Welfare Rights Rorke’s Drift: Hold it , hold it….hold it

hi -

just been sent updated PIP toolkit that sets out postcodes where people are going to be reassessed -

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-personal-independence-payment-toolkit-for-partners/the-personal-independence-payment-pip-toolkit-for-partners

So Capita have got their act together but not Atos?

Does anyone know when it will be brought in for the other areas?

so in areas who haven’t reached their “specified date”, even if they report a change in care needs it now would be a DLA supersession?

likewise those turning 16 will be asked to continue on DLA until they reach this specified date?

I can see we’re going backwards which is not necessarily a bad thing for DLA claimants whose award will expire post 17.03.14 but can anyone work out which lot of postcodes will jump on 17.03.14? Assuming it’s lot 1 (ATOS), when will the other lots go??? Or am I just not getting it?

I think this is probably down to Capita doing most assessment as home visits, so presumably just needed to recruit and train staff, whilst ATOS commited to setting up a vast array of assessment centres in their tender for the contract (700+ in London and the SE IIRC) and intended to subcontract to local providers (including the NHS) to actually do the assessments.

Back in July a FOI response suggested that they only had 108 centres ready for London and the SE. Their website currently lists 21 for the SE.

I’m aware of a claimant who very recently attended a face-to-face in one of the Kent centres. Claimant was very satisfied with what she thought was a thorough, professional and friendly assessment, but described the office as looking like they were half way through moving in - half unpacked packing boxes and the like.

stevenmcavoy - 24 October 2013 10:31 AM

so in areas who haven’t reached their “specified date”, even if they report a change in care needs it now would be a DLA supersession?

likewise those turning 16 will be asked to continue on DLA until they reach this specified date?

Exactly. That is what the new Reg 3(3A) and Reg 3(5A) do. Of course, that could change at a moment’s notice in any area of the country. Maybe soon we will be able to abolish regulations entirely and just have gov.uk instead. Hooray.

With a touch less sarcasm - anyone got any clients who have been told that they needed to claim PIP (approaching 16 between 7/10 and 27/10) but are now outside the transfer area? Are they getting sent out DLA renewal forms?

My reading is that DWP has the power to extend the existing DLA award of someone turning 16 this week using Reg 19 of the PIP(TP) Regs (but must do under Reg 18 only for those turning 16 from 28 October since the first set of amending Regs), and I would certainly hope that they are doing so if they are now sending out DLA renewal forms for awards expiring this week, given how long they waited to reveal that they had ‘always planned for a controlled start’...

Jon

[See further post below]

In our borough (Atos area) we have one venue - a foot clinic. Given the obvious conflict of interest of using facilities where claimants might already be patients, I think it was highly predictable that there were going to be problems. So, what now?

Mick Quinn - 23 October 2013 01:47 PM

Wish I could do that fancy cut & paste Peter!!

Try hitting the “quote” button

ta

With a touch less sarcasm - anyone got any clients who have been told that they needed to claim PIP (approaching 16 between 7/10 and 27/10) but are now outside the transfer area? Are they getting sent out DLA renewal forms?

My reading is that DWP has the power to extend the existing DLA award of someone turning 16 this week using Reg 19 of the PIP(TP) Regs (but must do under Reg 18 only for those turning 16 from 28 October since the first set of amending Regs), and I would certainly hope that they are doing so if they are now sending out DLA renewal forms for awards expiring this week, given how long they waited to reveal that they had ‘always planned for a controlled start’...

Of course Reg 19 only applies to a ‘DLA entitled person’, who must be getting DLA and 16 or over (definition in PIP (TP) Reg 2). I have been in the ivory tower for so long that I can’t remember if the standard DLA end date is the day before the 16th birthday, or the day of the 16th birthday. This will make a massive difference for those turning 16 from 7-27 October, in terms of the discretionary power above…

ros - 23 October 2013 02:48 PM

updated PIP toolkit that sets out postcodes where people are going to be reassessed -
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-personal-independence-payment-toolkit-for-partners/the-personal-independence-payment-pip-toolkit-for-partners

Just to summarise and check I’ve got this right: From 28 October 2013, reassessment of some existing DLA claimants will start in Wales, West Midlands, East Midlands or East Anglia. The postcodes affected are: B, CF, CH1, CH4, CH5, CH6, CH7, CH8, CV, DE, DY, GL16, HR, IP, LD, LE, LL, LN, NG, NN, NP, NR, PE, SA, ST, SY, TF, WR, WS and WV.
these are the Capita areas.
‘voluntary’ PIP claimants, eg a blind person who can get PIP high rate mob instead of DLA low rate mob, can only do so in one of the above reassessment areas?

hi robby

last week’s HB bulletin G11/2013 says -

‘Existing DLA claimants who want to voluntarily claim PIP are now able to do so in Wales, West Midlands, East Midlands and parts of East Anglia only.’

here’s a link to rightsnet news story -

http://www.rightsnet.org.uk/news/story/dwp-sets-out-further-details-of-transfer-of-dla-claimants-to-pip

cheers ros

Mick

Nothing to add to the thread other than this must be one of, if not the best, titles for a discussion on this forum. Brilliant.

Perhaps there should be an annual prize from Rightsnet for the best titled post….........

sorry to be a complete eejit but what does rorke’s drift mean? i see it was a battle in the anglo/zulu war but what has that to do with pip?