Growing concerns over welfare reforms

The Church, charities and political opponents have spoken out over the imminent introduction the latest round of welfare reforms. With the controversial new ‘bedroom tax’ due to be introduced by the Westminster government in just over a fortnight, critics have united to ask the Tory/Lib Dem coalition to think again.

In an open letter to Work and Pensions Minister Iain Duncan Smith, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby (pictured above) and 43 Church of England bishops wrote on open letter to Work and Pensions Minister Iain Duncan Smith last week, expressing concern that welfare reforms could push as many as 200,000 children into poverty. The churchmen said that benefits caps will hit the most vulnerable people in society and ‘a civilised society has a duty to support the most vulnerable’.

In Scotland, Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon called for the bedroom tax to be scrapped earlier this week, when announcing that extra advice and support will help those who will lose out under UK Government housing benefit cuts like the bedroom tax.

The Scottish Government is providing an extra £2.5 million to social landlords to ensure there is advice on hand for people who will lose housing benefit due to the under occupancy measures and other housing benefit changes being introduced by Westminster.

Ms Sturgeon said: “I have made the Scottish Government’s firm opposition to the bedroom tax absolutely clear. It is a policy that will penalise some of the most vulnerable people in our society and I put the case for it to be scrapped in the strongest terms to the Deputy Prime Minister when we met in London this week – sadly there appears to be indifference to this argument at Westminster, despite strong opposition from across Scotland.

“We are determined to do everything that we reasonably can to help and as part of these efforts we are making available an extra £2.5 million to social landlords to help them ensure that people affected by housing benefit changes have the advice and support they need. This is on top of the £5.4 million we have already allocated to help those affected by benefit reforms, which will go to organisations such as Citizens Advice.

“This extra support will assist social landlords in their efforts to engage directly with affected tenants and seek to identify ways in which they can deal with the impact of the changes. We are continuing to consider all reasonable steps that we can take to mitigate welfare cuts, including the bedroom tax. However, these unjust policies show why we need the powers of independence to protect vulnerable people rather than simply trying to cushion the blows in Scotland. It would be far better to control benefits and welfare so unfair policies like the bedroom tax are not even considered, let alone implemented.”

Meanwhile North and Leith MP Mark Lazarowicz has produced figures showing that over 5200 people living in Edinburgh’s social rented sector – including nearly 20% of council tenants – will be hit by the ‘bedroom tax’, as they are considered by the government to be living in a home larger than they need or ’under-occupying’, so their housing benefit will be cut to reflect that.

According to the latest figures from Edinburgh City Council, 5,263 Council or social landlord tenants are currently live in a bigger home than the government says they need.

4,529 live in a home with one bedroom more than they are said to need and another 734 tenants live in a home with 2 or more bedrooms more than the government says they should have.

Nearly one-fifth or 3,851 of the 20,331 Council tenants in the City are likely to be affected – but there are only 27 one-bedroom flats available to rent, either in Council-or housing association property.

In a statement earlier this week, Mr Lazarowicz said: “These figures show just how severe the impact is likely to be in Edinburgh. There is a real danger that people who see their housing benefit cut will fall into either arrears or debt, and in extreme cases may even become homeless. The result of the ‘bedroom tax’ may be that people go from ‘under-occupancy’ to overcrowding, especially if they have to be rehoused in bed and breakfast accommodation.

“It will cause tremendous problems for local councils who will struggle to provide alternative accommodation and to cope with the effect on their finances if tenants fall into arrears or have to be rehoused in more expensive short term accommodation.
“It highlights the desperate shortage of affordable housing both here in Edinburgh and across the rest of the UK but the Government seems to have turned its back on the problem and the people who will be affected by this.”

The Department for Work and Pensions estimates that it will affect 80,000 social housing tenants in Scotland overall or 33% of the total number of housing benefit claimants in the social rented sector in Scotland who will lose on average £12 a week.

There aren’t enough smaller properties available to meet the demand if people have to move and so Citizens Advice Scotland and Shelter Scotland have both highlighted the danger that some people could end up homeless.

The Government has made some late concessions – armed forces personnel and foster carers have now been exempted – but other than that it’s full steam ahead.

Responding to concerns over the welfare changes this week Mr Duncan Smith told MPs the benefits system was “out of control” and simply “giving more and more money” would not help.

Speaking during Work and Pensions Questions in the House of Commons, Mr Duncan Smith said: “”I always listen to everybody who gives me advice. I don’t necessarily follow it. I have no issue with the Church of England, with the bishops, for them to say whatever they believe. It’s quite right and proper. They should try and argue with us and put pressure on us over a number of issues. I simply say that I don’t agree that the way to get children out of poverty is to simply keep transferring more and more money to keep them out of work”.

He went on: “The reality is what we’re having to do is reform a system that became completely out of control under the last government, get people back in work, for being in work is how you get your children out of poverty. The reality is that we are doing the right thing in bringing in the benefit cap. For the first time ever, people on low and average earnings will realise at last that those on benefits will not be able to be paid more in taxes than they themselves earn.”

The city council’s North Neighbourhood Team is now offering a drop-in service on Wednesdays between 10am-1pm to provide advice and support on a range of services. Officers from the Rents, Choice, Revenue & Benefits Teams and Neighbourhood Support Service, along with Letfirst and Granton Information Centre staff, will be available.

NADI

The Bedroom Tax – a Poll Tax for the 21st century?

It could become the most hated piece of legislation to be inflicted on British people since the infamous Poll Tax. And it’s now only weeks away …

In April, a new measure is to be introduced that will apply to all tenants of working age – welfare reforms will cut the amount of benefit that people can get if they are deemed to have a spare bedroom in their council or housing association home.

Under the legislation, size criteria will restrict housing benefit to allow for one bedroom for each person or couple living as part of the household. Children under sixteen years old will be expected to share with others of the same gender, while children under ten will be expected to share regardless of gender.

Under the new legislation – labelled the bedroom tax – all claimants who are then deemed to have at least one spare bedroom will be affected and face an ‘under occupation’ penalty: a cut to their housing benefit.

The cut will be a fixed percentage of the Housing Benefit eligible rent, which the Westminster government has stated will be set at 14% for one extra bedroom and 25% for two or more extra bedrooms.

Those affected – around 660,000 working-age social housing tenants (over 30% of existing Housing Benefit claimants in the social sector) in the UK – will lose an average of £14 per week, with Housing Association tenants expected to lose around £16 per week.

The architect of the scheme is investment banker and Welfare Reform Minister Baron Freud of Eastry – who incidentally lives in an eight-bedroom Kent mansion when he is not staying in his four-bedroom townhouse in London’s Highgate. The noble Lord believes that ‘spare council house bedrooms are a luxury the country can no longer afford: “It’s not fair or affordable for people to continue to live in homes that are too large for their needs when, in England alone, there are around five million people on the social housing waiting list and over a quarter of a million tenants are living in overcrowded conditions. It’s only right that we bring fairness back to the system and make better use of the social housing stock.”

He went on: “Nearly a third of working-age social housing tenants on housing benefit are living in accommodation which is too big for their needs, in spite of the fact of severe overcrowding. We are stopping the practice of the state paying for rooms beyond claimant needs, and that should go in some way to help tackle the social housing shortage that has been blighting too many lives.”

Lord Freud and his ministerial chums hope that more households will chose to ‘downsize’ to smaller, more affordable properties – and in the process slash £500 million from the Housing Benefit bill. So the government reduces the national debt and tenants get suitably-sized homes: a win, win situation, then – everybody’s happy?

Sadly not. There’s a desperate shortage of suitable, smaller accommodation, as Shelter Scotland Director Graeme Brown explained: “The UK Government is simply failing to listen to the voice of reason being put forward by housing professionals, social landlords, MSPs and individuals. Penalizing low-income people for having an extra room assumes that there is a ready supply of smaller properties for them to move to. This is simply not the case. So the only consequence will be people stuck in homes with mounting rent arrears and a further descent into debt. Even at this late stage, we urge the UK Government to modify its proposals.”

According to the latest Scottish government figures, there are 586,000 households in the social rented sector in Scotland, and 105,000 of these – roughly one in five – will be affected by the Bedroom Tax, each losing an average of around £50 per month.

Advice organisations have already seen a significant increase in demand for their services, and the imminent welfare reforms will inevitably lead to even more desperate cries for help.

Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) Chief Executive Margaret Lynch gave evidence about the impact of welfare changes on advice services at the Scottish Parliament earlier this month.

She said: “We expect demand for benefit advice, to increase even further along with an increased need for other areas of advice such as debt, housing, and budgeting due to changes in benefits. This increase in casework, as well as the increasing complexity and time-consuming nature or many issues, is of course having a knock-on effect on the ability of our service to help our clients.

“We are already at breaking point so desperately need to be adequately resourced to enable us to help those who need it most as we aim to mitigate the impact of welfare reform as much as possible. The recent benefits uprating bill debate highlighted the statistics showing how the poorest are paying the price for cuts. The evidence we are publishing today is not just statistics but is based on the real lives of real people. It is not just about the numbers of people affected, but the severity of the individual cases. We have seen a big rise in the number of people in crisis situations, either because of the direct impact of a benefit cut or because they have fallen through the gaps in the safety net that is meant to protect them.

“The evidence we are publishing shows who is really being hit hardest by current policies and it includes thousands of people who are genuinely sick, disabled, and vulnerable and deserve support. The impact of current policies don’t just hit the individual claimant but can also have a huge effect on children and others being cared for. Pushing people further into poverty and financial difficulties will lead to an increase in other problems such as homelessness, health inequalities, and family breakdown, as well as lead to rising debt and an increase for food hand-outs. Tackling these issues in future years will only add to the overall public spending bill, not reduce it. The UK government must heed this evidence and question whether they really want to continue on a track of devastating reforms which can only damage more lives.”

Shelter Scotland has issued advice to tenants likely to be hit by the imminent benefit cuts, and urge them to ACT NOW:

If you’re going to be affected by a deduction to your housing benefit then it’s very important that you prepare for the change before April 2013.

There are several things you can do:

take in a lodger – renting out a spare room would bring in extra income, but make sure you get the agreement of your landlord first and check whether this will affect any other benefits that you’re currently receiving
ask for a contribution to your rent – your family members may be able to pay more towards your rent
move to a smaller property – you may be able to transfer to a smaller property, speak to your council or the housing association you’re renting from to see if you can apply to do this
apply for a discretionary housing payment – your local council may be able to give you temporary support to help you stay in your home through a discretionary housing payment.

If you can’t pay all your rent after the reduction you may have to think about finding somewhere else to live or you will risk falling behind with your rent and possibly being evicted. Speak to an adviser in your area as soon as possible if you’re worried that this may happen to you.

For Local advice:

Granton Information Centre 134-138 West Granton Road. Telephone 552 0458 Email info@gic.org.uk

Pilton CAB, Drylaw Shopping Centre: Telephone 202 1153 Email pilton@caed.org.uk

A Happy New Year?

A Happy New Year? Not for people on benefits. The introduction of the controversial Universal Credit is sure to be one of the biggest stories of 2013. It’s the most radical shake-up to the welfare system in seventy years, but what does it mean for you? Granton Information Centre’s Roddy Samson (pictured below) has been giving presentations on changes to the benefits system, and the impact these changes will have on the lives of millions of people. Below, he guides us through the benefits maze:

‘The rationale for changing the welfare system is a generally accepted belief that the current system is far too complex, with too many different types of benefit and allowances. So the Westminster government is seeking to simplify the system and make it easier to understand – and will also make savings of around £8 – 10 billion as it does so!

The idea behind the reforms is to get people back to work, and to try to make pay. Between 2010 and 2013 there will be 39 changes to the benefits system, some are already in place and more will come in next year.

The main points to consider are Income Support, Rent Capping, Disability Living Allowance (DLA) the introduction of the Universal Credit, benefits caps, Housing Benefit and the scrapping of Incapacity Benefit.

Income Support is now generally paid to lone parents – is used to be the case that lone parents could claim income support up until their child was 16 years of age. That dropped to twelve, then seven and now, when the child reaches five years of age, the parent is expected to register to be available for work. That’s a major change.

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is currently paid to people who have a disability or a long-term condition, and it’s paid both to people in work and out of work. There are two sections to it – mobility and care – but DLA will be scrapped altogether next year and replaced by Personal Independence Payment.

There will be a new, tougher medical test for people on DLA; new claimants will be tested and existing claimants will be re-assessed by an organisation called ATOS who were contracted by the Department of Work and Pensions to carry out the medical assessments. The retesting will mean a lot of people will lose their entitlement to this benefit, there will be substantial loss of income and the impact will be that people with disabilities – many of whom require a significant level of care – will find that they have far less money coming into their household. Universal Credit is the flagship of the government’s welfare reform agenda, a single ‘super-benefit’ that will replace a number of existing benefits – including Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance, Employment Support Allowance, Housing Benefit and Tax Credits – and replace this with one single benefit payment.

Universal Credit is supposed to be structured to make work a better choice than being on benefits, but there has already been a lot of criticism of the proposals. Universal Credit introduces conditionality and sanctions for the first time. Just now, you have Tax Credits to top-up the incomes of people on low pay, which are paid if you work 16 hours a week. – but the government proposes that you must now work for at least the equivalent of 35 hours a week at the national minimum wage to qualify – and if you don’t, they suggest you should ask your employer either for more hours or for a wage rise!

Job Seekers Allowance will also become part if the Universal Credit, but if you fail to meet the conditions of the benefit the sanctions will now go much higher – they are talking about sanctioning people for up to three years, which means that people could be left with no money for that period.

The other problem with Universal Credit is that it’s going to be paid monthly, with all benefits paid in one lump sum. There’s a real problem with this, in that – to take housing benefit, for example – rent is currently paid directly to landlords. If you give large sums of money to people with drug or alcohol issues, and other vulnerable people, what is likely to happen is that they will spend the money on other things and not on the essentials, leading to rent arrears and potential debt problems.

The other problem with this is that applications for Universal Credit must be made on-line, which poses huge problems for people who either do not have access to computers or others who have difficulty operating them – the on-line application can take one and a half to two hours to complete. The government also plans to introduce a Benefit Cap from next April. This is supposed to be about fairness – making sure that people on benefits are not better off than families in work – but this will impact on larger families and those whose housing costs are higher. The benefits cap has been set at £500 for couples with or without children living with them, and for single parents whose children with them. For single adults without children or with no children living with them the cap is set at £350.

The new rules on Housing Benefit is being called the Bedroom Tax, and it basically means that, if you are a single person who lives in a two bedroom house, you will not be paid additional housing costs – you will only get enough to cover the cost of a one-bedroom flat. The idea behind it is that there are lots of people living in homes with spare rooms, but the fact is that there are very few one-bedroom flats available, particularly in areas like North Edinburgh. The difference in cash terms is a cut of around £14 a week per unoccupied room.

People on Incapacity Benefit are also facing tougher tests as the government tries to get more people off benefits and into work, and the medical focuses on what people are able to do other than what they are unable to do, the thinking being that almost everybody could carry out some form of work. What we’re finding, though, is that as many as 34% of those on Incapacity Benefit don’t turn up for their medical and disappear off registers altogether. Of those who do turn up for the medical, 37% are passed fit for work – but 71% of those who challenge the decision are successful on appeal when they are represented by organisations like ourselves.

In summary, these are massive cuts. It’s clear that no-one will be better off as a result of the latest welfare reforms, whereas even more people will be worse off as the new arrangements are introduced. There are massive social implications, affecting huge swathes of society – but the poorest, in particular, will be hardest hit.’

So there you have it. As Neil Kinnock once said: ‘I warn you not be ordinary. I warn you not to be young. I warn you not to fall ill. I warn you not to get old.’ That day of reckoning is now fast approaching. For too many British citizens, rather than a new year of hope and opportunity 2013 promises to be a year of pain, misery and despair.

If you are confused about how the benefits system changes will affect you, make an appointment to see an adviser at Granton Information Centre or attend a drop-in session. Telephone 552 0458 for more information.

Third sector braced for ‘criminal’ welfare reform challenge

Charities and voluntary organisations have launched a scathing attack on the Westminster government’s welfare reforms. The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) says proposed cuts to benefits through the introduction of the new Universal Credit are ‘criminal’.

Research figures released by SCVO show that three-quarters of welfare charities expect demand for their services to increase in the next year as benefit cuts start to bite, while facing further funding cuts themselves.

Martin Sime, Chief Executive of SCVO, said ‘ill-conceived’ cuts are coming at a time when the country is struggling to emerge from the deepest recession for generations, and that charities and voluntary projects are concerned about meeting an anticipated record high demand for services.

“It’s clear from this research that Westminster’s criminal cuts to welfare are putting so much pressure on charities’ services that some will struggle to keep up with demand from people and families in Scotland,” he said. “The sector is pulling together to pick up the pieces and help to mitigate the terrible effects of these ill-conceived Westminster cuts which should never have happened in the first place.”

The government is cutting £10bn from the welfare budget to make benefits fairer and more able to tackle poverty. Six different benefits will become just one – the Universal Credit – with changes coming into force from next year, and up to nineteen million people will be affected by the controversial reforms.

The Westminster government determines welfare payments, and insists that the reforms are necessary and fair. Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Iain Duncan-Smith (pictured below) said: “The introduction of the Universal Credit is not about cuts. This is about taking a very complex system and making it simpler, easier and fairer. Yes, it is an enormous change but it rewards and supports those people who make decision to go back to work. Really caring about people is about saying: ‘look, I want to change your life with you’ – we offer positive incentives to help people to do that.”

The Scottish government has no control over welfare payments and says that the Westminster reforms are both ill-considered and are being implemented with undue haste, leaving local councils and the voluntary sector to deal with the consequences. Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon admitted there is only so much Holyrood can do, and said: “The Scottish government will do all it can to mitigate the impact of these cuts and changes, although there are consequences that are currently out with the capability of the Scottish government’s powers.”

First Minister Alex Salmond said that only independence can give Scotland the powers it needs to develop a welfare system that allows work to pay ‘without reducing people to penury or despair.’ He told a Third Sector conference: ““We need the powers of an independent country if we are to properly protect the foundations of the welfare state in Scotland. In our own hands, it would surely not be beyond our collective abilities to manage to make work pay without reducing people to penury or despair. We do not want independence for its own sake – independence is a means to greater ends, and this is a prime example of that. We want Scotland to be independent because we know that only then can we build a society that reflects our shared values. An independent Scotland can and will be a fairer Scotland.”

There is no public sympathy for those who can work but choose not to, but campaigners fear that benefit changes will hit the worst-off hardest – the poorest families will suffer most.

Alison Garnham, Chief Executive of Child Poverty Action Group, said: “It’s not problem families, but families faced with the problem of low pay and shrinking government help for families. It’s some of the hardest working families that have been first in the queue for cuts – they’ve had their tax credits cut, their Child Benefit frozen year after year and many will have had essential help for childcare costs slashed.

“Six out of ten poor children come from working families. These are some of the hardest working people in the country, working the longest hours, for the lowest pay, in the worst conditions and with the highest aspirations for themselves and their children.

“A child in poverty is much more likely to be in poverty because they have a parent who is a security guard or a cleaner than one who is a drug addict or ‘feckless’. There is no evidence that people don’t want to take jobs but plenty that shows that people are hurling themselves at the labour market – the problem is that they don’t stick, not that they don’t try.”

Granton Information Centre is one of the voluntary organisations already seeing the impact of the welfare reforms. The advice centre based on West Granton Road dealt with over 5000 benefit enquiries last year, but staff have already seen a 50% rise in demand during the first six months of this year due to benefit changes that have already taken place.

GIC manager Caroline Pickering said: “Over the last couple of months we have been making presentations to other agencies, groups and health professionals to prepare them for the changes and many have been shocked by the scale of what is being proposed, and the effect it is likely to have on both their clients and patients and the services they currently provide. We are already seeing an upsurge in client numbers and there’s absolutely no doubt that this number will at least double next year as the effect of the changes are felt. At least we know the changes are coming – but we know that there are still a lot of people out there who are not aware of some major changes to their benefit entitlement. As an organisation we are as prepared as we can be, but resources are very tight. We will be facing a huge challenge.”

Healthy advice from GIC

Granton Information Centre (GIC) has extended their service at Muirhouse Medical Group. GIC’s Michelle Lee can now be found at the Muirhouse Avenue centre on Mondays and Tuesdays from 2 – 4pm.

GIC have provided an advice service in local GP surgeries for many years, and have had a presence in the Muirhouse surgery for almost two years. The extra hours at Muirhouse became possible when the Muirhouse practice was extended, and it’s a service that patients registered at Muirhouse are using in increasing numbers.

“There’s as much of a demand for the service as there has ever been – perhaps even more so”, said Michelle, who has been with GIC for eight years. “The advice service has been getting particularly busy on Tuesdays, and having the additional day here makes a great difference.”

Muirhouse Medical Centre’s Gillian Anderson said: “Michelle is very much a part of our team – she’s been added to our appointment systems and participates in our six-weekly staff team meetings. It’s great to have Michelle here in the practice to give advice – updating staff on changes to legislation and other issues that may affect GPs – to the comprehensive service she provides to the local people who are registered at this practice. There are a lot of questions on benefits and entitlements that we couldn’t give the answers to, so it’s very useful having Michelle here to explain complicated things in a way we can all understand.”

One patient who particularly appreciates GIC’s GP surgery service is Alan, who lives in Muirhouse. Alan, who suffers from depression, turned to Michelle for help when his mother – who was also his carer – suddenly died last Christmas.

“I didn’t have a clue what to do – my mum had always done everything and I really didn’t know where to turn or where to start. It took me a long time to get over the shock of losing my mum and things sort of drifted – I got into a mess and I didn’t have a clue how to sort things out. It affected my health, which was not that great anyway, and I was so lucky that my GP was able to offer GIC’s advice service, saying we’d be able to get things sorted.” At this point I had been refused Employment & Support Allowance due to failing a Work Capability assessment; I had a funeral to organise and to pay for and had accruing council tax arrears and I had no money coming in.”

He went on: “When I spoke to Michelle it was a weight off my mind – it was amazing just how much better I felt just being able to share things with somebody, because I really didn’t have anyone else to help me, no-one else to turn to. I’m not exaggerating when I say that Michelle was my lifeline – she has supported me all the way through. Things were a mess – far too complicated for me – but with Michelle’s help things are looking up now – it’s a whole lot brighter, when just a wee while ago everything seemed hopeless.”

Michelle said: “Alan suffers from severe depression, and when he found himself alone he found it impossible to cope with forms, bills and paperwork. He found himself with an outstanding funeral bill, no money coming in because his benefits had been stopped and there were various other complications. It was a set of circumstances that anyone would have found daunting – never mind someone who had recently lost their mother. Fortunately, we have been able to systematically deal with all of the issues Alan faced, and things that once seemed insurmountable have been resolved. It is not an easy process, but we’ve got there. Alan has started to get his life in order, and he’s feeling better and more positive as a result.”

Michelle explained to Alan that she would assist with appealing the Employment & Support Allowance decision and would also assist with making an application to British Gas Energy Trust for help with the outstanding balance for the funeral. Michelle also identified a possible entitlement to Disability Living Allowance.

The Employment & Support Allowance decision was overturned at the appeal stage and Alan was placed in the support group. His weekly income increased from absolutely nothing to £105.05 a week, and he also received an additional backdated payment of £681.00.

The British Gas Energy Trust application was also successful and Alan was awarded £1960.80 to clear the outstanding balance of his mother’s funeral costs.

The initial application for Disability Living Allowance was unsuccessful, but GIC successfully appealed the decision and this increased Alan’s weekly income by another £41.10 – in total Alan’s annual household income has increased by £7,599.80!

Alan’s life has been turned around. “I’m starting to get out and about a bit more, which is hard to believe,” he said. “I can honestly say that, without this service, I really don’t think I would have been here to tell you this story. Seriously, it was that bad but things are getting better. I can never thank Michelle enough for everything she’s done for me and I count myself so lucky that my GP told me about the advice service.”

Granton Information Centre’s GP Surgery service is also available at Crewe Medical Centre on Tuesday mornings between 10.00am and 1pm.

Welfare reform: getting the facts in Forth

The current reform of welfare and benefit payments is the biggest to be undertaken for over sixty years. Whether you agree with the reforms or not, the changes will affect hundreds of thousands of people across the country. How will you be affected? Find out at a briefing and information session later this month.

Forth Neighbourhood Partnership’s Health Action Group is hosting a briefing on the Welfare Reform Act on

Wednesday 17 October from 10 – 11.30am in West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre.

Granton Information Centre’s Roddy Samson (pictured below) will be leading the session – which is aimed at local community, voluntary and statutory organisations – and there will be ample opportunity for questions and discussions.

Roddy Samson said: “The Welfare Reform Act 2012 introduces the greatest changes to welfare benefits in sixty years. These changes will have far reaching impacts for benefit claimants and their families, particularly for vulnerable people and the services which support them. The impact of these changes will affect those in receipt of Incapacity Benefit, Employment Support Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, Housing Benefit, Working Tax Credits and Job Seekers Allowance. This event will give you the opportunity to learn about the latest details of the Government’s welfare reform programme and help you to understand the new system and prepare for the changes ahead – where possible.”

To find out more or to book your place at the West Pilton briefing, contact Forth Neighbourhood Partnership’s partnership development officer Jim Pattison on 529 5082 or email jim.pattison@edinburgh.gov.uk

Eighty attend Dosh Day

Around eighty people attended North Edinburgh’s first ever Dosh Day at North Edinburgh Arts Centre this afternoon, taking the opportunity to find out how they can cut their costs and maximise their household income.

The event was organised by the Lottery-funded Money Matters project. Castle Rock Edinvar’s Head of Neighbourhood Regeneration Heather McNaughton explained: “A group of Housing Associations in Edinburgh work together with the Citizens Advice Edinburgh to help tenants to access debt advice and to encourage people to use support to maximise their income and remain out of unsustainable debt. As part of the project we had previously co-ordinated a “Dosh Day” in Craigmillar which was very successful and we are now bringing the concept to North Edinburgh with the kind support of local organisations and agencies.”

Citizens Advice Bureaux, Granton Information Centre, Community Renewal, JobCentre Plus, Cyrenians and Volunteer Centre Edinburgh were among the organisations attending on the day, so there was no shortage of sound financial advice.

Sick to the back teeth

You can hardly open a newspaper or switch on the telly these days without reading or hearing about changes to sickness benefits. There’s no doubt about it that reforming sickness benefits is at the forefront of the welfare reform agenda – but what do the changes mean in practice for people who are claiming sickness benefits or are not able to work? Roddy Samson from Granton Information Centre gives a brief update of the changes so far…

What is it?

Employment Support Allowance (ESA) is a welfare benefit which was introduced in October 2008. All new claimants who are unable to work due to illness or disability (including mental health problems) are placed on ESA. The intention is to support people to access appropriate work, with a greater emphasis on what claimants are able to do. ESA has replaced Incapacity Benefit (IB) and Income Support (IS) paid on the grounds of incapacity. The government plans to review everyone on IB for suitability for ESA by March 2014. The review process started in October 2010.

How are people assessed for ESA?

The ESA assessment process usually takes around 13 weeks, but can be longer. During this period the claimant will undergo:

A work capability assessment (WCA)

A work-focused interview

The ESA work capability assessment is carried out by a health care professional contracted by the Department for Work and Pensions at the local assessment centre in York Place. It is designed to assess whether the claimant is capable of work or capable of work related activity.

If they are assessed as incapable of work-related activity they are placed in the ‘support group’ and receive ESA.

If they are assessed as capable they are placed in the ‘work-related activity group’ and receive ESA. People in the ‘work-related activity group’ are expected to undertake work-related activity as a condition of continuing to receive the full amount of ESA.

The Work Capability Assessment

This assessment applies to most claimants and determines whether or not they remain on ESA.

For this test you are assessed on your ability to carry out 17 listed physical or ‘mental, cognitive and intellectual’ activities. Points are awarded on the basis of your limitations with respect to each activity. These points are totalled up and if the total reaches the threshold of 15, you are deemed to have limited capability for work and thus stay on ESA.

Within each type of activity there is a list of descriptors with associated scores ranging from 0 to 15. The descriptors describe related tasks of varying degrees of difficulty. You score when you are not able to perform the activity described. Though more than one descriptor may apply to you, you can only pick up one score from each type of activity; in each case whichever scores the highest.

If you score 15 in any one activity, you automatically pass the test. If your score is less than 15, it can be added to the scores you pick up from any of the other types of activity (in both the physical and the mental parts of the test). If your total score reaches 15, you pass the test.

The physical activities

The physical functions in the limited capability for work test are grouped into 10 different types of activity. These are:

Mobilising unaided by another person with or without a walking stick, manual wheelchair or other aid if such aid can reasonably be used.

Standing and sitting.

Reaching.

Picking up and moving or transferring by the use of the upper body and arms.

Manual dexterity.

Making self understood through speaking, writing, typing, or other means normally used, unaided by another person.

Understanding communication by both verbal means (such as hearing or lip reading) and non-verbal means (such as reading 16 point print) using any aid it is reasonable to expect them to use, unaided by another person.

Navigation and maintaining safety, using a guide dog or other aid if normally used.

Absence or loss of control leading to extensive evacuation of the bowel and/or bladder, other than enuresis (bed-wetting) despite the presence of any aids or adaptations normally used.

Consciousness during waking moments.

The assessment takes into account your abilities when using any aid or appliance you would normally use.

The mental, cognitive and intellectual activities

These functions in the limited capability for work test are grouped into sets of activities under the following 7 headings:

Learning tasks.

Awareness of everyday hazards (such as boiling water or sharp objects).

Initiating and completing personal action (which means planning, organisation, problem solving, prioritising or switching tasks).

Coping with change.

Getting about.

Coping with social engagement due to cognitive impairment or mental disorder.

Appropriateness of behaviour with other people, due to cognitive impairment or mental disorder.

Appeals

If the claimant is assessed as capable of work then they do not qualify for ESA. They can appeal this decision. If they appeal they can continue to receive the basic allowance of ESA until a decision is made on their appeal by a tribunal. Recent government figures show that appeals against ESA decisions are more successful if you have an experienced representative.

Between April 2010 and April 2011 114,000 ESA appeals were heard by independent tribunals in the U.K.

Of these 38% were successful

However when the person appealing had professional representation this figure rose to 67%.

It’s important to remember that if you get a decision about your benefits that you’re not happy with you should seek advice as soon as possible as strict time limits apply if you wish to challenge them. Granton Information Centre provides free, impartial advice, assistance and representation on all benefit and tax credit matters.

Drop in sessions (Granton Information Centre):

Monday & Wednesday: All HOUSING issues: 9.30 – 12.30

Tuesday & Thursday: BENEFITS & MONEY ADVICE issues: 9.30 – 12.30

Outreach:

Tuesday: 10.00 – 1.00 CREWE MEDICAL CENTRE

(Only for patients of Crewe Medical Centre)

Tuesday: 2.00 – 4.00 MUIRHOUSE MEDICAL GROUP

(Only for patients of Muirhouse Medial Group)

Home visits and appointments may be available on request.

Telephone/Fax: 0131 552 0458, 134 – 138 West Granton Road, Edinburgh, EH5 1PE

National Award for Granton Information Centre

Granton Information Centre has received the prestigious Scottish National Standards certificate for the quality of their information and advice provision at a reception at the City Chambers.

GIC is the first Edinburgh organisation – and one of only a few advice agencies in Scotland – to achieve the award at this level, and their certificate was presented by Sheriff Principal Edward T Bowen QC.

The certificate presentation was the centrepiece of an event organised to celebrate the success of EHAP (Edinburgh Housing Advice Partnership), a consortium set up to provide housing advice services across the city in a contract with the city council. The consortium partners – Granton Information Centre, Community Health and Information (CHAI), Move On and FourSquare – offer a comprehensive range of housing advice services to the people of Edinburgh. EHAP provides a prison outreach project, a schools peer education service for S4 and S5 school leavers, housing advice in local neighbourhood settings and also provides representation at court – both for pre-prepared cases and also through an ‘emergency first aid’ service for people who turn up at court without representation. The EHAP event offered an opportunity to reflect on what has been achieved so far and to look ahead to future challenges.

GIC award — Frances Durie and the staff team of Granton Information Centre receive their award. (Pic: Dave Pickering)

Welcoming delegates, Councillor Paul Edie (Chair of the Health, Social Care and Housing Committee) said: “Homelessness is something I’m very passionate about and I’m very proud of this council’s record. In Scotland, we have an obligation to eradicating unintentional homelessness by 2012 – not something that applies south of the border – and I think that’s a sign of what a progressive country Scotland is and how our social conscience reflects on public policy”.

He went on: “This council has a very radical strategy to tackle homelessness, developed in partnership with our colleagues in the voluntary sector and rolled out over the last couple of years. Critical to that strategy has been the provision of good quality ‘right first time’ housing advice to our service users. I’m really proud that last year homelessness dropped by 13% in Edinburgh, and EHAP are very important players in that strategy. No less than 99% of people who have used EHAP have not subsequently gone on to present themselves as homeless – that’s a jaw-dropping statistic; in any walk of life if you get that level of satisfaction rating you’d be entirely happy. I’d like to thank our EHAP partners for the great work they are doing to stop people losing their homes – a terrible thing to happen to anyone – and I wish you every success in the year ahead”.

One of Sherriff Principal Bowen’s responsibilities is to ensure ‘the efficient dispersal of Sherriff Court business’ and he explained that, while criminal cases take up the bulk of time at the court, civil business – including housing cases dealing with evictions and repossessions – take up a considerable amount of court time. He said that many of these cases could and should be resolved before they ever reached court, but added that there was also a need for suitable advice provision when cases did come to court.

“A recent review found that there is a need for proper advice – there remains a significant unmet need – and the EHAP service is critical to providing assistance prior to cases coming before the court system; providing there is a proper input by way of advice at an early stage, housing disputes can be resolved. The court needs to have confidence that suitable advice is available, so the service that EHAP provides is critical to the function of Edinburgh Sherriff Court. That’s demonstrated by the figures EHAP has provided for 2010 -11. We are indebted to all those involved in providing the EHAP service, which is widely acknowledged to be highly effective, and it gives me great pleasure to recognise that expertise by the presentation of these certificates today”.

Frances Durie, vice-chairperson of Granton Information Centre, received the award on the project’s behalf. She said: “This is a really tremendous achievement and a great honour for Granton Information Centre. Our staff have worked very hard over a long period to achieve the levels of professionalism that they have, and it’s good that this effort has been rewarded. We’ve always known that people coming to Granton Information Centre will get the highest standard of independent advice available anywhere, but it’s nice to receive wider recognition for the quality of our advice work”.

Granton Information Centre (GIC) provides free, impartial and confidential advice and assistance on a range of issues including welfare benefits, housing advice, tax credits and debt. If you would benefit from any advice you can visit them at their surgeries as per the details below.