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PIP Mobility - you don’t get it because you made it to the assessment room
I have now seen 3 lots of appeal papers where PIP mobility has been refused primarily because the claimant was able to get to the assessment room for the consultation.
In both the HCP report and the DM Reasoning a phrase has appeared along the lines of ‘you were observed to walk slowly, using a walking stick, through the assessment centre covering a distance of approximately 50m. I have decided that you can stand and then move more than 50m…’
Or in one case ‘he was observed in his Informal Observation to walk slowly but steadily 150m to the car park and it is reasonable to suggest that he can mobilise for over 50m…’
The consultation room in our ‘local’ (in a loose sense of the word) assessment centre is about 50m from reception and includes steps (further if claimant asks to avoid steps). Parking near the entrance is practically impossible. I recently attended one consultation with a man with COPD and it took him more than 15 minutes to get from reception to the assessment room (awarded 12C). I also had one claimant with Polyneuropathy say that he was told by the HCP to ‘stop putting it on’ when he was struggling with the stairs to the room.
I am making complaints to DWP and Atos about it and seeing if the MP is interested. I have also raised it with our local Healthwatch who has suggested raising it with Healthwatch England. I am keen to get a sense of whether this is an issue in other areas so it would be helpful if anybody who has experienced similar problems could post problems here, or email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) (please put PIP in the title to help me find it in my spam where it often goes). Thanks.
Reminds me of the good ole “no points scored for social engagement (ESA) as client can see their GP” malarkey
Scandalous
We have a local assessment centre which is a good half-mile from the nearest public transport, and no facility for clients to be dropped at the door, so they’re set up to fail if they reach the centre, and also to fail if they don’t. Another, at a local hospital, involves a 200m walk from the car park, through endless corridors to the assessment centre.
I have long suspected that these sorts of venues have been deliberately selected in order that DWP can use the fact that the client actually managed to attend against them.
Benny, would you be able to send me the details of the centre?
Sent to your personal email.
Breaches their own publicly available guidance on not taking a snapshot but then what’s new?
I’m happy to be classified as a conspiracy theorist but even I think you’ll find selection of venues has been very much based on “what’s left after we’ve had venues ruled out after an accessibility audit and how cheap is it?”.
I can’t recall the exact wording but a client did have something along the lines of “walked 30m using a stick with frequent small stops leaning on the wall. Should be able to walk 200m”?
We see it all the time. Not only the ‘walked from the waiting room to the examination room’ bit but also making it to the venue at all (local venues were until recently all some distance from local town and not easily accessible by public transport). I’m certain it’s deliberate.
Billy, Here’s another shocking one passed to me by a colleague:
Stockport Assessment Centre:- 18 Deanery Way, Stockport, SK1 1NA.
This centre is operated by Maximus, who carry out ESA assessments there in addition to ATOS’ doing PIP assessments.
Even Maximus’ website confirms that the place is 10 minutes walk from the nearest bus stop, has no car-parking facilities and is 15-20 minutes from the rail station.
Anyone arriving here is going to fail the Mobility criteria.
Billy, Here’s another shocking one passed to me by a colleague:
Stockport Assessment Centre:- 18 Deanery Way, Stockport, SK1 1NA.
This centre is operated by Maximus, who carry out ESA assessments there in addition to ATOS’ doing PIP assessments.
Even Maximus’ website confirms that the place is 10 minutes walk from the nearest bus stop, has no car-parking facilities and is 15-20 minutes from the rail station.
Anyone arriving here is going to fail the Mobility criteria.
In reality none of these assessment centres are going to be next to a transport hub so they’re all going to be some distance from public transport.
There are 2 issues then. 1 would be whether that distance makes them inaccessible. The other would be how Maximus et al describe and use that.
First of all, the centre is 5 minutes from the nearest bus stop not 10. However, that bus stop doesn’t serve a mass of buses and so, in reality, most people will travel in to the bus station and try and get there from there. There is a bus stop 10 minutes away from the venue but that also doesn’t serve a mass of buses albeit that both serve buses coming from central Manchester. Having said that, most disabled people would do well to identify the specific local stop to get off. Wise old public transport gurus like me would use a smartphone and a combination of Google Maps and Citymapper app. However, those aren’t always available, accessible or even known about by claimants.
Secondly, yes, the place has no parking facilities. However, there are both NCP and on street parking facilities nearby. Anyone with a blue badge may well be able to find parking nearby.
Thirdly, it’s not that far from the railway station. Google Maps says 11 minutes and I would say that’s about right. However, it is on a slope, which of course isn’t mentioned at all.
So, Maximus cannot accurately describe on their own information where they are located but employ people who will assert with precision just how far a claimant can walk! Interesting…
Would be nice if they advertised the free shuttle bus service which can drop you off directly outside…
Would be nice if they advertised the free shuttle bus service which can drop you off directly outside…
Hmm, would be nice if that had showed up in Citymapper too. I shall report it to them as an issue.
http://www.stockport.gov.uk/2013/26316/shuttlebusmap-feb09.pdf
There you go - there’s the handy map/route.
There’s also another here - PIP
Actually very useful to know. Can use that for the next Stockport GMWRAG.
Actually very useful to know. Can use that for the next Stockport GMWRAG.
Always glad to help.
More people should use public transport.
Actually very useful to know. Can use that for the next Stockport GMWRAG.
Always glad to help.
More people should use public transport.
I’ve got no choice, but… yes.
The Pneumoconiosis Panel in Cardiff used to be on the 3rd floor of a building with no lift.
If you appeared….