You can get more than £180 a week in PIP payments
PIP recipients wonder what changes could emerge as a significant review of the benefit moves forward. The DWP is presently conducting a review of the benefit, which assists people with various health conditions.
PIP (Personal Independence Payment) helps meet the additional expenses of living with a long-term health condition or disability. Payments vary from £29.20 a week up to £187.45 a week, depending on how severely your condition impacts you. The Government is currently undertaking a review of the benefit, examining all elements of how the benefit operates. Aspects of PIP being looked at include the assessments that recipients often must undergo, to determine how much they should receive. The aim of the review as outlined in a Government document is to ensure the benefit remains “fair and fit for the future in a changing world, and helps support disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence, including through employment”.
More than 50 charities have signed an open letter pressing ministers to ensure the review is genuinely co-produced with disabled people. The DWP previously said it would consult with disabled people and the organisations that represent them, while conducting the review.
The groups that have signed the letter want the Government to provide greater detail about how charities will be involved, beyond a steering group that will be established as part of the project. Financial support group Turn2us signed the letter.
Lucy Bannister, head of Policy and Influencing at Turn2us, said: “Our research shows that the PIP assessment can cause real harm, which is why we welcome this review and its commitment to co-production. However, real co-production requires time and planning from all involved if people’s voices are to genuinely shape the review.
“We are therefore asking the government to set out, as soon as possible, when and how charities and disabled people beyond the steering group will be able to take part, so that we can prepare to contribute meaningfully. Getting this right is essential to rebuilding trust in the DWP and the wider social security system.”
Changes to PIP eligibility
The Government set out proposals last year to restrict the eligibility criteria for PIP, making it harder to qualify for the daily living component of the benefit. This provides either £73.90 a week at the standard rate or £110.40 a week at the enhanced rate.
There is also a mobility component, which provides £29.20 a week or £77.05 a week. You can receive one element whilst not receiving anything for the other.
When the changes were announced, many MPs strongly opposed the proposals. As a result, ministers said they would not make any changes to qualifying rules until the review is concluded.
Anti-poverty charity Z2K also endorsed the letter. Rose Grayston, interim director of Policy & Engagement at Z2K, said: “The Timms Review will only succeed if it earns the trust of all the people it directly affects.
“That means transparency and power sharing, and engaging with disabled people living in poverty who will be most impacted by the review’s changes. For them, PIP is the difference between stability and crisis.”
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