I was recently told by our local office that all this area's SF issues including applications are now centralised at Cholton (Manchester). However when I rang the new number last week they confirmed they were based in a call centre in Nottingham.

Today my client's been in as he'd been told his CCG application would take 8 weeks because they're behind (supressed yawn for the same old story) and so they offered him a CL instead. He sent back the signed acceptance last week only to be sent another today. I've tried to ring them 6 times and had "...sorry we're busy...try later".

Crisis? what crisis? - particularly as we're now just into another postal strike.

Poor bloke's got nowt in his new flat.

As Peter Kay would say "What's all tha' about then?"

The numbers are certainly beginning to look very worrying -

As of the 31st of August, there were 24638 CCG claims outstanding in the UK: or over 24000 very unhappy people. By comparison, as of 16th March 2007, there were a mere 12377 CCG claims awaiting decision, which had risen to 22100 by the 8th June.

its the same in the midlands. the birmingham central office also gave me an estimate of 8 weeks to process a community care grant application.

shocking

We have just had the experience of trying to claim a crisis loan under the new system with a very desperate client. Written application forms were ignored and when we tried to chase them (sent twice) we were told only phone applications accepted. They had to ring to make an appointment. Can only ring for same day appointments - cannot make one in advance and surprise surprise the phone is always engaged. Client and us too tried for a week - always engaged (as above). Its a good way to ensure a family will starve to death instead of being a drain on the state.

Ooo you're just another leftie cynic

.....Which Benefit centre are you dealing with?

Actually, that is a question I cannot answer. Main benefits dealt with by Belfast and Stratford - in that area some benefits dealt with by one and some by the other. Other SF dealt with by Bexleyheath (mostly) or Balham - but who supposedly answers(or rather doesn't) the Crisis Loan line I have no idea yet. It appears to have it's own dedicated line. I will be making a complaint to whoever it is as soon as I am calm enough to find out.

If this sounds as if I am fed up of guessing each time we chase up any benefit claims - that's about the size of it.

On the subject of guessing? Our regional Social Fund thingy centre is Bristol, but its clear from liaison talk, forms are being scattered far and wide to various JCP offices to be what evered?

Currently, the 0845 enquiry phone number has 12 phone lines (no queuing system)covers Somerset/Dorset/Bristol and presumably our Cornish and Devon brothers and sisters have the same number.

What is happening in practice is that if one Benefit processing centre is finding itself unable to cope with claims for a particular benefit, some of them are then passed to another BDC for processing - hence it's difficult to track claims sometimes - not made any easier in the case of the Southwest by the out of date telephony - 12 lines for a huge geographical area is a prime example of forward thinking methinks ......

Which reminds me of modernisation, simplification, fairness, joined up thinking, etc etc etc. As far as the Bristol Social Fund Mega-opolis the impression i got is its going to little JCP's e.g. Bridgewater size. So being ferried to and forth from Bristol to where ever, logistical anarchy!