Employment and Support Allowance

An individual can put in a claim for ESA if they satisfy all of these conditions:{{cite web |title=Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) |url=https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/eligibility |website=GOV.UK |publisher=Government Digital Service |access-date=2 January 2019 |language=en}}

• They live in the United Kingdom
• They are over the age of sixteen
• They have not reached their State Pension age
• They have a sick-note from their doctor

They will not be paid ESA if they are entitled to Statutory Sick Pay (which is paid out by a current employer) and it is not possible to receive ESA at the same time as the other main out-of-work benefits, i.e. Jobseekers Allowance or Income Support.

Universal Credit, which is received by one million people nationally, can contain a component analogous to ESA.

No money is paid for the first week. After that, the basic allowance is paid to the claimant until their Work Capability Assessment (WCA) at - in theory - week 13, after which a successful claimant might receive an enhanced level of payment (depending on the level of disability and whether they enter the work-related activity group or the support group after their assessment).{{cite web|title=ESA: what you'll get|publisher=gov.uk|url=https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/what-youll-get|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160202223227/https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/what-youll-get|archive-date=2016-02-02}}

* Only one of these components is payable per claim

In April 2017, the work-related activity component was abolished for new claimants. The same applies to successful reclaims, if more than a certain time has elapsed since the last period of receipt of ESA (long-term successful claimants who had a WCA before April 2017 continue to receive it). People receiving the support component are unaffected.

An enhanced disability premium of £16.80 a week may be paid to single people receiving the support component of income-related ESA; for a couple, the rate is £24.10 where one or both partners qualify.

In some circumstances, an additional severe disability premium of £65.85 a week may be paid.

ESA can be either contributory or income-related.

If claimants have paid enough National Insurance they can claim contributory ESA. Income-related ESA is for people who have not paid enough National Insurance contributions and is subject to a means test and certain other conditions (although the amount paid as contributions-based ESA can also be affected by financial circumstances). A person must have capital of less than £16,000 to be eligible for income-based ESA. This includes any savings that the claimant or their spouse or partner may own.{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/overview |title=Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) |publisher=GOV.UK |date=2015-08-24 |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906030426/https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/overview |archive-date=2015-09-06 }} Income-related ESA is not time-limited{{cite web|title=Employment and Support Allowance|url=http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/benefits_e/benefits_sick_or_disabled_people_and_carers_ew/employment_and_support_allowance.htm|publisher=Citizens Advice Bureau|access-date=27 February 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312160318/http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/benefits_e/benefits_sick_or_disabled_people_and_carers_ew/employment_and_support_allowance.htm|archive-date=12 March 2014}} and is not usually subject to Income Tax, but contribution-based ESA is.{{cite web |url=http://www.ageuk.org.uk/money-matters/claiming-benefits/employment-support-allowance/what-is-employment-and-support-allowance/ |title=What is Employment and Support Allowance | Claiming benefits | Money matters |publisher=Age UK |date=2015-05-22 |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150915073036/http://www.ageuk.org.uk/money-matters/claiming-benefits/employment-support-allowance/what-is-employment-and-support-allowance/ |archive-date=2015-09-15 }}

Universal Credit is incorporating income-related ESA in stages. In the parts of the UK where it already has, contribution-based ESA has been rebadged as "new-style ESA".

After the Work Capability Assessment, claimants are split into two groups: the Work-Related Activity Group (WRAG) and the Support Group. In February 2017, 66% of claimants were in the Support Group, 17% were in the WRAG, 13% were in the assessment phase and the phase for 3% of claimants were unknown.{{cite web |title=Quarterly Benefits Summary Data to February 2017 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/637845/dwp-quarterly-benefit-stats-summary-august-2017.pdf |website=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |access-date=2 January 2019 |date=16 August 2017}} The WRAG is for claimants who are currently unfit for work but expected to find work in the future. Claimants in the WRAG are required to participate in work-related activity or else they will be sanctioned; where their benefit payments are temporarily stopped. People who are claiming contribution-based ESA and placed in the WRAG are only allowed to claim for one year. WRAG claimants must attend a work-focused interview with a personal advisor, where they discuss how the claimant could find suitable work, and take part in activities to improve their chances of finding work.{{cite web |title=About the ESA support group and work-related activity group - Citizens Advice |url=https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/employment-and-support-allowance/while-youre-getting-esa/about-the-esa-groups/ |website=www.citizensadvice.org.uk |publisher=Citizens Advice |access-date=2 January 2019}} Some types of activity claimants may participate in include:

• Numeracy or literacy courses
• Learning how to write or improve their CV
• Learning how to manage their disability more effectively.

The support group is for claimants who are not considered fit for work and are unlikely to become fit for work in the near-future. Claimants in this group are paid the support component and are not required to participate in any work-related activity.

Someone wanting to claim ESA will need a medical certificate, i.e. a sick-note, signed by their GP to say that they are not fully fit for work. The new claimant must then contact the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), usually by phone,{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/how-to-claim |title=Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) |publisher=GOV.UK |date=2015-08-24 |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150907154621/https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/how-to-claim |archive-date=2015-09-07 }} who will log their claim and usually post them a questionnaire called an ESA50, where the claimant explains how their disability affects them. In rare circumstances, a full assessment is not required, such as when a doctor has officially certified the claimant as being likely to die within six months.{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/capability-for-work-questionnaire |title=Capability for work questionnaire - Publications |publisher=GOV.UK |date=2013-04-04 |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150821005636/https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/capability-for-work-questionnaire |archive-date=2015-08-21 }} The completed form must then be sent in the envelope provided to the Health Assessment Advisory Service - the trading name of the assessment provider, Maximus.{{cite web|title=Capability for work questionnaire|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/421191/esa-50-capability-for-work-questionnaire.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151112214307/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/421191/esa-50-capability-for-work-questionnaire.pdf|archive-date=2015-11-12}}

Once a person has submitted a claim for ESA, they will normally be paid assessment rate for 13 weeks.{{cite web |title=A guide to Employment and Support Allowance – The Work Capability Assessment |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/535942/esa214-july-2016.pdf |website=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |access-date=1 January 2019 |date=July 2016}} The ESA50 form, together with any other information sent with it by the claimant, will be read by a qualified healthcare professional, who will then decide on whether a face-to-face medical assessment is actually necessary: some people with severe disabilities can be granted ESA based solely on the documents supplied, if that is clear from the paperwork. For this reason, Maximus encourages new claimants to send as much relevant information as possible and give a detailed description of their disability when filling in the claim form.{{cite web |url=https://www.chdauk.co.uk/employment-and-support-allowance-esa |title=Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) | Health Assessment Advisory Service |date=26 February 2015 |publisher=Chdauk.co.uk |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160918045856/https://www.chdauk.co.uk/employment-and-support-allowance-esa |archive-date=2016-09-18 }} The Claimant is then asked to attend a Work Capability Assessment.

{{Main|Work Capability Assessment}}

The assessment is often described as consisting of two separate assessments. In practice, if they have a face-to-face assessment, an individual claimant will experience only one assessment on the day (the decision-making is done afterwards). The two stages are:

• The "limited capability for work" assessment, which determines whether the claimant is entitled to ESA at all.
• The "limited capability for work-related activity" assessment, which tells the DWP whether somebody who has passed the first stage of the test is able to take part in "work-related activity". It also influences the rate of ESA paid to the claimant.

A DWP official makes the final decision on entitlement, based on all the available evidence.

At their WCA, an ESA claimant must be found to have limited capability for work in order to qualify at all. The testing process gauges the claimant's ability to perform up to 17 activities; these activities are set out on the ESA claim form. For each activity, a claimant can score 15, 9, 6 or 0 points: the more severe their disability, the more points they will score. Points are scored by having physical impairments, mental ones or a mixture of the two (if they are likely to significantly affect the claimant's ability to work). In order to be entitled to ESA, a person will need to score at least 15 points in total. Other factors, such as some aspects of pregnancy, are also considered by the assessor, who will be a nurse, doctor, occupational therapist or physiotherapist; these factors do not operate on a points system but might nevertheless qualify the claimant for ESA.

This is about whether a successful claimant of ESA is capable of taking part in interviews and pre-employment training, or whether their ability to do so is limited to a significant degree. As far as the way the WCA actually operates is concerned, this is about whether the claimant has one or more severe disabilities, affecting the 17 areas which the ESA descriptors focus on. If a person is found to have a severe disability, they will be placed in the Support Group.

ESA superseded three older benefits: Incapacity Benefit; Income Support paid because of an illness or disability; and Severe Disablement Allowance.

A Green Paper published in 1998 proposed partially means-testing Incapacity Benefit and making deductions from the benefit payments for people receiving an occupational pension.{{cite web|url=http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/5553/1/Thatcherism_New_Labour_and_the_Welfare_State.pdf|title=Thatcherism, New Labour and the Welfare State|author=John Hills|date=August 1998|publisher=Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion: London School of Economics|access-date=9 January 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150226075526/http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/5553/1/Thatcherism_New_Labour_and_the_Welfare_State.pdf|archive-date=26 February 2015}}

In February 2005, the Welfare Secretary Alan Johnson announced plans to replace Incapacity Benefit with two new benefits: "Disability and Sickness Allowance", for people deemed too ill to work; and "Rehabilitation Support Allowance", paid at the same rate as Jobseekers Allowance to less disabled people, who would be supported by the DWP back into work.{{cite web|date=2 February 2005|work=BBC News|title=Incapacity Benefit to be replaced|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4227991.stm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202134224/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4227991.stm|archive-date=2 December 2008}} No benefits with these names ever materialised.

In March 2005, Atos was awarded the contract to work with the DWP to build the software programme that would be used in the assessment of claims for the allowance that would take the place of Incapacity Benefit. The firm, which was already carrying out the DWP's existing disability assessments, would employ hundreds more healthcare professionals to carry out the new test once it went live - in late 2008.{{cite web|date=18 March 2005|title=DWP hires Atos Origin to provide medical assessments|publisher=Personnel Today|url=http://www.personneltoday.com/hr/dwp-hires-atos-origin-to-provide-medical-assessments/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018073433/http://www.personneltoday.com/hr/dwp-hires-atos-origin-to-provide-medical-assessments/|archive-date=18 October 2016}}

In January 2006, John Hutton published a White Paper outlining the government's latest plans for welfare reform: the benefit that would replace Incapacity Benefit would be called Employment and Support Allowance and its gateway assessment would be transformed. Over 10 years, Hutton expected the number of people on Incapacity Benefit to fall by one million, thereby saving £7 billion a year.{{cite web|title=A new deal for welfare: empowering people to work |publisher=White Paper |date=January 2006 |url=http://dwp.gov.uk/docs/a-new-deal-for-welfare-empowering-people-to-work-full-document.pdf |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130128102031/http://dwp.gov.uk/docs/a-new-deal-for-welfare-empowering-people-to-work-full-document.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2013-01-28 }}{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4641588.stm |title=UK Politics | Hutton unveils benefits shake-up |work=BBC News |date=2006-01-24 |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170909145730/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4641588.stm |archive-date=2017-09-09 }} The resulting Welfare Reform Bill was introduced to Parliament for consideration in July 2006. On 3 May 2007, the bill received royal assent.{{cite web|work=BBC News|date=10 May 2007|title=Blair will stand down on 27 June|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6639945.stm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071023012828/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6639945.stm|archive-date=23 October 2007}}

Blair appointed David Freud, as an advisor on out-of-work benefit reform in December 2006. Freud wrote the report: Reducing dependency, increasing opportunity: options for the future of welfare to work in 2007. It called for the greater use of private sector companies who would be paid by results, for substantial resources to be made available to help people on Incapacity Benefit back into work, and for a single working age benefit payment to replace Housing Benefit, Jobseekers Allowance and all other working-age benefits.{{cite web| title=Freud Report| url=https://www2.learningandwork.org.uk/sites/default/files/policy_downloads/freud_review.pdf| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160509091630/https://www2.learningandwork.org.uk/sites/default/files/policy_downloads/freud_review.pdf| archive-date=2016-05-09| access-date=2016-04-26}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/people/lord-freud|title=The Rt Hon Lord Freud|work=www.gov.uk|access-date=17 September 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909154230/https://www.gov.uk/government/people/lord-freud|archive-date=9 September 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/spru/research/art/RSjpsj1feb14.pdf|title=Talking Universal Credit: In conversation with Lord Freud, Minister for Welfare Reform|author=Roy Sainsbury|date=2014|publisher=Policy Research Unit, University of York|access-date=7 January 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304060243/http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/spru/research/art/RSjpsj1feb14.pdf|archive-date=4 March 2016}}

In July 2008 a Green Paper was published. It declared that "between 2009 and 2013, all Incapacity Benefit claimants will be reassessed using a medical assessment called the Work Capability Assessment" that would divide them into three groups: fit for work; unfit for work but fit for "work-related activity"; or fit for neither.{{cite web|date=July 2008|title=No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/238741/7363.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119021619/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/238741/7363.pdf|archive-date=2016-01-19}}

In October 2008, ESA and its eligibility test, the Work Capability Assessment, were introduced for new claims.{{cite web |author=Editorial |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/nov/23/welfare-benefits-economy |title=The benefits of welfare reform outweigh the risks |work=The Guardian |date=23 November 2008 |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150723182724/http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/nov/23/welfare-benefits-economy |archive-date=2015-07-23 }} The Welfare Secretary wrote that these and other planned changes would ensure that "only those who are genuinely incapable of work" would get full ESA - other sickness benefit recipients would have to comply with plans drawn up with the DWP's private partners to get them back to work.{{cite web|title=Raising expectations and increasing support: reforming welfare for the future|publisher=DWP|date=December 2008|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/238683/7506.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018073630/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/238683/7506.pdf|archive-date=2016-10-18}} The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) contracted Atos to perform the WCA when it introduced ESA.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-31590017 |title=Work capability assessments: One million disability checks planned - BBC News |work=BBC News |date=24 February 2015 |access-date=2015-08-30 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150827080419/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-31590017 |archive-date=2015-08-27 }} In December 2008, Paul Gregg published a report that recommended that most people on ESA should have to undertake work-related activity.{{cite web|date=December 2008|title=Fair rules for welfare reforms|author=Bristol University|url=http://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2008/6040.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160702020849/http://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2008/6040.html|archive-date=2016-07-02}}{{cite web|title=Raising expectations and increasing support: reforming welfare for the future|publisher=DWP|date=December 2008|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/238683/7506.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018073630/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/238683/7506.pdf|archive-date=2016-10-18}}

In early 2011, the Incapacity Benefit reassessment programme got underway using a more stringent version of the WCA and the caseload's falling trend resumed - until the middle of 2013, when the caseload began to grow again after fresh guidance had to be issued on how to judge fitness for work. By 2015, in the absence of the huge fall in recipients prophesied by the architects of ESA, and in spite of the broadly downward natural long-term trend, the total caseload was little different from when ESA was introduced.{{cite web|title=Quarterly Benefits Summary|date=May 2015|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/477328/dwp-stats-summary-nov-2015.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201165033/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/477328/dwp-stats-summary-nov-2015.pdf|archive-date=2016-02-01}}

Maximus took over the contract - worth £170million a year to the US firm - from Atos in March 2015.

In 2016, Stephen Crabb, who was the secretary of state for the DWP, declared that there would be no new welfare policies, other than those set out in the Conservative Party manifesto of 2015, in that parliamentary term. In October 2016, Damian Green announced a consultation exercise on reforming the WCA.{{cite news|title=Work capability assessment overhaul for disabled|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-37810701|work=BBC News|date=31 October 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171225190230/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-37810701|archive-date=25 December 2017}}

Roughly 70,000 claimants were paid between £5,000 and £20,000 too little from 2011 to 2016 because the DWP miscalculated their entitlement when they were moved from incapacity benefit on to employment and support allowance. A Public Accounts Committee report accused the DWP of haste over the transfer while failing to take legal advice or make basic checks. Evidence that people were underpaid was disregarded and warnings from its own policy advisors that it should delay and sort out the issues before proceeding were ignored. The report said the DWP's lack of urgency - it took six years to start to deal with the error - showed "a culture of indifference" to people being paid too little. Meg Hillier said the affair demonstrated "weakness at the highest levels" of the DWP. "Thousands of people have not received money essential for living costs because of government's blinkered and wholly inept handling of ESA" she said.{{Cite news |last=Butler |first=Patrick |date=2018-07-17 |title=Disability claimants owed £340m after DWP blunder, say MPs |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/jul/18/disability-claimants-owed-340m-after-dwp-blunder-say-mps |access-date=2024-10-03 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}

{{Main|Criticism of Employment Support Allowance}}{{Excessive citations|section|date=November 2019}}

ESA has been criticised for numerous reasons, including claims that the WCA was poorly designed,{{cite web|title=Litchfield Review 2014|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/380027/wca-fifth-independent-review.pdf}}{{cite web|url=http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/work-and-pensions-committee/pip-and-esa-assessments/oral/76113.pdf|title=Dr P Litchfield, evidence to parliament|date=20 December 2017}}{{cite news|author=Amelia Gentleman |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2011/feb/22/new-disability-test-is-a-complete-mess |title=New Disability Test is a Complete Mess |publisher=Guardian |date= 22 February 2011|access-date=30 January 2012 |location=London}} that WCA and the criteria used to determine fitness for work did not offer a realistic perspective on a claimant's ability to work,{{cite web|last=Geiger|first=Ben|title=Improving welfare tests should not be beyond the wit of ministers| publisher=Total Politics|date=20 February 2018|url=http://www.totalpolitics.com/articles/opinion/ben-geiger-improving-welfare-tests-should-not-be-beyond-wit-ministers}}{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2010/nov/23/incapacity-benefit-test-review |title=Incapacity benefit tests face overhaul after damning report |first=Randeep |last=Ramesh |work=The Guardian |date=23 November 2010|access-date=12 April 2015}}{{cite book |last1=Harrington |first1=Malcolm |title=An Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment |date=November 2010 |publisher=The Stationery Office |location=London |isbn=9780108509476 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/70071/wca-review-2010.pdf |access-date=25 December 2018}}{{cite news |title=Outsource group seeks exit from UK £500m benefits contract after death threats |url=https://www.ft.com/content/5abc8d36-9a28-11e3-8232-00144feab7de |access-date=25 December 2018 |work=Financial Times |publisher=The Financial Times Ltd |date=20 February 2014}} that eligibility did not consider a claimant's personal circumstances when deciding if a claimant is fit for work,{{cite web |title=Not working CAB evidence on the ESA work capability assessment |url=https://www.rnib.org.uk/sites/default/files/not_working_march_2010_final.pdf |website=www.rnib.org.uk |publisher=Citizen's Advice Bureau |access-date=23 December 2018}} the number of decisions that were being overturned on appeal,{{cite web|author=The Committee Office, House of Commons |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201415/cmselect/cmworpen/302/30209.htm |title=House of Commons – Employment and Support Allowance and Work Capability Assessments – Work and Pensions Committee |publisher=Publications.parliament.uk}}{{cite web|publisher=Social Security Advisory Committee|title=Decision Making and Mandatory Reconsideration|date=July 2016|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/538836/decision-making-and-mandatory-reconsideration-ssac-op18.pdf}}{{cite web|work=The Independent|date=10 September 2015|title=Appeals against DWP 'fit to work' decisions more successful than ever|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/appeals-against-dwp-fit-to-work-decisions-more-successful-than-ever-before-10495119.html}}{{cite web |title=Decision Making and Mandatory Reconsideration A study by the Social Security Advisory Committee Occasional Paper No. 18 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/538836/decision-making-and-mandatory-reconsideration-ssac-op18.pdf |publisher=Social Security Advisory Committee |access-date=25 December 2018 |date=July 2016}}{{cite web |title=Employment and Support Allowance: Work Capability Assessments, Mandatory Reconsiderations and Appeals |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/716083/esa-wca-summary-june-2018.pdf |website=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |access-date=2 January 2019 |date=14 June 2018}} that assessors were pressured to find claimants fit for work when they did not feel they were,{{cite web |title=Work and Pensions Committee Oral evidence: Employment and Support Allowance and Work Capability Assessments, HC 1212 |url=http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/work-and-pensions-committee/employment-and-support-allowance-and-work-capability-assessments/oral/9582.html |website=data.parliament.uk |publisher=The Stationery Office |access-date=25 December 2018 |location=London |date=14 May 2014}}{{cite web |last1=Franklin |first1=Kaliya |title=Investigating the real reason for the misery of ' fit for work 'assessments |url=https://www.centreforwelfarereform.org/uploads/attachment/400/how-norms-become-targets.pdf |website=Centre for Welfare Reform |publisher=Centre for Welfare Reform |access-date=25 December 2018 |date=2013}}{{cite news |last1=Gillon |first1=David |title=How Atos comes under pressure to declare disabled people as fit for work {{!}} David Gillon |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/dec/09/atos-disabled-people-assessment-fit-work-report |access-date=25 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian Media Group Limited |date=9 December 2013}}{{cite news |title=Disability benefit assessments 'unfair' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-22561006/disability-benefit-assessments-unfair-says-ex-worker |access-date=25 December 2018 |work=BBC News |publisher=BBC |date=16 May 2013}}{{cite news |last1=Ramesh |first1=Randeep |title=Atos benefit claimants face biased medical assessments, doctor alleges |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/may/16/atos-doctor-claimants-biased-medical-assessments |access-date=25 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian Media Group Limited |date=16 May 2013}} that ESA is being used to conceal unemployment levels,{{cite book |last1=Beatty |first1=Christina |last2=Fothergill |first2=Steve |last3=Gore |first3=Tony |title=The Real Level of Unemployment 2017 |date=2017 |publisher=Sheffield Hallam University |location=Sheffield |pages=3, 6–9, 12–13 |url=https://shura.shu.ac.uk/17175/1/Beatty-TheRealLevelOfUnemployment2017%28VoR%29.pdf |access-date=31 December 2018}}{{cite news |last1=Elliott |first1=Larry |title=Sparkling employment figures mask real picture of UK economy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/oct/29/sparkling-jobless-figures-mask-real-picture-uk-economy-unemployed |access-date=31 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited |date=29 October 2017}} that some people were too sick or disabled to work but could not claim because they had not paid enough National Insurance contributions but their household income was too high,{{cite news |last1=Ryan |first1=Frances |title=Denise worked all her life. Then she got ill – and the state pulled away the safety net {{!}} Frances Ryan |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/oct/20/worked-hard-became-ill-state-safety-net |access-date=23 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian Media Group Limited |date=20 October 2016}}{{cite book |last1=Barnes |first1=Helen |last2=Oakley |first2=Joy |last3=Stevens |first3=Helen |last4=Sissons |first4=Paul |title=Research report Unsuccessful Employment and Support Allowance claims – qualitative research |date=2011 |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |isbn=978-1-908523-05-1 |page=37 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214543/rrep762.pdf |access-date=23 December 2018}} the decision to limit contribution-based ESA claimants who were placed in the WRAG to claiming for one year,{{cite web |title=House of Commons - The role of incapacity benefit reassessment in helping claimants into employment - Work and Pensions Committee |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmworpen/1015/101509.htm#a18 |website=publications.parliament.uk |publisher=Parliament.UK |access-date=24 December 2018}} that ESA failed to make predicted savings,{{cite web|publisher=BBC|date=13 October 2016|title=Welfare reforms not made expected savings, says OBR|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-37648864}}{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04mc1hv |title=BBC Radio 4 – Analysis, Inside Welfare Reform |publisher=bbc.co.uk |date=2 November 2014}}{{cite web |last1=Portes |first1=Jonathan |title=Welfare savings and incapacity benefits |url=https://www.niesr.ac.uk/blog/welfare-savings-and-incapacity-benefits |website=National Institute of Economic and Social Research |publisher=National Institute of Economic and Social Research |access-date=30 December 2018 |location=London |language=en |date=16 April 2015}} the cost of outsourcing the contract for conducting the WCA,{{cite web|author=National Audit Office|title=DWP Contract Management of Medical Services|url=http://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/1213627es.pdf|date=October 2012}}{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-21376915 |work=BBC News |title=MPs criticise disability benefits tests |date=8 February 2013}}{{cite web|author=National Audit Office|title=DWP Contracted-Out Health and Disability Assessments|url=https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Contracted-out-health-and-disability-assessments-Summary.pdf}}{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/jan/08/maximus-miss-fitness-to-work-test-targets-despite-spiralling-costs|title=Maximus miss fitness-to-work test targets despite spiralling costs|author=Rajeev Syal|date=8 January 2016|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=14 January 2016}} the cuts made to the amount people on ESA received,{{cite book |last1=Aldridge |first1=Hannah |last2=MacInnes |first2=Tom |title=Multiple Cuts for the Poorest Families |date=April 2014 |publisher=Oxfam |location=Oxford |url=https://www.npi.org.uk/files/4613/9816/3093/Full_report_-_Multiple_cuts_for_the_poorest_families.pdf |access-date=30 December 2018}}{{cite news |last1=Allen |first1=Katie |title=Welfare cuts drive UK's poorest families deeper into poverty, says Oxfam |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/apr/22/welfare-cuts-drive-uk-poorest-poverty-oxfam |access-date=30 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited |date=21 April 2014}} difficulties with appealing a decision on eligibility,{{cite web |title=Not working CAB evidence on the ESA work capability assessment |url=https://www.rnib.org.uk/sites/default/files/not_working_march_2010_final.pdf |website=www.rnib.org.uk |publisher=Citizen's Advice Bureau |access-date=23 December 2018}}{{cite news |last1=Butler |first1=Patrick |title=Stuck in DWP limbo: 'Sometimes I think I would be better off dead' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/patrick-butler-cuts-blog/2014/jul/24/stuck-in-dwp-limbo-better-off-dead-mandatory-reconsideration |access-date=23 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian Media Group Limited |date=24 July 2014}}{{cite book |last1=Barnes |first1=Helen |last2=Oakley |first2=Joy |last3=Stevens |first3=Helen |last4=Sissons |first4=Paul |title=Unsuccessful Employment and Support Allowance claims – qualitative research |date=2011 |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |isbn=978-1-908523-05-1 |pages=19–21 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214543/rrep762.pdf |access-date=25 December 2018}} that claimants were not incentivised to work,{{cite book |last1=Philp |first1=Chris |title=Work for the Dole A proposal to fix welfare dependency |date=2013 |publisher=The TaxPayer's Allowance |url=https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/taxpayersalliance/pages/452/attachments/original/1423653195/workforthedole.pdf?1423653195 |access-date=30 December 2018}}{{cite news |last1=Kirkup |first1=James |title=77,000 drink and drugs addicts on disability benefits |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9436799/77000-drink-and-drugs-addicts-on-disability-benefits.html |access-date=22 December 2018 |work=The Telegraph |publisher=Telegraph Media Group Limited |date=30 July 2012}}{{cite web |last=Worrall |first=Patrick |url=http://blogs.channel4.com/factcheck/factcheck-benefits-claimants-addicts/18989 |title=FactCheck: how many benefits claimants are addicts? |publisher=Blogs.channel4.com |date=2014-09-30 |access-date=2016-04-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150802060040/http://blogs.channel4.com/factcheck/factcheck-benefits-claimants-addicts/18989 |archive-date=2 August 2015 |df=dmy-all }}{{cite web |title=An independent review into the impact on employment outcomes of drug or alcohol addiction, and obesity: call for evidence |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/448830/employment-outcomes-drug-alcohol-obesity--independent-review.pdf |website=gov.UK |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |access-date=26 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150926004835/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/448830/employment-outcomes-drug-alcohol-obesity--independent-review.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 September 2015 |date=July 2015}}{{cite news |last1=Donnelly |first1=Laura |last2=Swinford |first2=Steven |title=One in three people claiming sickness benefits have conditions which are fuelled by obesity |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/12/05/one-three-people-claiming-sickness-benefits-have-conditions/ |access-date=22 December 2018 |work=The Telegraph |publisher=Telegraph Media Group Limited |date=5 December 2016 |ref=DonnellyWCA}}{{cite web |last1=Black |first1=Carol |author-link1=Carol M. Black |title=An Independent Review into the impact on employment outcomes of drug or alcohol addiction, and obesity |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/573891/employment-outcomes-of-drug-or-alcohol-addiction-and-obesity.pdf |website=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |publisher=Her Majesty's Stationery Office |access-date=22 December 2018 |date=December 2016}}{{cite news |last1=Wessely |first1=Simon |last2=Smith |first2=Greg |author-link1=Simon Wessely |title=Linking benefits to treatment is unethical, and probably illegal {{!}} Simon Wessely and Greg Smith |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jul/29/coercing-people-mental-health-problems-work-treatment |access-date=22 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited |date=29 July 2015}}{{cite news |last1=Ross |first1=Tim |title=Tories discuss stripping benefits claimants who refuse treatment for depression |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/10964125/Tories-discuss-stripping-benefits-claimants-who-refuse-treatment-for-depression.html |access-date=24 December 2018 |work=The Telegraph |publisher=Telegraph Media Group Limited |date=12 July 2014}}{{cite web |last1=van Stolk |first1=Christian |last2=Hofman |first2=Joanna |last3=Hafner |first3=Marco |last4=Janta |first4=Barbara |title=Psychological Wellbeing and Work Improving Service Provision and Outcomes |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/273433/psychological-wellbeing-and-work.pdf |website=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions and Department of Health |access-date=24 December 2018}}{{cite news |title=Mental health work scheme piloted |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-28281839 |access-date=24 December 2018 |work=BBC News |publisher=BBC |date=13 July 2014 |quote=Tom Pollard, policy and campaigns manager at Mind, said: "If people are not getting access to the support they need, the government should address levels of funding for mental health services rather than putting even more pressure on those supported by benefits and not currently well enough to work. "Talking therapies can be effective, but it is often a combination of treatments which allow people to best manage their symptoms and engaging in therapy should be voluntary."}} that claimants struggled with the application process,{{cite book |last1=Barnes |first1=Helen |last2=Oakley |first2=Joy |last3=Stevens |first3=Helen |last4=Sissons |first4=Paul |title=Research report Unsuccessful Employment and Support Allowance claims – qualitative research |date=2011 |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |isbn=978-1-908523-05-1 |page=13 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214543/rrep762.pdf |access-date=23 December 2018}}{{cite book |last1=Barnes |first1=Helen |last2=Oakley |first2=Joy |last3=Stevens |first3=Helen |last4=Sissons |first4=Paul |title=Research report Unsuccessful Employment and Support Allowance claims – qualitative research |date=2011 |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |isbn=978-1-908523-05-1 |pages=15–16, 38 |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214543/rrep762.pdf |access-date=23 December 2018}}{{cite journal |last1=Hume |first1=Jonathan |title=Bias in the Work Capability Assessment: a Human Rights issue? |journal=Radical Statistics |date=2014 |issue=114 |pages=24–32 |url=http://www.radstats.org.uk/no114/Hume114.pdf |access-date=29 December 2018}} the use of sanctions for people in the WRAG who may be too unwell to participate in their work-related activities,{{cite news |last1=Ryan |first1=Frances |title=Too ill to get to the jobcentre? If you're disabled you may still be sanctioned |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/aug/29/too-ill-to-get-to-jobcentre-disabled-people-may-still-be-sanctioned |access-date=23 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |date=29 August 2017}} that the government had unrealistic expectations for disabled people to find work,{{cite web |last1=Sayce |first1=Liz |title=Getting in, staying in and getting on |url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/49779/sayce-report.pdf |website=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |access-date=25 December 2018 |date=June 2011}}{{cite web |title=House of Commons - The role of incapacity benefit reassessment in helping claimants into employment - Work and Pensions Committee |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmworpen/1015/101510.htm#note254 |website=publications.parliament.uk |publisher=Parliament.UK |access-date=25 December 2018 |date=26 July 2011}} that some claimants did not receive enough money to cover their living costs,{{cite web |title=Almost 70% of disabled people say cuts to ESA will cause their health to suffer and half may return to work later |url=https://disabilitybenefitsconsortium.wordpress.com/2015/10/27/almost-70-of-disabled-people-say-cuts-to-esa-will-cause-their-health-to-suffer-and-half-may-return-to-work-later/ |website=Disability Benefits Consortium |publisher=Disability Benefits Consortium |access-date=26 December 2018 |language=en |date=27 October 2015}}{{cite news |last1=Stone |first1=John |title=The DWP is cutting a disability benefit that already leaves a third of recipients unable to afford food |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/the-government-is-cutting-a-disability-benefit-that-already-leaves-a-third-of-recipients-unable-to-a6764641.html |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=The Independent |date=8 December 2015 |language=en}}{{cite web |last1=Bate |first1=Alex |last2=Keen |first2=Richard |last3=Kennedy |first3=Steven |last4=Murphy |first4=Chris |title=Abolition of the ESA Work-Related Activity Component |url=https://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/CBP-7649 |website=researchbriefings.parliament.uk |publisher=Parliament.UK |access-date=26 December 2018 |date=7 March 2017}} and that ESA WCAs and claims ending were associated with claimant deaths.{{cite news |last1=Traynor |first1=Luke |title=Benefit cuts blind man committed suicide after Atos ruled him fit to work |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/benefit-cuts-blind-man-committed-2965375 |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=Mirror |publisher=MGN Limited |date=28 December 2013}}{{cite news |title=Disabled Kinver man killed himself after being left "almost destitute" when his state benefits were axed |url=https://www.stourbridgenews.co.uk/news/10892787.print/ |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=Stourbridge News |publisher=Newsquest Ltd |date=26 December 2013 |language=en}}{{cite news |title=Atos assessments: Widower claims system 'unfair' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-essex-22718700/atos-assessments-widower-claims-system-unfair |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=BBC News |publisher=BBC |date=30 May 2013}}{{cite news |title=Woman Dies After Being Judged 'Fit For Work' |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/05/28/linda-wootton-dies-after-being-judged-fit-for-work_n_3346582.html |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=HuffPost UK |publisher=Oath Inc. |date=28 May 2013 |language=en}}{{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/feb/28/man-starved-to-death-after-benefits-cut | location=London |work= The Guardian |title=Vulnerable man starved to death after benefits were cut | date=28 February 2014}}{{cite web|title=Government welfare advisor did not know about 2010 suicide 'triggered by work assessment'|publisher=ITV News|date=9 November 2015|url=http://www.itv.com/news/2015-11-09/government-welfare-advisor-did-not-know-about-2010-suicide-triggered-by-work-assessment/}}{{cite web|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/heartbroken-dad-blames-benefits-axemen-2292176|title=Heartbroken dad blames benefits axemen for driving his ill son to commit suicide|author=Craig McDonald|date=22 September 2013|work=dailyrecord|access-date=14 September 2015}}{{cite web|date=28 July 2016|title=Parents of 'fit for work' suicide man back call for prosecution|publisher=Disability News Service|url=http://www.disabilitynewsservice.com/parents-of-fit-for-work-suicide-man-back-call-for-iain-duncan-smith-prosecution/}}{{cite web|date=4 August 2016| publisher=Disability News Service|title=Documents show WCA suicide death mirrored 2010 tragedy|url=http://www.disabilitynewsservice.com/documents-show-wca-suicide-death-mirrored-2010-tragedy/}}{{cite web |last1=Hassell |first1=ME |title=Regulation 28: Prevention of Future Deaths report Michael Brendan O ' SULLIVAN (died 24.09.13) |url=https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/OSullivan-2014-0012.pdf |website=www.judiciary.uk |publisher=Judiciary.UK |access-date=26 December 2018 |date=13 January 2014}}{{cite web |title=Department for Work and Pensions Response to Regulation 28 Prevention of Future Deaths Report on Michael Brenden O'Sullivan |url=https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/2014-0012-Response-by-DWP.pdf |website=www.judiciary.uk |publisher=Judiciary.UK |access-date=26 December 2018 |date=2014}}{{cite journal |last1=Barr |first1=B |last2=Taylor-Robinson |first2=D |last3=Stuckler |first3=D |last4=Loopstra |first4=R |last5=Reeves |first5=A |last6=Whitehead |first6=M |title='First, do no harm': are disability assessments associated with adverse trends in mental health? A longitudinal ecological study |journal=Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health |date=April 2016 |volume=70 |issue=4 |pages=339–345 |doi=10.1136/jech-2015-206209 |url= |pmc=4819657 |pmid=26573235 }}{{cite news |last1=Pring |first1=John |title=Government's suicide prevention boss refuses to call for action on ESA risk stats |url=https://www.disabilitynewsservice.com/governments-suicide-prevention-boss-refuses-to-call-for-action-on-esa-risk-stats/ |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=Disability News Service |publisher=Disability News Service |date=8 February 2018}}{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/223050/incap_decd_recips_0712.pdf |title=Incapacity Benefit: Deaths of Recipients |publisher=Department for Work and Pensions |date=9 July 2012 |access-date=12 April 2014}}{{cite web |last1=Ashworth-Hayes |first1=Sam |title=Reporting on "fit for work" deaths isn't fit for purpose |url=https://fullfact.org/economy/reporting-fit-work-deaths-isnt-fit-purpose/ |website=Full Fact |date=28 August 2015 |publisher=Full Fact |access-date=26 December 2018}}{{cite news|url=http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tomchiversscience/100279306/the-10600-people-died-within-six-weeks-of-being-declared-fit-to-work-by-atos-stat-is-simply-wrong/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140711202556/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tomchiversscience/100279306/the-10600-people-died-within-six-weeks-of-being-declared-fit-to-work-by-atos-stat-is-simply-wrong/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 July 2014 | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph | title=The '10,600 people died within six weeks of being declared fit to work by Atos' stat is simply wrong | date=9 July 2014}}{{cite web |title=Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) Decision notice |url=https://ico.org.uk/media/action-weve-taken/decision-notices/2015/1431907/fs_50558122.pdf |website=ico.org.uk |publisher=Information Commissioner's Office |access-date=26 December 2018 |date=8 June 2015}}{{cite news |title=Benefit claimant death data released |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34074557 |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=BBC News |publisher=BBC |date=27 August 2015}}{{cite news |last1=Butler |first1=Patrick |title=Thousands have died after being found fit for work, DWP figures show |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/aug/27/thousands-died-after-fit-for-work-assessment-dwp-figures |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited |date=27 August 2015}}{{cite news |title=The Guardian view on welfare reform: death and the benefit system {{!}} Editorial |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/aug/28/the-guardian-view-on-welfare-reform-death-and-the-benefit-system |access-date=26 December 2018 |work=The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited |date=28 August 2015}} A United Nations report has been written, which is highly critical of Employment Support Allowance.{{cite web|title=Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities|publisher=United Nations|date=November 2016|url=http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CRPD/Pages/InquiryProcedure.aspx}}{{cite web |title=The United Kingdom Government Response to the Report by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities under article 6 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention |url=http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/CRPD/CRPD.C.17.R.3-ENG.doc |access-date=22 December 2018}}

• Work Capability Assessment
• Criticism of the Work Capability Assessment
• Disability pension
• Social Security Disability Insurance

{{reflist|2}}

{{UK benefits}}

Category:Social security in the United Kingdom

Category:Disability in the United Kingdom

Category:Welfare in the United Kingdom