Good morning

Can anyone tell me if an SDP would apply to someone that is living in supported accommodation, but has another person living with them?

My client has paranoid schizophrenia and has recently been discharged from hospital. He is now living in supported accommodation, which is a three bedroom house and is shared with other occupants. They share the kitchen, toilet, bathroom and living room. I have read the rules about separate liability. I believe each occupant has separate liability, does this mean that the client should receive an SDP and be classed as living alone. My client has been advised he is not entitled to an SDP.

Additionally, the reason I have doubt in my mind is that the Support Worker informs me that most of his clients that are living in supported accommodation do not receive an SDP. However, I think they may be entitled to an SDP – I am very confused???

Can anyone help?

Hi, we have thisproblem all the time.
For a rule of thumb, does each tenant get separate payments of housing benefit?
If so, then the SDP should apply because they are not sharing their household with anyone else.

Hi,

Thanks for your reply

Well at the moment there is some confusion with the client about who pay's his rent. He is not sure if it is being paid by ‘a’ hospital or by way of HB.

Apparently all his bills are included in the rent, for example electricity etc. Have you heard of this? Would this make a difference? If the rent is paid this way, then surely the other occupants would be separately assessed for rent liability and therefore be entitled to an SDP?

I am waiting for the clients support worker to return from holiday to clarify the above. If this is correct then I am going to have much work on my hands because apparently most of the clients living in supported accommodation are missing the SDP (although something doesn’t sound right) I am sure the DWP would not get something like this wrong on such a large scale…then again…??

Income support (General) Regulations 1987.

Definition of non-dependant

3.—(1) In these Regulations, “non-dependant” means any person, except someone to whom paragraph (2), (2A) or (2B) applies, who normally resides with a claimant or with whom a claimant normally resides.

(4) For the purposes of this regulation a person resides with another only if they share any accommodation except a bathroom, a lavatory or a
communal area but not if each person is separately liable to make payments in respect of his occupation of the dwelling to the landlord

So if paragraph 4 applies SDP is payable. Joint tenants are covered by paragraph 2B.

We have had this problem arise intermittently in the past but SDP always gets paid in the end.

DWP would and do get this wrong fairly regularly in our experience. Sometimes the lack of clarity in setting up the supported lodgings, tenancy agreements etc adds to the confusion. It is quite common for heating and other bills to be included in the rent - the Housing Benefit Department will deduct any ineligible elements when calculating benefit.

If the tenancies/rent agreements are clear cut and there are no other bars to SDP entitlement (e.g. there may be problems if the tenancy arrangements were changed after the start of the initial tenancies) then it shouldn't involve a lot of work and is something the Social Worker or others could do - covering letter to DWP explaining what they have got wrong along with the tenancies, start dates etc so they can work out how much individuals have been underpaid. Offical error revision of the original decisions - I would argue that the DWP have misunderstood the rules but I don't know what information they have based their decisions on. The Social Worker, or others, may have given DWP incorrect information so check the facts so nothing unexpected jumps out! When we have been involved in the past we have found that the reasons for refusing the SDPs given by the DWP change as you go along so don't accept what they say at face value.

Potentially a big pot of money due to people if the assumptions we have made about eligibility and the reasons for DWP getting it wrong are correct. But check this first so as to avoid disappointment. Even if it is not DWP's fault for not paying SDP for the past period it should generate significant increases to current benefit.

If the Social Worker does have other clients in the same boat then there are likely to be other Social Workers with other clients in the same boat so it would be worth pushing this further. They may have clients who seem to be in the same boat but whose living arrangements are different (e.g. not joint tenancies) who might not qualify for SDP so the joint liability/occupation issue is key and will need to be checked. However, if others can't qualify for SDP on joint tenancy/occupation grounds they might qualify on other grounds (e.g. everyone else living in the property gets AA/DLA mrc/hrc/registered blind).

I'd try and gently shift this back to the SW/support providers to sort out rather than you take it on as, depending on how many of these supported accomodation units there are, sheer volume of numbers might take up all your time.

Hi all,

Thanks you so much for all your input.

I certainly will be getting back to the Support Worker regarding this situation to find out more facts. However, no disrespect but he does not appear to have a clue when it comes to Welfare Rights, hence the reason he came to me in the first place. I was simply assisting a client the Support Worker referred to me in completing a renewal claim for DLA and notice he was not receiving a SDP.

It was only when I spoke to the Support Worker he mentioned that no one he knows living in the supported accommodation, which are his clients, receive an SDP and most are receiving m/r care. This is why I doubted my original advice that the client was entitled to an SDP.

I will investigate further and will let you know how it goes.

Thanks again

This highlights a recurring issue about 'support workers' and their lack of knowledge regarding benefits.

Locally we have providers who range from very good (their employers buy in or provide good training), to poor. Although I believe the service commissioners are on their cases when their contracts come up for renewal.

I recently had a support worker question the need for a DLA appeal as his client would then 'lose IB' if it was awarded. People with support needs may wrongly assume that their support workers know best.

I guess a lot of the support workers (not Social Workers as I said - Freudian slip!) have a lot of other things on so I wasn't particularly having a pop at them but the organisations they work for should make sure the people they are housing/supporting get the right benefit. This includes thinking about maximising benefit entitlement when setting schemes up (legally of course!), making sure the information provided to DWP is clear cut about tenancy/liability and these fairly common, and relatively simple to solve when identified, issues are checked and challenged.

May be worth having a trawl via Supporting People database, RSLs providing supported accomodation etc to see how many other people are missing out in similar accommodation. This may be the only one but I somehow doubt it. This could be started by writing to DWP with a list of names/NINOs etc asking them to confirm SDP included as part of their assessment, if not to revise back to the date of the original decision and pay arrears (standard letter), and follow up. Or if there are enough bodies on the ground to check these before contacting the DWP. I'm sure others have ideas about finding/targeting info in the right places.

This sounds all very straightforward when I'm sitting here long distance suggesting work other people can do, and it may be more involved/complex, or not as big a problem as assumed, but it sounds like it may be worth someone having a go at this as a bit of a project. I wouldn't agree to do this on your own. No idea how busy you are but it seems to me that there are other people/organisations better placed to find people who are missing out who could take this on, with some welfare rights expertise back-up where needed (e.g. help with drafting a standard letter to DWP).

Hi,

Yes I agree with what you say about Support Workers AND Social Workers actually!! We have a big problem in this area regarding their knowledge of the welfare benefit system. I am appalled at some of the advice our clients have been provided from some of these services (I am not saying they are all bad!!).

I'm not sure how many people are missing out on the SDP. However, I am pretty sure our organisation will want me to bring in each individual client and carryout the work. We are funded by the legal services and this will mean lot's of new matter starts (although I am the only case worker!!! - GULP). It shouldn't be that difficult to draft a standard letter...the DWP in this area will not know what's hit them!

Thanks again for your input.

We have the same problems in this area. Additional problem is the re-instatement of the DLA care to allow the SDP payment. Entrants to supported living invariably come from Residential Care and have had their DLA CAre suspended. Have to remind support workers only to apply for lifting of the suspension and not to claim again.

Where we know the date of entry to supported living writing we inform DLA and IS etc of the change od circs well in advance. We also recommend social workers forwarding details of the liabilty to pay rent and confirming it is not another care home the person has moved to. On that score alone payment of DLA was held up for 3 months on one case.