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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Work capability issues and ESA  →  Thread

Work related activity?

Cordelia
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Welfare rights officer - Wrexham Council Welfare Rights Team

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This should be simple, but I just want to confirm it..

My client is in the support group for ESA, and gets income-based ESA.

Her partner is in the WRAG.  Cont. ESA for him has just ended as he had reached 365 days.

He is struggling with the work-related activity and looking for a way out of it.

If he just said “thanks but no thanks” would he lose anything?  Presumably he can’t be sanctioned as he is no longer getting paid?

I know we can try to get him into the support group but this would (i) take a long time, (ii) probably require him to go through another medical assessment and (iii) wouldn’t increase their overall income.

Answers on a Christmas card please…

1964
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Deputy Manager, Reading Community Welfare Rights Unit

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I agree. Client’s IR ESA should simply be reassessed to make up the shortfall from his CB ESA ending (and he just needs to close down his credits-only claim). The only drawback I can see is that he won’t be attracting credits but in my opinion they ain’t worth much these days anyway.

I suppose client isn’t receiving PIP DLC/DLA CC? Or has potential entitlement? If so, Mr can claim CA instead of course…

Jon (CANY)
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Welfare benefits - Craven CAB, North Yorkshire

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It may be important that he relinquishes the claim, rather than just fail to comply. If he ignores the requirements, I think ESA reg 63 would kick in and the ir-ESA could be sanctioned up to £72.40 pw for failures to attend WRA or WFIs (that said, I’ve not actually seen an example of this involving a partner on a couple claim. Anyone?).

Tom H
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Newcastle Welfare Rights Service

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Reg 63 applies to the claimant only, claimant being defined by section 24 WRA 2007 as a person who has claimed ESA.  I agree with 1964 that the client’s ESA should be superseded when her partner’s cb-ESA ends. She becomes the sole ESA claimant at that point.  He doesn’t have an ESA claim to relinquish as he was never entitled to ir-ESA in the first place; only to cb-ESA which has now ended due to time-limiting.

As things stand the Dept would award him LCW credits at the end of this tax year which, unless he already has amassed 35 years of contribs and/or credits sufficient to qualify for a full state retirement pension, he should accept.  And he’d be entitled to be awarded credits in subsequent years if required provided his capability for work remained limited.

The above is true for old style cb-ESA and income-related ESA.  I’ve not checked the position under UC/new-style ESA (i) because of the 22k UC claimants at present I doubt whether there’s a single couple affected by the above scenario and (ii) because UC starts in Newcastle for limited JSA claimants circa April 2015 and I’m hoping, praying even, that UC will be abolished a month later.

Jon (CANY)
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Welfare benefits - Craven CAB, North Yorkshire

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That makes sense, thanks for the correction.

Dan_Manville
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Mental health & welfare rights service - Wolverhampton City Council

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If he’s in the WP already he will stay in the WP even if he relinquishes the claim. He should go on to be treated as a voluntary WP participant, i.e. no sanctions, however I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they continued to issue Mandatory Activity Notices; certain providers do around these parts even for “voluntary” participants who can’t be sanctioned.

Edmund Shepherd
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Tenancy Income, Royal Borough of Greenwich, London

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It may be worth mentioning that there is no requirement to attend WFIs for people entitled to limited capability for work NI credits only. I don’t know whether the work-related activity would be similarly affected.