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1138809

	registered interest
	date	15/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Termination of Employment
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to Office for National Statistics Public Sector Employment data, what assessment she has made of the effect on the performance of her Department of the loss of over 20,000 staff since 2013.
	tabling member constituency	Hove
	tabling member printed	Peter Kyle
	uin	277229
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/07/2019 answer text <p>Since 2013, through using a range of tools, we have improved the Department’s efficiency without dropping our performance levels. Our latest published figures show that we:</p><ul><li>delivered the lowest unemployment rate since 1974, getting on average 1,000 people into work every day since 2010</li><li>processed 78% of new claims within planned timescales and achieved customer satisfaction of 81%</li><li>processed Universal Credit (UC) faster - UC Full Service claimants for households with new claims receiving full payment on time had increased to around 86% in February 2019</li></ul> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 18/07/2019 14:31:43 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4505 label Biography information for Peter Kyle

1138864

	registered interest
	date	15/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential benefits of enabling childcare costs to be paid directly to providers through universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
	tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
	uin	277240
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government recently submitted its response to the Work and Pensions Select Committee’s follow-up report into Universal Credit: Childcare which sets out an assessment of the position in relation to payments direct to childcare providers. The response will be published in due course.</p><p> </p><p>Universal Credit is paid in a single monthly amount directly into people’s bank accounts, giving them control over their own money and making the move into work easier.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is committed to supporting parents with moving into work and, as part of this, we have increased the level of support for childcare costs from 70 per cent in legacy benefits to up to 85 per cent in Universal Credit. The Universal Credit childcare policy aligns with the wider government childcare offer, which includes free childcare hours and tax free childcare. This offer means that reasonable childcare costs should not form a barrier to work.</p><p> </p><p>Where upfront childcare costs or deposits may prevent a claimant from starting work, jobcentres will use the Flexible Support Fund to support the transition into work. When parents have good reason for late reporting of their childcare costs, the Department is piloting a more flexible approach to enable parents to be reimbursed at a later point.</p><p> </p><p>Since February 2018, Universal Credit claimants have been able to upload digital copies of their childcare cost receipts or invoices through their online Universal Credit account.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 18/07/2019 15:39:49 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1138926

	registered interest
	date	15/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have received under-occupancy penalty charges in each year since the introduction of those charges.
	tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
	tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
	uin	277204
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/07/2019 answer text <p>Figures on the number of households receiving Housing Benefit affected by the Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy are publically available through the DWP Stat Xplore website:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/login.xhtml" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/login.xhtml</a></p><p> </p><p>Guidance for users is available at:</p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html</a></p><p> </p><p>Figures on DWP Stat Xplore do not include claimants on Universal Credit with a Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy deduction, as this data is not currently available.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 18/07/2019 14:23:51 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1138944

	registered interest
	date	15/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Children: Maintenance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many full-time enforcement case managers are employed by the child maintenance service.
	tabling member constituency	Linlithgow and East Falkirk
	tabling member printed	Martyn Day
	uin	277219
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/07/2019 answer text <p>Child Maintenance Service employs 104 full-time Enforcement Case Managers. Enforcement Case Managers are those caseworkers who do court action rather than administrative enforcement action or financial investigation.</p><p> </p><p>For context the overall head count i.e. people (part-time or full-time) who are Enforcement Case Managers number 269. This equates to an overall resource, referred to as Full–time equivalent of 220.91.</p><p> </p><p>This is correct as of 30<sup>th</sup> June 2019.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 18/07/2019 15:39:45 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4488 label Biography information for Martyn Day

1138414

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints to the Independent Complaints Commissioner are (a) allocated to a caseworker and (b) awaiting allocation to a caseworker as at 11 July 2019.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	276137
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>When the Independent Case Examiner’s (ICE) office accepts a complaint for investigation, it will initially attempt to broker a solution between the complainant and the relevant business area or supplier, without having to request evidence to inform an investigation – this is known as “resolution”. If it’s not possible to resolve the complaint, the evidence will be requested and the case will await allocation to an Investigation Case Manager (ICM). The majority of complaints that are referred to ICE are complex and require a full investigation.</p><p> </p><p>Complaint investigations are dealt with by dedicated teams and complaints are usually brought into investigation in strict date order. The time complaints wait to be allocated for investigation varies depending on the volume and complexity of cases on hand and the available investigative resource. Productivity within the ICE Office increased during the 2018-19 reporting year, with the Office clearing 1,246 complaints, compared to 955 during the 2017-18 reporting year.</p><p> </p><p>As at 11 July 2019, there were 488 complaints under investigation (allocated to an ICM), and 1,377 complaints were awaiting allocation to an ICM.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 16/07/2019 13:47:47 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1138415

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average time taken is between a case being accepted by the Independent Complaints Commissioner and being allocated to a caseworker in the most recent period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	276138
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>Complaint investigations are dealt with by dedicated teams and complaints are usually brought into investigation in strict date order. The time complaints wait to be allocated to an Investigation Case Manager (ICM) varies depending on the volume and complexity of cases on hand and the available investigative resource. Productivity within the ICE Office increased during the 2018-19 reporting year, with the Office clearing 1,246 complaints, compared to 955 during the 2017-18 reporting year.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>As at 11 July 2019, the average time taken for a complaint which requires investigation to be allocated to an ICM was 52 weeks.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 16/07/2019 14:01:36 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1138418

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints for the Independent Complaints Commissioner were received in 2018; and how many of those complaints have been allocated to a caseworker.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	276139
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>The Independent Case Examiner’s (ICE) Office received 5,307 complaints in 2018 of which 1,943 were accepted for examination. Of those complaints accepted, 567 have been allocated to Case Managers.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 16/07/2019 13:45:25 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1138132

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Flexible Support Fund
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many applications for funding from the Flexible Support Fund have been received for up-front childcare costs in each of the last 12 months; and how many of those applications have been (a) paid in full, (b) paid in part and (c) refused.
	tabling member constituency	High Peak
	tabling member printed	Ruth George
	uin	275816
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not held in a format that can be easily disaggregated and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/07/2019 14:14:48 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4662 label Biography information for Ruth George

1138203

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Poverty: Children
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the accuracy of the findings of the End Child Poverty Group's report, Local indicators of child poverty, 2017-18, published in May 2019 on child poverty levels in (a) Kettering constituency and (b) England.
	tabling member constituency	Kettering
	tabling member printed	Mr Philip Hollobone
	uin	275715
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>This study is based on estimates rather than actual measurements of income. National statistics on the number of people in low income are set out in the annual &quot;Households Below Average Income&quot; publication. The number and proportion of children in low income is not available at local authority or constituency level in this publication because the survey sample sizes are too small to support the production of robust estimates at this geography.</p><p> </p><p>In the 3-year estimate leading to 2017/18 absolute child poverty is 2 percentage points lower than in the 3-year estimates leading to 2009/10 for the East Midlands. For England as a whole, absolute child poverty is 4 percentage points lower before housing costs, and 3 percentage points lower after housing costs for the 3-year estimates leading to 2017/18 compared with three year estimates leading to 2009/10.</p><p> </p><p>Children growing up in working households are five times less likely to be in poverty, which is why we are supporting families to improve their lives through work. Since 2010 there are over 3.6 million more people in work, and 667,000 fewer children growing up in workless households.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/07/2019 13:29:02 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	1537 label Biography information for Mr Philip Hollobone

1137797

	registered interest
	date	09/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Marketing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department's budget is for advertising and marketing in 2019-20.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	275119
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions is the biggest Government department with around 22 million citizens depending on our services on a daily basis. However, we are conscious that many people who want information about the services and support we provide won’t be aware of the different Government channels they can use to access that information, or may not have easy access to them. Equally, it is right that we advertise our services widely so that, should people need urgent support, they will have a level of awareness about where they can find that help and what that support might look like. Actively trying to reach the widest possible audience around the country is both necessary and responsible. This is in line with other Government departments.</p><p /><p /> <p> </p><p /><p /> <p>The current predicted DWP communications budget for advertising and marketing in 2019-20 is £13,332,000. This budget is constantly under review as we need to be flexible, ensure best value for money for the taxpayer and meet our responsibility to communicate Government policies effectively.</p><p /><p /> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 17/07/2019 15:34:35 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1137837

	registered interest
	date	09/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Child Maintenance Service
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has plans to increase (a) funding and (b) staffing of the Child Maintenance Service.
	tabling member constituency	Warrington South
	tabling member printed	Faisal Rashid
	uin	275246
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>Child Maintenance Service funding and staffing is determined as part of the funding settlement that DWP receives to provide the range of services that it provides. DWP, along with all other Government Departments, is currently agreeing its budgets for the approaching Spending Review period with HM Treasury. No decisions on the level of future budgets has been agreed at this point but is expected to be resolved in the latter part of 2019.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 17/07/2019 10:05:34 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4670 label Biography information for Faisal Rashid

1137609

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Prisoners' release
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people leaving prison in England and Wales were released in the last 12 months with (a) a valid photo ID, (b) a bank account and (c) a JobCentre appointment for universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Delyn
	tabling member printed	David Hanson
	uin	274444
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>The Department has dedicated Prison Work Coaches, who will support prisoners to complete their benefit claims and proceed to payment as quickly as possible. Our aim is to ensure claimants can access Universal Credit on the day of release in a bid to cut re-offending.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 16/07/2019 08:02:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	533 label Biography information for David Hanson

1137614

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the proportion of single room properties that were affordable for local housing allowance claimants in each region of England in (a) 2010 and (b) the most recent period for which data is available.
	tabling member constituency	Vale of Clwyd
	tabling member printed	Chris Ruane
	uin	274447
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2019 answer text <p><strong> </strong></p><p>In 2010, Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates were set at the 50th percentile of local rents, so half of non-housing benefit properties in the private rented sector were available within the LHA rate.</p><p> </p><p>The proportion of non-housing benefit single room accommodation available within the LHA rate by region in England for 2018/19 are as follows:</p><p><strong> </strong></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>East Midlands</p></td><td><p>15%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Eastern</p></td><td><p>13%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>London</p></td><td><p>8%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>North East</p></td><td><p>14%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>North West</p></td><td><p>15%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>South East</p></td><td><p>14%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>South West</p></td><td><p>15%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>West Midlands</p></td><td><p>16%</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Yorkshire &amp; The Humber</p></td><td><p>21%</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Note: figures are exclusive of housing benefit properties as the lettings data used to calculate the LHA is exclusive of tenancies where the claimant is in receipt of housing benefit.</p><p> </p><p>There are no current plans to extend or maintain the LHA Freeze after March 2020. Specific decisions on how to uprate the Local Housing Allowance rates from April 2020 will form part of the discussions in support of fiscal events later this year.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 11/07/2019 13:53:48 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	534 label Biography information for Chris Ruane

1137622

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Social Security Benefits
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has made an assessment of the number of applications for social security payments that are discontinued due to the death of the applicant.
	tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
	tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
	uin	274568
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 11/07/2019 14:02:03 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1137151

	registered interest
	date	05/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Welfare Assistance Schemes
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will ringfence funding allocated to local authorities for local welfare assistance schemes.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	273742
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>Local welfare assistance schemes is an umbrella term for local welfare provision. Local authorities decide what local provision to provide and at what cost, as they are best placed to understand the needs of their local communities.</p><p> </p><p>The Local Government Finance Settlement for 2015-16 identifies a notional amount relating to local welfare provision in each upper-tier and unitary authority’s general grant, totalling £129.6 million for England. The notional allocation for local welfare provision remains at £129.6 million in England in the Local Government Financial Settlement until 2019/20. There are no plans to ringfence this notional allocation.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/07/2019 10:45:34 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1136048

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing local housing allowance to the 30th percentile point for current market rents in each size category of dwelling.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	271443
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>There are no current plans to extend or maintain the Benefit Freeze after March 2020. Specific decisions on how to uprate the Local Housing Allowance from April 2020 will form part of the discussions in support of fiscal events later this year.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 16:40:08 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1136912

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Jobcentre Plus: Closures
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the (a) financial implications and (b) net effect on jobs of the closure of benefit processing centres in London.
	tabling member constituency	Twickenham
	tabling member printed	Sir Vince Cable
	uin	273307
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government Estate Strategy sets out an ambition to rebalance the economy, creating regional growth and locating jobs outside of London. This, along with the considerable increases in rental costs in London, and the commercial challenges in retaining property of any size, means that the Department’s strategy is to gradually migrate processing work out of London. While there will be no impact to public facing Jobcentre services, it does mean that a number of central London processing sites will close by 2023.</p><p> </p><p>As we look to close these offices, we will redistribute the work to other processing hubs across the UK and, wherever possible, seek to redeploy London based staff to other areas of DWP or other Government Departments. We will not be in a position to assess the net impact on jobs until this activity has completed.</p><p> </p><p>Finally, despite these closures, the Department will continue to be a significant employer in London.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/07/2019 13:33:16 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	207 label Biography information for Sir Vince Cable

1136941

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans the Government has in place to help people in receipt of universal credit with the cost of childcare over the summer holidays.
	tabling member constituency	Coventry South
	tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
	uin	273325
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government recognises that childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to both obtain and maintain employment and is committed to removing barriers that prevent parents moving into work.</p><p> </p><p>To overcome this barrier to employment, Universal Credit claimants are able to claim up to 85 per cent of their childcare costs, compared to 70 per cent on the legacy system. This can be worth up to £13,000 a year for families with two children.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise the difficulty that some claimants might have in paying childcare costs over the summer holidays and have undertaken significant work to increase work coach awareness, understanding and promotion of both the Universal Credit childcare offer and the wider government childcare offer. This is to ensure that parents who are eligible for the 15 hours of free childcare for disadvantaged families with 2-year-old children, and 30 hours of free childcare for working families, take these up. These free childcare offers can be used in combination with Universal Credit support for childcare.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to this, budgeting advances are available for eligible claimants that can be used to cover the cost of paying additional upfront childcare costs or a deposit that might be needed during the school holidays.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/07/2019 13:43:34 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham

1136974

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Children: Maintenance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times the Child Maintenance Group has registered the maintenance debt of a non-resident parent with credit rating agencies in the last year.
	tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
	tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
	uin	273429
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>This information is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/07/2019 13:58:29 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1137037

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of uprating local housing allowance rates from April 2020; and if she plans to bring forward proposals to extend the current exemption from the shared accommodation rate for people who have lived in a homeless hostel to include people aged 18 to 25 years-old.
	tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
	tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
	uin	273462
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2019 answer text <p>There are no current plans to extend or maintain the Benefit Freeze after March 2020. Specific decisions on how to uprate the Local Housing Allowance rates from April 2020 will form part of the discussions in support of fiscal events later this year.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>There is an exemption from the shared accommodation rate for those aged 25-34 who have previously spent 3 months (which doesn’t have to be continuous) in a homeless hostel/hostels specialising in rehabilitation and resettlement. There are no plans to extend this exemption to those under the age of 25.</p><p> </p><p>For other individuals who may require more support and whose circumstances may make it difficult for them to share accommodation, Discretionary Housing Payments are available.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 12/07/2019 12:11:40 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq

1136556

	registered interest
	date	03/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Cold Weather Payments: Mansfield
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Mansfield constituency received cold weather payments in each of the last two winter periods.
	tabling member constituency	Mansfield
	tabling member printed	Ben Bradley
	uin	272932
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2019 answer text <p>The Cold Weather Payment scheme is administered at weather station level rather than any other standard GB geography such as constituency level. The coverage area for each weather station is determined by the Met Office which assesses the most appropriate weather station for each postcode area. Cold weather payments are triggered when the average temperature recorded at the weather station has been recorded as, or is forecast to be, 0<sup>o</sup>C or below over seven consecutive days, during the Cold Weather season (November to March).</p><p> </p><p>The constituency of Mansfield covers all or part of the following postcode areas: NG17-21.</p><p> </p><p>The above postcode areas are covered by the weather station Nottingham Watnall. Qualifying individuals living in this area will have received a payment in respect of a seven-day period of Cold Weather, as shown in <strong>Table 1</strong>.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td colspan="3"><p><strong>Table 1 Estimated number of Cold Weather Payment recipients</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Weather station</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017/18</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2018/19</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Nottingham Watnall</p></td><td><p>168,000</p></td><td><p>0</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Nottingham Watnall weather station covers the following postcode areas, in <strong>Table 2</strong>, which include constituencies other than Mansfield. We estimate that 168,000 payments, to 168,000 recipients, were made in this area as a whole, in respect of one trigger in 2017/18. We are not able to break this figure down to a lower level. There were no cold weather triggers in Nottingham Watnall in 2018/19.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td colspan="2"><p><strong>Table 2 Postcode sectors mapped to Weather Stations</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Weather station</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Postcode Sectors Covered</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Nottingham Watnall</p></td><td><p>CV13, DE1-3, DE5-7, DE11-15, DE21-24, DE55-56, DE65, DE72-75, LE1-9, LE11-14, LE16-19, LE65, LE67, NG1-22, NG25, NG31-34.</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Notes</p><p> </p><ol><li>The number of recipients and payments given here is an estimate as information on the exact number is not readily available. These figures are produced by determining the volume of eligible recipients in each weather station area at the start of the winter season and using these figures throughout the winter to estimate payments and expenditure based on the actual triggers recorded.</li></ol><p> </p><ol start="2"><li>The number of payments made is not necessarily the total number of individuals benefitting from a Cold Weather Payment. Any individuals making a joint claim for one of the qualifying benefits, such as a couple living together, will receive one payment between them rather than one payment each. Furthermore, if a weather station triggers more than once throughout a cold weather season then the recipients will receive more than one payment.</li></ol><p> </p><ol start="3"><li>Estimates of Cold Weather Payments are published weekly during the Cold Weather season. The latest published estimates can be found at the link below:</li></ol><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/social-fund-cold-weather-payments" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/social-fund-cold-weather-payments</a></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 12/07/2019 13:13:03 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4663 label Biography information for Ben Bradley

1136594

	registered interest
	date	03/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Females
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether it is her Department's policy that all female benefits claimants are asked whether they are or have been victims of domestic abuse.
	tabling member constituency	Hove
	tabling member printed	Peter Kyle
	uin	272899
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>The Department is sensitive to the fact that it can be difficult for any victim of domestic abuse to come forward and disclose this. Universal Credit claimants are assigned to a single work coach, with whom they can build a trusting relationship. All of our work coaches have received mandatory training, developed with input from domestic abuse charities, to help them recognise the signs of abuse. If it becomes apparent that a claimant has been or is a victim of domestic abuse, as soon as they feel able to disclose this personal and sensitive information, a discussion should take place about their circumstances, to enable their work coach to tailor the support they provide to the claimant’s needs. This includes signposting the claimant to expert organisations. Almost all Jobcentres have private rooms available so that individuals can discuss these sensitive issues in private.</p><p> </p><p>By summer 2019, we will have implemented advocates for domestic abuse services in every Jobcentre to further raise awareness of domestic abuse, and to support our work coaches.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 12:36:44 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4505 label Biography information for Peter Kyle

1136678

	registered interest
	date	03/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Domestic Abuse: Victim Support Schemes
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what funding her Department has allocated to providers of local specialist domestic abuse services in anticipation of a potential increase in demand for such services as a result of her Department's policy to identify and refer survivors of domestic abuse to those services.
	tabling member constituency	Dulwich and West Norwood
	tabling member printed	Helen Hayes
	uin	272900
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>All our work coaches have received mandatory training, developed with input from domestic abuse charities, to help them to recognise the signs of domestic abuse. This means that our staff are able to proactively identify, support and signpost victims of abuse to expert organisations.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has committed £100 million between 2016 and 2022 to support the Cross-Government Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy (VAWG). This includes £20 million, announced in the 2017 Spring Budget, to support organisations tacking domestic abuse and to support victims; and a £17 million VAWG Service Transformation Fund to support the local provision of specialist VAWG services, encourage partnership working, new approaches and early intervention.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 12:36:41 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4510 label Biography information for Helen Hayes

1136723

	registered interest
	date	03/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Overtime
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the total amount of unpaid overtime worked by staff in her Department in the last 24 months.
	tabling member constituency	Hemsworth
	tabling member printed	Jon Trickett
	uin	272756
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2019 answer text <p>The DWP does not expect its employees to work unpaid overtime.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 12/07/2019 13:53:43 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	410 label Biography information for Jon Trickett

1136197

	registered interest
	date	02/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Funeral Payments
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans she has to ensure that the Social Fund Funeral Payments meet the costs of cremation.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Dr David Drew
	uin	272119
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>The Social Fund Funeral Expenses Payments scheme, provides a significant contribution towards funeral costs for claimants in receipt of a qualifying benefit. It continues to meet the legislated necessary costs of a cremation, with the amount of the average award increasing year-on-year to meet these costs. It also provides up to £700 towards other costs, such as flowers, coffin and funeral director fees.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/07/2019 14:37:06 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	252 label Biography information for Dr David Drew

1136302

	registered interest
	date	02/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Debt Collection
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 1 July 2019 to Question 269123, the total amount of civil penalties her Department has issued in each of the last 12 months.
	tabling member constituency	High Peak
	tabling member printed	Ruth George
	uin	272257
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>A £50 Civil Penalty may be imposed by both Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and Local Authorities where an individual incurs a recoverable overpayment as a result of failing to provide accurate information as part of their benefit claim or in connection with an award of benefit, and has not taken reasonable steps to correct the error.</p><p> </p><p>The table below shows the volume of Civil Penalties applied in the 12 months from July 2018 to June 2019*.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Month</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Civil Penalties Applied</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Jul-18</p></td><td><p>6,600</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Aug-18</p></td><td><p>7,300</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Sep-18</p></td><td><p>6,800</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Oct-18</p></td><td><p>8,900</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Nov-18</p></td><td><p>8,900</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Dec-18</p></td><td><p>7,500</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Jan-19</p></td><td><p>10,600</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Feb-19</p></td><td><p>10,800</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Mar-19</p></td><td><p>9,000</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Apr-19</p></td><td><p>8,200</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>May-19</p></td><td><p>8,000</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Jun-19</p></td><td><p>7,000</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>99,600</strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>If a claimant is having difficult repaying a benefit overpayment or Civil Penalty, they can request a review of the amount that is being taken. Any adjustment in the rate of repayment will be based on the individual circumstances of the debtor.</p><p> </p><p>When recovering benefit overpayments, the DWP ensures that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect claimants from any undue financial hardship.</p><p> </p><p><em>*The data provided in this response has been sourced from internal management information and was not intended for public release. It should therefore not be compared to any other, similar data subsequently released by the Department. All figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred.</em></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 13:00:06 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4662 label Biography information for Ruth George

1136303

	registered interest
	date	02/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Debt Collection
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 1 July 2019 to Question 269122, what sums her Department has spent on the use of enforcement agencies to collect (a) civil penalties and (b) benefit overpayments in each of the last five years.
	tabling member constituency	High Peak
	tabling member printed	Ruth George
	uin	272258
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is commercially sensitive.</p><p> </p><p>Suppliers have to comply with the Credit Services Association code of practice, Office of Fair Trade guidance, Financial Conduct Authority principles around fair treatment of customers and are bound by the Data Protection Act 2018.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 12:48:50 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4662 label Biography information for Ruth George

1136339

	registered interest
	date	02/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of uprating Local Housing Allowance rates from April 2020; and if she will bring forward proposals to extend the exemption from the shared accommodation rate for people who have lived in a homeless hostel to include people aged 18 to 25.
	tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
	tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
	uin	272268
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>There are no current plans to extend or maintain the Benefit Freeze after March 2020. Specific decisions on how to uprate the Local Housing Allowance rates from April 2020 will form part of the discussions in support of fiscal events later this year.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>There is an exemption from the shared accommodation rate for those aged 25-34 who have previously spent 3 months (which doesn’t have to be continuous) in a homeless hostel/hostels specialising in rehabilitation and resettlement. There are no plans to extend this exemption to those under the age of 25.</p><p> </p><p>For other individuals who may require more support and whose circumstances may make it difficult for them to share accommodation, Discretionary Housing Payments are available.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/07/2019 14:29:46 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq

1136406

	registered interest
	date	02/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Marriage Guidance: Finance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much funding the Government has allocated under section 22 of the Family Law Act 1996 to (a) the provision of marriage support services and (b) research into (i) the causes of and (ii) preventing marital breakdown in each year since 2010.
	tabling member constituency	Congleton
	tabling member printed	Fiona Bruce
	uin	272228
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>Responsibility for delivering relationship support services moved to the Department for Work and Pensions in 2013. Although DWP does not make grants under s22 of the Family Law Act (1996), we have funded a range of services to support families to improve the quality of their relationships – including those who are married.</p><p>DWP is currently delivering the Reducing Parental Conflict programme, which is backed by up to £39m and aims to encourage local authorities and their partners across England to integrate services which address parental conflict into local provision for families. Around a third of this budget is being used to test eight face-to-face interventions, which evidence shows have the potential to be effective at reducing parental conflict.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 12:47:27 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	3958 label Biography information for Fiona Bruce

1135797

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Iron and Steel
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether officials in her Department have had discussions with officials in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the UK Steel Charter.
	tabling member constituency	Scunthorpe
	tabling member printed	Nic Dakin
	uin	271387
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>We have discussed the procurement of steel with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which has asked all Government departments to consider guidance on steel procurement and to notify of any upcoming opportunities for industry.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/07/2019 13:30:29 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4056 label Biography information for Nic Dakin

1135798

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Iron and Steel
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her Department's policy to sign up to the UK Steel Charter.
	tabling member constituency	Scunthorpe
	tabling member printed	Nic Dakin
	uin	271388
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions will sign the UK Steel Charter.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/07/2019 13:38:01 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4056 label Biography information for Nic Dakin

1135888

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Funeral Payments
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how long on average it takes to (a) agree and (b) allocate the Social Fund funerals expense payment.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Dr David Drew
	uin	271339
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/07/2019 answer text <p>On average, it takes The Department for Work &amp; Pensions 2-3 weeks to process a Social Fund Funeral Payment from the point of claim, to the decision maker determining whether entitlement exists. In the instances when entitlement exists, it then takes an additional 3-5 working days for the payment to credit to either the Funeral Director’s or claimant’s bank account.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 04/07/2019 14:46:16 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	252 label Biography information for Dr David Drew

1135889

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Funerals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has plans to increase awareness among the relatives of deceased people of (a) direct funerals and (b) other funeral options; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Dr David Drew
	uin	271340
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/07/2019 answer text <p>My officials regularly engage with funeral and bereavement stakeholders to help them build awareness of the support available</p><p> </p><p>In August 2018, the GOV.UK website was updated with a step-by-step guide about to do after someone has died, including arranging a funeral and applying for a Funeral Expenses Payments.</p><p> </p><p>DWP is currently updating the leaflet that registrars give to people registering deaths. The revised version will include details of Funeral Expense Payments, and direct people to the GOV.UK step-by-step guide. DWP staff can also provide this information over the phone or in Jobcentres.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 271352 question first answered 04/07/2019 13:27:45 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	252 label Biography information for Dr David Drew

1135890

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Public Health Funerals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pauper funerals were held in England in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and whether local authorities are in all cases able to claim back the costs of those funerals through the Social Fund funeral expenses fund.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Dr David Drew
	uin	271341
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/07/2019 answer text <p>The Social Fund Funeral Expenses Payments scheme is available to people on qualifying income based benefits. It does not provide funding for local authorities.</p><p> </p><p>My department does not collect data on the number of Local Authority funerals. MHCLG own the policy for Public Health (LA) funerals, but do not collect information on the number of public health funerals held.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 04/07/2019 13:17:47 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	252 label Biography information for Dr David Drew

1136028

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Credit Unions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department offers employees a payroll deduction to enable staff to join a credit union; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Harrow West
	tabling member printed	Gareth Thomas
	uin	271333
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>In 2016 DWP launched a payroll savings scheme with credit unions to allow staff to start automatically saving through their payroll. This was launched by their Welfare Reform Minister at the time Lord Freud.</p><p>DWP has made arrangements with three credit unions to offer a savings facility and other financial services to employees and payroll deductions can be made from salary into each of these. 4512 employees have so far joined one of the three credit unions.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 16:38:59 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	177 label Biography information for Gareth Thomas

1136078

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Funeral Payments
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans she has to increase (a) knowledge of, (b) access to and (c) take-up of social fund funeral payments.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Dr David Drew
	uin	271352
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/07/2019 answer text <p>My officials regularly engage with funeral and bereavement stakeholders to help them build awareness of the support available</p><p> </p><p>In August 2018, the GOV.UK website was updated with a step-by-step guide about to do after someone has died, including arranging a funeral and applying for a Funeral Expenses Payments.</p><p> </p><p>DWP is currently updating the leaflet that registrars give to people registering deaths. The revised version will include details of Funeral Expense Payments, and direct people to the GOV.UK step-by-step guide. DWP staff can also provide this information over the phone or in Jobcentres.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 271340 question first answered 04/07/2019 13:27:45 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	252 label Biography information for Dr David Drew

1135479

	registered interest
	date	28/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Young People
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effect of the roll-out of universal credit on young people who are (a) homeless and (b) experiencing mental health issues.
	tabling member constituency	South Northamptonshire
	tabling member printed	Andrea Leadsom
	uin	270746
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>This Government is committed to supporting vulnerable claimants, such as those with mental health conditions or experiencing homelessness. We understand that these claimants may face extra challenges in their lives. Universal Credit is designed to target resources at those that need them most and to provide support for people who cannot work or need help moving towards the labour market.</p><p>We recognise the importance of understanding how a mental health condition impacts someone’s ability to prepare for and look for work. That is why we have developed a range of specialised mental health training for work coaches and increased the number of Disability Employment Advisers who can provide additional support where needed. Furthermore, we have a number of Community Partners recruited specifically for their expertise in mental health issues, that can provide advice that is often based on lived experience.</p><p>In the case of homeless claimants, it is our priority to ensure that people experiencing homelessness get the appropriate support they need to improve their lives and move into work. For example, we are able to put job-seeking requirements on hold temporarily whilst claimants find accommodation or stabilise their housing situation, as well as priority access to the Work and Health Programme.</p><p>We are supporting the manifesto commitment to halve rough sleeping by 2022 and eradicate it altogether by 2027 through the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Reduction Taskforce, and commitments set out in the recent Rough Sleeping Strategy. Furthermore, work coaches in England are legally bound to offer a voluntary referral to claimants they consider may be homeless or threatened with homelessness to a Local Housing Authority of the claimant’s choice.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270747 question first answered 03/07/2019 12:51:18 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4117 label Biography information for Andrea Leadsom

1135480

	registered interest
	date	28/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Young People
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that homeless young people with mental health issues on universal credit are (a) supported into employment and (b) have adequate income.
	tabling member constituency	South Northamptonshire
	tabling member printed	Andrea Leadsom
	uin	270747
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>This Government is committed to supporting vulnerable claimants, such as those with mental health conditions or experiencing homelessness. We understand that these claimants may face extra challenges in their lives. Universal Credit is designed to target resources at those that need them most and to provide support for people who cannot work or need help moving towards the labour market.</p><p>We recognise the importance of understanding how a mental health condition impacts someone’s ability to prepare for and look for work. That is why we have developed a range of specialised mental health training for work coaches and increased the number of Disability Employment Advisers who can provide additional support where needed. Furthermore, we have a number of Community Partners recruited specifically for their expertise in mental health issues, that can provide advice that is often based on lived experience.</p><p>In the case of homeless claimants, it is our priority to ensure that people experiencing homelessness get the appropriate support they need to improve their lives and move into work. For example, we are able to put job-seeking requirements on hold temporarily whilst claimants find accommodation or stabilise their housing situation, as well as priority access to the Work and Health Programme.</p><p>We are supporting the manifesto commitment to halve rough sleeping by 2022 and eradicate it altogether by 2027 through the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Reduction Taskforce, and commitments set out in the recent Rough Sleeping Strategy. Furthermore, work coaches in England are legally bound to offer a voluntary referral to claimants they consider may be homeless or threatened with homelessness to a Local Housing Authority of the claimant’s choice.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270746 question first answered 03/07/2019 12:51:18 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4117 label Biography information for Andrea Leadsom

1135497

	registered interest
	date	28/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Children
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that the childcare element of universal credit is not an economic barrier to work.
	tabling member constituency	Dulwich and West Norwood
	tabling member printed	Helen Hayes
	uin	270813
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government recognises that childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours. We are committed to helping parents into work.</p><p> </p><p>To overcome this barrier to employment, Universal Credit claimants are able to claim up to 85 per cent of their childcare costs, compared to 70% on the legacy system. This can be claimed up to a month before starting a job, and can be worth up to £13,000 a year for families with two children.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise the difficulty that some claimants might have in paying upfront childcare costs. Where the initial month’s childcare costs may prevent a claimant from starting work, Jobcentres will use the Flexible Support Fund to help claimants in the first instance. This is a non-repayable award, which can be used to meet the upfront childcare costs to help support a claimant into work. For claimants who are in work and need help with upfront childcare costs, budgeting advances are available that can be used to cover the cost of paying upfront childcare costs or a deposit.</p><p> </p><p>We have piloted a more flexible approach to claimants reporting childcare costs, which will allow people, including lone parents, to be reimbursed for childcare when, with good reason, they are not able to provide evidence within their assessment period. We are now looking to implement this nationally.</p><p> </p><p>We have undertaken significant work to increase work coach awareness and understanding of the Universal Credit childcare offer through improved training and guidance and communications.</p><p> </p><p>The Universal Credit childcare policy also aligns with the wider government childcare offer, which includes free childcare hours and tax free childcare.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270814 question first answered 03/07/2019 12:18:32 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4510 label Biography information for Helen Hayes

1135498

	registered interest
	date	28/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Children
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to find a long-term solution for upfront costs in childcare under universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Dulwich and West Norwood
	tabling member printed	Helen Hayes
	uin	270814
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government recognises that childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours. We are committed to helping parents into work.</p><p> </p><p>To overcome this barrier to employment, Universal Credit claimants are able to claim up to 85 per cent of their childcare costs, compared to 70% on the legacy system. This can be claimed up to a month before starting a job, and can be worth up to £13,000 a year for families with two children.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise the difficulty that some claimants might have in paying upfront childcare costs. Where the initial month’s childcare costs may prevent a claimant from starting work, Jobcentres will use the Flexible Support Fund to help claimants in the first instance. This is a non-repayable award, which can be used to meet the upfront childcare costs to help support a claimant into work. For claimants who are in work and need help with upfront childcare costs, budgeting advances are available that can be used to cover the cost of paying upfront childcare costs or a deposit.</p><p> </p><p>We have piloted a more flexible approach to claimants reporting childcare costs, which will allow people, including lone parents, to be reimbursed for childcare when, with good reason, they are not able to provide evidence within their assessment period. We are now looking to implement this nationally.</p><p> </p><p>We have undertaken significant work to increase work coach awareness and understanding of the Universal Credit childcare offer through improved training and guidance and communications.</p><p> </p><p>The Universal Credit childcare policy also aligns with the wider government childcare offer, which includes free childcare hours and tax free childcare.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270813 question first answered 03/07/2019 12:18:32 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4510 label Biography information for Helen Hayes

1135516

	registered interest
	date	28/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Shared Housing: Greater London
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2019 to Question 266836 on Shared Accommodation Rate, what standard deduction rent officers make for fuel from the advertised rents for rooms in shared accommodation in the (a) Central London, (b) Inner East London, (c) Inner North London, (d) Inner South East London, (e) Inner South West London and (f) Inner West London Broad Rental Market Areas.
	tabling member constituency	Bethnal Green and Bow
	tabling member printed	Rushanara Ali
	uin	270764
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>There are no standard deductions for ineligible services for the specific Broad Rental Market Areas listed. In order to ensure a consistent approach, Rent Officers have a national guide to service deductions which has been arrived at following research of utility company pricing. The Rent Officer refers to the standard deductions and decides whether it is appropriate to apply them, however ultimately each case will be looked at on an individual basis.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 03/07/2019 13:04:57 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4138 label Biography information for Rushanara Ali

1135518

	registered interest
	date	28/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Shared Housing: Utilities
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2019 to Question 266836 on Shared Housing: Utilities, if she will place in the Library the Valuation Office Agency’s guidance for Rent Officers in making deductions for services and facilities from the local rents used to determine the 30th percentile of the Shared Accommodation Rate.
	tabling member constituency	Bethnal Green and Bow
	tabling member printed	Rushanara Ali
	uin	270765
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>There is no current plan to place the guidance in the House of Commons library as The Rent Officer Handbook is already available online via <a href="http://www.gov.uk" target="_blank">www.gov.uk</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Specific guidance for Rent officers in relation to these deductions is accessible under the heading ‘Ineligible services’ in the following location:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rent-officer-handbook-lettings-research/lettings-research-recording" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rent-officer-handbook-lettings-research/lettings-research-recording</a>.</p><p> </p><p>The full Rent Officer Handbook can be found at:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/valuation-office-agency-rent-officer-handbook" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/valuation-office-agency-rent-officer-handbook</a>.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 11:51:29 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4138 label Biography information for Rushanara Ali

1135593

	registered interest
	date	28/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Housing Benefit: Young People
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending the exemption from the Shared Accommodation Rate to people under the age of 25 who have been in homeless accommodation for more than three months.
	tabling member constituency	West Lancashire
	tabling member printed	Rosie Cooper
	uin	270740
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>There is an exemption from the shared accommodation rate for those aged 25-34 who have previously spent 3 months (which doesn’t have to be continuous) in a homeless hostel/hostels specialising in rehabilitation and resettlement. There are no plans to extend this exemption to those under the age of 25.</p><p> </p><p>For other individuals who may require more support and whose circumstances may make it difficult for them to share accommodation, Discretionary Housing Payments are available.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 03/07/2019 12:52:45 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	1538 label Biography information for Rosie Cooper

1135249

	registered interest
	date	27/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans the Government has to restore local housing allowance rates to cover the cheapest third of local rents to improve affordability for residents in receipt of that allowance who seek to live in private accommodation.
	tabling member constituency	Carshalton and Wallington
	tabling member printed	Tom Brake
	uin	270236
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p><strong> </strong></p><p>There are no plans to extend or maintain the Benefit Freeze after March 2020. Specific decisions on how to uprate the Local Housing Allowance from April 2020 will form part of the discussions in support of fiscal events later this year.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 02/07/2019 10:47:16 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	151 label Biography information for Tom Brake

1135373

	registered interest
	date	27/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Child Benefit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effect of the two-child benefit limit on levels of domestic violence; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Vale of Clwyd
	tabling member printed	Chris Ruane
	uin	270299
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>Domestic abuse is a huge problem in our society, with a number of contributing factors, as well as far-reaching and devastating impacts. It is an extremely complex crime which can affect anyone and this Government takes the issue very seriously. DWP is committed to doing all we can to support victims of domestic and economic abuse. All work coaches undergo mandatory training in how to support vulnerable claimants including recognising the signs of domestic abuse. By summer 2019, we will have domestic abuse specialists in every Jobcentre.</p><p> </p><p>We have also been closely engaging with key domestic abuse stakeholders on a range of topics and we will continue to work closely with them on improving our services, policies and support for victims of abuse.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 02/07/2019 14:59:02 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	534 label Biography information for Chris Ruane

1135376

	registered interest
	date	27/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she will make an assessment of the potential merits of exempting care leavers under the age of 25 from the under-occupancy penalty in the social rented sector.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	270290
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>Care leavers up to the age of 22 are exempt from the Local Housing Allowance shared accommodation rate in the Private Rented Sector. There are no plans to extend this exemption or to introduce an exemption for care leavers to the removal of the spare room subsidy policy in the Social Rented Sector.</p><p>For those individuals who may require more support and whose circumstances may make it difficult for them to share accommodation, Discretionary Housing Payments are available.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270291 question first answered 02/07/2019 11:19:53 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1135377

	registered interest
	date	27/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance: Care Leavers
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the local housing allowance exemption for care leavers up to the age of 25.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	270291
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>Care leavers up to the age of 22 are exempt from the Local Housing Allowance shared accommodation rate in the Private Rented Sector. There are no plans to extend this exemption or to introduce an exemption for care leavers to the removal of the spare room subsidy policy in the Social Rented Sector.</p><p>For those individuals who may require more support and whose circumstances may make it difficult for them to share accommodation, Discretionary Housing Payments are available.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270290 question first answered 02/07/2019 11:19:53 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1135015

	registered interest
	date	26/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Jobcentre Plus: Females
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training and guidance her Department provides to Jobcentre Plus Work Coaches and other staff in her Department on (a) the specific vulnerabilities of women at risk of, or experiencing, sexual exploitation and (b) specialist services that staff may refer to that support women to exit prostitution.
	tabling member constituency	Rotherham
	tabling member printed	Sarah Champion
	uin	269825
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/07/2019 answer text <p>DWP is committed to providing the best possible support for all our claimants, including the most vulnerable in society. We are continuously reviewing and improving the service for vulnerable people to ensure that it is accessible and responsive to their needs.</p><p> </p><p>Specific training and guidance is provided for all staff on working with different vulnerable groups. This includes developing the skills they need to support and communicate with a diverse range of customers.</p><p> </p><p>All DWP staff have access to the ‘Safeguarding Vulnerable People’ guidance, which highlights the importance of having arrangements in place which assist in the protection of vulnerable adults and children from physical abuse, sexual abuse and exploitation.</p><p> </p><p>To assist with identification and claimant support, each Jobcentre Plus site has a complex needs toolkit in place and these are maintained and reviewed locally.</p><p> </p><p>Additionally, Jobcentre staff have access to a District Provision Tool which provides access to the full range of provision and support delivered by DWP, providers, local authorities and independent volunteer/charity organisations. However, if Work Coaches are unable to identify local provisions that meets the needs of the claimant, they liaise with DWP Partnership Managers, who have the flexibility to work alongside local organisations to source appropriate provision helping our most vulnerable, at risk, claimants to access the support they need.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>We have also been closely engaging with key stakeholders on a range of topics and we will continue to work closely with them on improving our services, policies and support for victims of abuse.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 05/07/2019 12:58:36 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4267 label Biography information for Sarah Champion

1134454

	registered interest
	date	25/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Children: Maintanance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many committal orders have been issued under each category for (a) the Child Maintenance Service and (b) the Child Support Agency in each of the last five years.
	tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
	tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
	uin	269080
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>Committal orders, or sanctions as they are called in the Child Maintenance Service, are reported in our published statistics and can be on found table 11 of the tables document on the attached link:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-august-2013-to-march-2019-experimental" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-august-2013-to-march-2019-experimental</a></p><p> </p><p>We reported enforcement activities in our CSA statistics until September 2017 when we reduced the number of tables published because most CSA cases had been closed or had begun the Case Closure process. The last publication including the enforcement activities can be found on table 22 of the attached link:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-support-agency-quarterly-summary-of-statistics-june-2017" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-support-agency-quarterly-summary-of-statistics-june-2017</a></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 01/07/2019 16:56:47 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1134471

	registered interest
	date	25/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Veterans
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effect of universal credit on armed forces veterans.
	tabling member constituency	Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
	tabling member printed	Hugh Gaffney
	uin	269108
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2019 answer text <p>The Department has put in place special arrangements under the Armed Forces Covenant to support veterans and to take account of their needs and circumstances, such as ensuring War Disablement Pensions and guaranteed income payments made under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme are not taken into account in the assessment of Universal Credit entitlement.</p><p>Universal Credit is a tailored service and it is important that we support those claimants, including veterans, who may find the application process for Universal Credit challenging. The Citizens Advice Help to Claim service offers tailored, practical support to help people to make their Universal Credit claim. This service is available online, over the phone and face-to-face, so that claimants can access support in the way that is most suitable for them.</p><p>Every Jobcentre Plus District has an Armed Forces Champion who ensures that any concerns and issues raised which affect Service Personnel and their families are integrated within the wider work of Jobcentre Plus. These Armed Forces Champions ensure that Work Coaches and other DWP staff can effectively support serving personnel, service leavers, veterans and their families.</p><p /> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 03/07/2019 11:24:44 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4614 label Biography information for Hugh Gaffney