UK: Disability benefits (UC, ESA and PIP) - news and updates 2026

rvallee said:
I'm not sure it's a genuine explanation, it rings fake to me. The people who work on junk rehabilitation pseudoscience seem to enjoy their work
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They're mostly nurses, ambulance techs, etc. There are hundreds of them and there's no reason to think any were involved in this. They're just ordinary workers who're very unlikely to have been in positions of influence (it doesn't pay well enough).

Judging by interviews I've heard/read, some of them are attracted to it because they've got young kids and the hours are better than shift work. Some tried it because their age meant they were starting to struggle with the physical demands of long nursing or paramedic shifts, but then realised they only got paid for about two thirds of the work they did (it apparently takes much longer to write up their notes than they're allowed).

There might be a minority who went into it for the wrong reasons, but a lot of them are just trying to find better or more manageable work. Years ago the assessments were done by doctors, and a lot of them were retired GPs. They could choose to work as many or as few days a week as they wanted, the fees (which used to be better than they are now) topped up their pensions nicely, and it got them out of the house. The chap who did my DLA assessments sat chatting afterwards and told me about it. (ETA: I got the impression he mainly did it because he missed feeling useful.)
 
Working as a PIP assessor is so stressful that leaving healthcare seems like a better alternative.

Plus there are plenty of healthcare workers who don’t do it because of a vocation but for interesting work, job security etc.
 
Yes, let's not be too generous about the motivations for working in healthcare. I worked in the health system before getting sick and that range covers the full spectrum, from the most noble to the most self-serving.

That said, most I worked with were trying to do the best for patients, within the constraints of the job.
 
What are people using for evidence these days for assessments? A few years ago a welfare rights advisor knowledgeable of MECFS advised only consultant letters were useful. She knew I had comorbidities which had me seen by consultants so could use them. I will be going through a WCA at some point and am wondering what to gather in advance this time around.
 
Haveyoutriedyoga said:
What are people using for evidence these days for assessments?
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I don't have any. I rarely speak to doctors about ME/CFS because apart from the pain relief, there's nothing much they could do. All I have is my summary health record, and even then it's buried at the bottom because the date's 1976.

So far (touch wood!) it doesn't seem to have been a problem.
 
They seem keen on OT assessments.
It's probably good to explain why there is no specialist input for ME, as the CM (claim or case manager) kept referring to this in my daughter's report. She did have letters from a couple of NHS consultants she's seen re POTS. One of whom had been sent a form for further info by DWP.

Someone for DWP rang me at lunchtime as the info we had sent for her appeal was incompletely scanned. That was great because I was able to correct some of the errors and incorrect assumptions in the Award decision report as well as fill in details of the missing papers etc.
The upshot was that she has been awarded standard rate for the Daily Living Activities. She had previously only been awarded standardd rate mobility and was 2 points short for std ADL.
As is fairly usual the STAR, reliability criteria had been previously ignored.

It is such a relief to know that she has this, as we are both past retirement age and to have this decision and realisation of her functional limitations atm, gives her some level of security for the future.
 
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MEMarge said:
It is such a relief to know that she has this, as we are both past retirement age and to have this decision and realisation of her functional limitations atm, gives her some level of security for the future.
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That's great news, although it's a shame about those two points.

After retirement age the reassessments tend to get less frequent. I'm sure there'll be exceptions, but there seems to be an acknowledgement that older people are less likely to improve, so it probably costs more than it saves to keep doing them.

I was very relieved when they put me on 10-year light touch review; as you say, it gives you a sense of security. Reaching state pension age also helped, as being on ESA for 10 years always felt precarious even though they never put me through a WCA. There was always the possibility they might.
 
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