Welfare rights news and case law

5 October, 2020 Open access

Scottish government urged to speed up and extend Scottish Child Payments using existing local government payment processes

New JRF report recommends that existing processes for making free school meals and clothing grant payments should be utilised to get payments to families this winter, and to those with older children before 2022

2 October, 2020

Bill to give Work and Pensions Secretary the power to uprate pension age benefits in 2020/2021, despite there being no growth in earnings, receives second and third readings

Dr Coffey tells MPs that expedited Bill must receive Royal Assent by mid-November 2020 if government is to maintain manifesto commitment to retain 'triple lock'

2 October, 2020

Senedd votes in favour of motion calling on Welsh Government to introduce trial of universal basic income

'Much kinder springboard' than universal credit needed if economy is to thrive, says Senedd Member Jack Sargeant

2 October, 2020

DWP announces that Video Relay Service extended to pension credit and the social fund

New edition of Touchbase confirms extension of service that allows British Sign Language interpreted calls to be made using video connection without booking in advance

1 October, 2020

Legal advice cannot be separated from digital support in helping people to overcome barriers to accessing HMCTS services

Evaluation of three-year face-to-face Digital Support pilot published ahead of its extension for a further 12 months

1 October, 2020 Open access

Scottish Parliament consents to UK Parliament legislating on its behalf to determine uprating of industrial death benefit in 2021/2022

Approval of legislative consent memorandum enables competence for uprating the devolved benefit to pass from Scottish Ministers to the UK Parliament

1 October, 2020 Open access

Local Authorities in Scotland to pro-actively contact all those required to self-isolate, to establish whether a Self-Isolation Support Grant is needed

Cabinet Secretary for Social Security also confirms that the grant will be targeted at people who are in receipt of universal credit or legacy benefits, with some discretion to make awards to others in financial hardship

30 September, 2020 Open access

Secretary of State confirms that there will be no recompense for tax credit claimants who were advised to claim universal credit and lost out

Director General of Work and Health Services adds that 'jobcentres do not offer advice' and that a move to universal credit is 'not voluntary'

30 September, 2020

It is not the responsibility of the DWP to have a statutory safeguarding duty towards vulnerable claimants, says Secretary of State

Dr Coffey tells MPs that statutory safeguarding responsibility falls to councils, social services, doctors and other people

30 September, 2020 Open access

Children’s Commissioner for England calls for a ‘pre-emptive’ package of welfare and housing support for families who have built up rent arrears during the COVID-19 outbreak

Recommendation forms part of a comprehensive recovery package to tackle rising tide of childhood vulnerability caused by the crisis

30 September, 2020 Open access

Scottish Government announces new £500 Self-Isolation Support Grant for people on low incomes who are required to self-isolate

Grant will ensure people do not experience financial hardship as a result of doing the right thing, says Social Security Secretary

30 September, 2020 Open access

Women’s Budget Group calls for a new post-COVID social security system based on dignity and autonomy

New report from Commission on a Gender-Equal Economy includes recommendations for welfare reforms that move away from means-testing to focus on the wellbeing of claimants

30 September, 2020 Open access

DWP testing ‘transformed’ approach to training of new work coaches that replaces the current 52-day programme with 25 days of learning

New programme will however be followed up 'with a suite of products enabling colleagues to learn in a flexible, digital way', says DWP Minister

30 September, 2020

DWP issues guidance on Upper Tribunal decision that ESA claimant had not failed to attend medical examination where appointment letter did not impose legal obligation to attend

New ADM Memo and DMG Memo confirm that reasoning in judgment applies equally to cases where legal requirement to return ESA50 questionnaire was not imposed

30 September, 2020

Scottish Government confirms new process for helping third-party representatives with enquiries where claimant unable to give explicit consent

Chief Executive of Social Security Scotland advises that representatives who are able to answer questions to verify that they are genuine will be given limited information in compliance with data protection requirements

30 September, 2020

Need for supervision where a person has to remove their hearing aids or cochlear implants while washing and consequently cannot hear a typical alarm

KT and SH v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (PIP)
[2020] UKUT 252 (AAC)
CPIP/3062/2016 and CPIP/2660/2017

30 September, 2020

Bill to support delivery of new Scottish Child Payment unanimously passed by Scottish Parliament

Once enacted, the new legislation will also introduce new provisions relating to appointees, health professionals who can diagnose terminal illness, and the suspension of payments

30 September, 2020

Final Work Programme statistics show that less than a third of participants over the programme’s almost eight-year history achieved a ‘job outcome’

However, success rate surpasses DWP's expectation that providers achieve around a 25 per cent job outcome rate

30 September, 2020 Open access

Chancellor urged to make £20 uplift to universal credit and working tax credit permanent and extend increase to legacy benefits

Open letter from JRF and more than 50 charities and faith groups calls on government to 'keep doing the right thing, keep families afloat and keep the lifeline'