to find out people’s experiences of applying for, or claiming Personal Independence Payment (PIP).

To support this evaluation, the department commissioned an independent research organisation, Ipsos MORI, to carry out a survey of people across England, Scotland, and Wales who have recently applied for PIP. The survey is being undertaken in several stages. The first stage which focused on the initial claim process started in September 2016.

The second stage of the survey is due to start in January 2017. This survey will focus on the assessment stage of PIP. Ipsos MORI will contact approximately 9000 people by letter - 8000 will be people who weren’t involved in the first survey. The remaining 1000 will be people who took part in the first stage of the survey and who agreed to be contacted again to take part in the second stage.

DWP Partnership News London West Page 1 Universal Credit:

Jobcentre Plus General Information:

Homelessness and mental health conditions to be supported by hardship fund.

Provision has now been made for jobseekers that are homeless or suffer from a mental health condition will now be able to access hardship payments immediately if they receive a benefit sanction. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/homelessness-and-mental-health- conditions-to-be-supported-by-hardship-fund

A new two-year project to support people with learning disabilities and autism to find work has been launched by the government.

The project, backed by £280,000 of Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) investment, will include 4 new picture books to promote group discussions on finding and keeping a job. Beyond Words is a social enterprise which already produces unique books, services and training for people who find pictures easier to understand than words. Please see the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-backs-social-project- helping-disabled-people-into-work

A-Z Guide of Useful Websites

For people looking for a new job, there are details of useful websites below. They have details of vacancies in the UK, and some of them also list vacancies in the rest of Europe and worldwide.

Income Support Claims

GOV.UK does allow for a clerical claim form to be downloaded and whilst it’s recognised that there may be a need for some customers to claim this way, it does appear that some organisations may be encouraging/supporting customers to use this method as a matter of course rather than exception. DWP would like to remind partners that the quickest way to claim Income Support is to ring 0800 055 6688 (Welsh language: 0800 012 1888) or Textphone: 0800 023 4888 . A clerical claim form is available on gov.uk but we would ask that where ever possible, this only be used if the customer is unable to use the telephone/textphone.

DWP Partnership News London West Page 2 Later Life – State Pension Information:

DWP is inviting people to use and help test a new digital service to get their State Pension About the service ‘Get your State Pension’ is a new digital service for people who want to start receiving their State Pension. This new service is about to be tested with a small random number of people, starting with those living in England and Scotland, before general roll-out. In the future, it will replace the current State Pension Online service, but until then both services will run in parallel. DWP need partner organisations to be aware of this new service, so that they can provide informed reassurance if they receive enquiries about it. At this stage we are not asking you to actively communicate this service. How it works A select, random group of people approaching State Pension age will receive a letter inviting them to use the new service to get their State Pension, instead of the usual notification letter. The letter will include instructions on how to find the service, a web link and unique invitation code which is needed to access it. This unique code is personal to each individual and should not be shared. Only people invited to use the service can do so at this stage. The service is not yet open to the wider public, and won’t sit within GOV.UK during this time, nor will it appear on internet searches. This is standard practice while the new service is being tested and improved. It will still be controlled by DWP, and be safe and secure to use. The letters sent to selected people also includes the State Pension claim telephone number, should they prefer not to use the new digital service. How you can help Please don’t promote the ‘Get your State Pension’ service - we will confirm with you when this is good to roll out wider. We would like you to be aware of ‘Get your State Pension’ and the new invitation letters in case you receive enquiries about it. Please do not contact your members/clients/customers about the service as this will reduce the effectiveness of this initial test. Because this is a new service, some people may be unsure about the authenticity of the invitation letter and the service itself. If you get questions from someone who has received an invitation, please reassure them that ‘Get your State Pension’ is known to your organisation, and is a genuine and safe government service. Please make colleagues in your organisation aware of this new service and letter. A draft copy of the invitation letter is attached. Internal contact for partner enquiries only If partner colleagues have any questions or need more information you can email the Get your State Pension Team direct at: [email protected] Please do not pass this email address on to any people outside your organisations.

DWP Partnership News London West Page 3 National Insurance Credits for people looking after a child under the age of 12.

For people who are not working and may be looking after grandchildren, there is the possibility of getting credited national insurance contributions towards New State Pension entitlement.

For more details please see the link below – https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-insurance-credits-for- adults-who care-foe-a-child-under-12

General & All Other DWP Updates:

Budgeting Loans on line

A new online Budgeting Loan application process has been launched. The service is available 24 hours a day and can be accessed via the following link – https://www.gov.uk/budgeting-help-benefits/how-to-claim

Customers are only asked questions that relate to their personal circumstances and mandatory questions make sure applications are submitted with all the required information.

Better Support for Bereaved Families

The new modernised Bereavement Support Payment was annouced on 12 January 2017. It will be introduced for those bereaved from 6 April 2017. It aims to provide more accessible help for spouses and civil partners in the difficult period following a family death.

Bereavement Support Payment replaces the outdated and complex 3-tier system of Bereavement Payment, Bereavement Allowance and Widowed Parent’s Allowance.

The old Bereavement Allowance was only available to people aged over 45 at the time their spouse or civil partner died. The new benefit is available to people of any age up to state pension age, and extends support from 12 to 18 months. In addition, the new payment will now not be taxed, and will be subject to a disregard in the calculation of means-tested benefits and the benefit cap, helping those on the lowest incomes by providing extra cash at a time when it is needed.

For more details follow the link below –

DWP Partnership News London West Page 4 https://www.gov.uk/government/news/better-support-for-bereaved- families

Useful Links:

1. Touchbase: News and articles from across government for advisers, employers and organisations that help people find jobs https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/touchbase-dwp-news-about- work-working-age-benefits-and-services

2. The Personal Independence Payment (PIP) toolkit: This toolkit provides information to individuals and organisations that support PIP and DLA claimants https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-personal-independence- payment-toolkit-for-partners/the-personal-independence-payment-pip-toolkit

3. Atos healthcare: Each person claiming PIP is unique and might face all kinds of challenges from a wide range of health conditions or disabilities. Atos work in partnership with trusted organisations, and their experienced health professionals are fully trained to understand the complex effects of living with a health condition or disability http://www.atoshealthcare.com/pip/pip_assessment_approach

3a. PIP Consultations for London: These sites are used for PIP consultations http://www.atoshealthcare.com/pip/consultation_locations/london

3b Atos Healthcare blog: http://blog.atoshealthcare.com/

4. Maximus - The Health Assessment Advisory Service arranges and carries out assessments on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). If you are claiming benefits as a result of a disability or injury, you may be required by DWP to have an assessment with a qualified Healthcare Professional as part of your claim process: https://www.chdauk.co.uk/assessment-process

5. Universal Credit Toolkit: This toolkit contains information about Universal Credit and the changes it brings https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit-toolkit-for-partner-organisations

7. HM Revenue and Customs Employer Bulletin: A bi-monthly magazine for employers and agents giving up-to-date information on payroll topics https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hm-revenue-and-customs- employer-bulletin

8. UK Online: All 3,000 UK online centres partners offer FREE or low cost access to computers and the internet, plus help and support to use them http://www.ukonlinecentres.com/

DWP Partnership News London West Page 5 I trust that existing partnerships arrangements are meeting your needs. However if you if you have any questions or would like to discuss local partnership issues further please do not hesitate to contact us -

Colin Morris: Ealing, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kingston-upon-Thames, Richmond, Wandsworth, Hammersmith & Fulham Brent and Harrow.

[email protected] 07717 2171633

Geoff Taylor-Meade: Barnet, Enfield, Camden, Islington, Kensington & Chelsea and Westminster.

[email protected]

DWP Partnership News London West Page 6