APA - how can this possibly help?

Reading the DWP Guide to Personal budgeting Support and APAs March 2015 page 8 : https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/418485/personal-budgeting-support-guidance.pdf
I’ve read this many times and completely missed this.  I find it very hard to believe this is meant to help vulnerable people and people already in debt.  Surely someone has misinterpreted the rules when writing this.

I have checked with John of the UC line, who got in touch with the Specialist Users team and efficiently and quickly rang me back.  I had assumed that even if a client was identified as being Tier 1 or Tier 2 and it took a month for the APA to be put in place, they would get the whole month’s payment and going forward the benefit would be paid bi-monthly or weekly.  In fact, now it’s 5 weeks before they receive a payment but in July 6 weeks, when they will receive money for just half a month!  Apparently, if they gave them more they would only spend it!  Er, yes!  I’d like to see how any of us working people would react to working a month, waiting 6 weeks and getting paid 2 weeks money! 

Please tell me this is a mistake!

What type of APA did you query with UC team? More frequent payment?

Sorry, I should have explained - I was so gobsmacked I missed that out.  Yes, the more frequent payments.

I think I understand. They are saying in order to pay fortnightly, they can only pay half of the payment that’s due on the first payment date, and the follow up with the rest in a fortnight. To do as you would prefer would mean paying half of the next month’s payment in advance which they can’t because payable only in arrears and the assessment period for that payment not complete.
Correct me please if wrong.

Ah yes, that would be the guidance that includes the example of Gary who lives in supported accommodation and gets a UC housing element!

I guess you were looking at page 8 and trying to make sense of the statement that frequent payments can only start after the end of the first AP and payment will be of half a month’s benefit twice a month.  Can they really be saying that a person who is granted an APA precisely because they find it hard to budget over longer periods will be paid even more in arrears than someone who is able to budget?  The first half-monthly payment is for the period beginning three half-months ago??

Like you I would have thought that the first payment must surely be a catch-up covering two or possibly even three half-months, with regualr half-monthly payments thereafter.  Otherwise there really isn’t any point bothering, at least not until you have had your first monthly payment under normal rules.  If DWP is truly serious about this, that would be the way round it: get your first payment the regular way and then ask to switch from a subsequent month.