|
From the Social Fund Independent Review Service Material on our CD-Rom
Cases from Digest 13
Case 13.8
Mental Health – Priority considerations – Change in need
Application Details
Mr J applied for a community care grant (CCG) on 27 March 2000 for a bed, bedding and various items of furniture.
Mr J was 37 years old. He had learning difficulties. An appointee handled all his affairs. He had always lived with his mother in her home, and had been cared for by her. However, his mother had become ill and could no longer care for him. Mr J had been given a place in a supported shared tenancy, where he would have 24 hour care. The tenancy was unfurnished, and the grant application was for items for Mr J’s use there. The items he had at his mother’s home would still be needed there for when he returned home on visits. Because of the urgency of the need for Mr J to move in, his mother bought some of the necessary items of furniture and bedding, borrowing the money to enable her to do so. She needed to repay the loan as soon as possible.
The Benefits Agency’s Decision
The Reviewing Officer (RO) found that Mr J qualified for a CCG under Direction 4(a)(iii). An award would promote community care by easing exceptional pressures on him and his family. The RO made an award for a bed and bedding, but refused the other items on the grounds that they were “not essential”.
The Social Fund Inspector’s Decision
The Social Fund Inspector (SFI) decided that the RO’s decision had not been made correctly. He agreed that Direction 4(a)(iii) was met, but the RO had used the wrong test when considering priority. He had not looked at Mr J’s individual circumstances. Mr J’s appointee had given cogent reasons for Mr J needing more bedroom furniture. Using the guidance issued by the Secretary of State, the SFI gave high priority to a bed, bedding, wardrobe and chest of drawers. An award was made for these items. Clothes storage was particularly important to help Mr J keep his clothing clean and organised as he had learning difficulties.
Comment
The statutory basis for deciding whether to pay an award comes from s140(1) Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992. The decision maker has to have regard to all the circumstances of the case, and in particular as far as CCGs are concerned, the nature, extent and urgency of the need; the existence of resources from which the need may be met; the possibility that some other person or body may wholly or partly meet it; and the budget allocation. The Secretary of State has also issued guidance on priority relating to the extent to which an award would help resolve or improve the applicant’s difficulties and the degree to which it would fulfil the aims of Direction 4.
In Mr J’s case, the need was now to repay the debt rather than provide the items. Where the money is borrowed before the application is made, the focus is normally on all the circumstances surrounding the debt rather than the original need. However, these circumstances can include the purpose for which the debt was incurred. In this case, the urgency of the need was reflected by the fact that Mr J’s mother had borrowed money to buy the necessary items. Where the applicant has borrowed money from a relative or friend, which is in effect what happened in Mr J’s case, a high priority may be appropriate in some circumstances. These might include, for example, where the relative has lent money out of resources set aside for a gas bill or an elderly relative from money set aside for his funeral. The circumstances surrounding the debt incurred by Mr J’s mother led to the need being high priority.
The emphasis in both the law and guidance is for the decision maker to look at the particular circumstances of each individual case. The issues are the extent and degree of importance, not whether something is “essential”.
What is important is likely to vary from case to case (see also cases 12.1 and 12.2 in the last issue of the Digest). In the particular circumstances of Mr J’s case, it was very important that he should have somewhere to keep his clothing clean and organised as well as the basic items of furniture and household equipment. This could equally apply in cases involving others with special needs, including physical and mental health problems.
|
