I'm trying to get income support entitlement continued on the basis that this ex single parent remains entitled to IS under a different prescribed category - incapacity for work.

DMG memo 30/09 http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/m-30-09.pdf makes it clear that no new claim for IB or IS is required (paras 5 & 6 and example 2 at para 10). All that is needed is for the claimant to provide evidence of incapacity for work.

In this case I'll be supplying back dated medical certificates as the claimant hasn't previously sent in sick lines. I don't propose to send in an SC1 as a new IB claim is not needed. Has anyone else done this - how did it go? Is an SC1 needed in practice?

I'll be sending in a copy of the memo with the sick lines.

I'm waiting on a reply to my first one. I only referenced the memo rather than sending it.

However, in the meantime my client has been awarded ESA. I've asked for a review of the ESA decision, on exactly the same grounds as we asked for a review of the decision removing client's IS after she stopped caring, and suggested that it should be treated as a claim for IB so no, the client has not done an IB claim form.

The ESA claim was prior to the ending of IS so backdating of sicknotes was not strictly necessary - though client did get one anyway.

We wait and see...

I've had a couple of cases like this. Both times I did a covering letter for the client to send in with their sick note and this should have been enough on its own. But both times the IS office ignored this and got client to do an ESA claim.

Then for both cases I put in an appeal against the decision to supersede the IS decision, and the decisions were reversed within a couple of weeks. It seems that the appeal officers know and understand what is going on and are quick to sort it out, but as always no one has told the front line office staff.

Remember the sick note only has to be backdated to when your client stopped being a single parent, not to pre ESA.

Update.

My client's ESA claim has been terminated from its inception and the decision ending her IS has been reviewed and it's been reawarded.

The various letters are a little confusing and we still need to check that there are no gaps or missing arrears, etc, but the client's got essentially what she asked for.

Any progress on yours Jim?

Tony, really sorry for the late reply. I had started a reply last week but got called away before I could finish it.

Anyway, I'm afraid my case has not gone to plan. The claimant had been getting income support as a single parent but it turns out she didn't actually have a child living with her. By the time I got involved DWP had already made a decision to cancel her IS from several years ago back to the date the child went to live elsewhere. We have so far been unable to get medical evidence backdated to the date in question. Because of this DWP refused to revise the decision to end her IS. In the end we had to settle for a backdated ESA claim. Glad to hear your case worked out.