I am part of a Housing Association welfare rights forum and yesterday we had a presentation by the Pathways to work training team, here in Glasgow.

The pilot commenced in October and the first interviews are about to take place, so I would be grateful for your knowledge of your clients experiences with Pathways.

A number of areas were highlighted during our discussion.

The following relates to new IB claims from October.
At the 8th week of the claim, a mandatory work focused interview, and a PCA medical. If you are found fit for work at this examination, then you are removed from the Pathways programme. If however you are found to have satisfied the PCA, therefore being unfit for all work, you remain on the Pathways Programme. You will then have 5 further work focused interviews at monthly intervals and a mandatory Work Focused Action Plan. If you fail to comply with the interviews or the action plan, there is a benefit sanction.

Therefore those who have been medically found unfit for work will have a mandatory duty to seek a way into employment.

If at the initial interview the "Specially trained Incapacity Benefit Personal Adviser" decides that a lot of support would be required before you could consider going into employment and then a PCA finds you fit for work, the decision maker will not take into consideration the information from the Adviser, as they are not medically qualified, so you are off Pathways.

Am I missing something here?

Any comments

Willie

Hi Willie

Pathways to Work has been operating here for a couple of years now. It sounds like your understanding is pretty much correct.

The bit that most irritates me the most is that someone will often start on the Pathways to Work programmes because their health is starting to improve, and there is a real risk of being found fit for work during this time and getting thrown of Incapacity benefit and therefore the Pathways to Work programme.

A couple of cases spring to mind, one where the client was on a computer course and mid way through the course was found fit for work. She was allowed to stay on the course pending her appeal which she duely lost as the improvement in her health meant she was now on about 13 points. I enquired afterwards if she could complete her course which would hopefully help her to get a job afterwards. And the answer was no!

Another client had gone through the condition management programme, and was working a few hours a week under the permitted work rules. She was being supported by a job broker and had been steadily increasing her hours with the aim of getting up to 16 hours at the end of the 12 month permitted work period and moving on to WTC, getting the return to work credit etc. 10 months in to the permitted work period she gets called for a medical. The client has mental health problems and the possibility of having her Incapacity benefit removed and the rug pulled from under her when she was so close to moving off benefit made her really anxious. In the end she was passed as unfit for work. This decision arrived a few weeks before she was about to come off Incap. and increase her hours to 16, thus causing a huge crisis of confidence and making her question whether she really was well enough to be working!!