Barnet (Parliament Politics Magazine) – New figures show 75% of Barnet residents on Universal Credit for health or disability reasons are unable to work, highlighting welfare pressures.
The government’s work capability assessment system, which decides whether a claimant should be looking for work, “causes unnecessary anxiety and does not address the real barriers to work,” according to disability equity charity Scope.
As of June, 14,779 people in Barnet were getting Universal Credit for health-related reasons, up 34% from 11,019 the previous year, according to new data from the Department for Work and Pensions.
Over the same time period, the number of people in Britain increased from 2.1 to 2.9 million.
77% of Barnet’s recipients of the health benefit had been determined to have restricted capacity for work and work-related activities, therefore they were exempt from conducting interviews or looking for a job.
Compared to the previous year, when this percentage was 74%, this was little higher.
This represented 2.2 million individuals nationwide, or 75% of all UC claimants with a health-related reason. This represented an increase from 1.5 million (71%) the previous year.
The shift from Employment and Support Allowance to Universal Credit and anticipated shifts in the success rate are the main drivers of the increase, according to James Taylor, director of strategy at Scope.
However, he added:
“What has remained constant is a difficult to navigate welfare system beset with backlogs, lengthy delays, and a complicated application process.”
The figures also show 9% of claimants in Barnet were assessed to have ‘limited capability for work’, meaning they were expected to “participate in work related activity to help them move towards the labour market”.
This was down from 11% a year earlier.
Tom Marsland, head of policy at disability charity Sense, said:
“Universal Credit is a lifeline for disabled people with complex needs.
Not all disabled people are able to work – but those who could work with the right support, and want to work, are often frozen out of the labour market by unacceptable barriers.
Unfair recruitment practices, a lack of support from employers and a complete absence of specialist assistive technology in job centres all stand in the way.”
He added:
“We want to see measures urgently put in place that will give disabled people who want to work the specialist support and equipment they need to find work.
Screen readers and braille displays must be rolled out in job centres across the country so disabled people can find roles to apply for, while employers should also do more to help disabled job seekers into the workforce.”
Mikey Erhardt, policy lead at Disability Rights UK, said:
“These figures demonstrate how wrong the Government’s approach to the benefits system has been.
The Government needs to focus on tackling the underlying causes of sickness and disability and ensuring that those unable to work can lead dignified lives, not cutting the meagre support that disabled people are forced to live on.”
He also criticised the decision to cut disability benefits, which he said “already leave disabled people in poverty, unable to buy food, afford energy or rent”.
A DWP spokesperson said:
“For too long, too many sick or disabled people across the country have been left on benefits without the support they need to get back to health and into work.
That’s why we’re shifting our focus from welfare to work, skills, and opportunities – backed by £3.8 billion of employment support.
We’re also reforming the system by rebalancing the rates of Universal Credit to reduce the perverse incentives that encourage ill health, as part our Plan for Change.”
How do Barnet’s UC health rates compare with neighbouring boroughs?
There are just over 3,300 Barnet residents on Universal Credit (UC) for health or disability reasons, 77% who have been provided with an assessment stating that they are not able to work.
Other neighbouring boroughs (Camden, Enfield and Haringey for example) have just slightly higher proportions of UC claimants on health-related reasons; in fact, some reports have suggested that over 80% of claimants are unable to work.
Statistical data for health suggests that Barnet generally experiences lower levels of deprivation than some neighbouring boroughs (Haringey), which also could align with fewer claims on health-related benefits.
Health inequalities utilizing unscheduled hospital admissions for chronic conditions, are often slightly higher in neighbourhoods with increased deprivation, including Enfield and Haringey, than would be present in Barnet.