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1503418

registered interest
date	02/09/2022
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	Energy: Prices
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 is planning to provide additional support to people with disabilities to help them meet energy bills and the increase in living costs.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	45100
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/09/2022 answer text <p>In response to the increase in energy bills and the cost of living, around six million people who receive a non-means-tested disability benefit will receive a one-off Disability Cost of Living Payment of £150. This is only one part of the government’s £15bn package of support and sits alongside Cost of Living Payments of up to £650 for means-tested benefits recipients, payments to those eligible for Winter Fuel Payments and the extension of the Household Support Fund. This is on top of the £22bn the government has already announced to support households with the cost of living.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to specific targeted support, disabled people may also benefit from previously announced measures to help people tackle the cost of living, including:</p><ul><li>£150 council tax rebate</li><li>£400 discount from energy bills</li><li>cuts to the Universal Credit taper rate</li><li>frozen alcohol duty and fuel duty and</li><li>the further rise in the National Living Wage to £9.50 an hour from Apri2022.</li></ul><p> </p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 06/09/2022 13:54:40 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1465346

registered interest
date	24/05/2022
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 plans to increase (a) carers allowance and (b) attendance allowance in line with inflation.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	8157
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/05/2022 answer text <p>The Secretary of State undertakes an annual review of benefits and pensions, and CPI in the year to September is the latest figure that the Secretary of State can use to allow sufficient time for the required operational changes before new rates can be introduced at the start of the new financial year in April. Both Carer’s Allowance and Attendance Allowance were uprated in April 2022 by 3.1%</p><p> </p><p>As per convention, the Secretary of State will undertake a review of benefit rates for the 2023/24 tax year this autumn.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 26/05/2022 16:22:02 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1439739

registered interest
date	10/03/2022
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	Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that PIP claimants with long term disabilities are not required to undergo the reassessment process in cases where their conditions and care needs have not changed since their last assessment.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	138143
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2022 answer text <p>Once someone has been awarded Personal Independence Payment (PIP), which can be paid at one of eight rates, that award will usually be reviewed. Regular reviews are a key feature of the benefit and ensure that payments accurately match the current needs of claimants. The length of an award is based on an individual’s circumstances and can vary from nine months to an on-going award, with a light touch review after ten years.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>In 2018 we introduced updated guidance for case managers which ensures that those people who receive the highest level of support under PIP, and where their needs are unlikely to change or may get worse, will receive an ongoing award with a light touch review at the ten-year point. We also announced in the Shaping Future Support: Health and Disability Green Paper that we will test a new Severe Disability Group (SDG) so that those with severe and lifelong conditions can benefit from a simplified process to access PIP, Employment and Support Allowance and Universal Credit without needing to go through a face-to-face assessment or frequent reviews.</p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 23/03/2022 17:11:44 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1436934

registered interest
date	01/03/2022
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	Personal Independence Payment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department plans to take to ensure that personal independence payment assessments are carried out in a fair, consistent, and accurate manner.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	132358
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/03/2022 answer text <p>The Department is committed to ensuring claimants receive high quality, objective and accurate assessments, as part of the suite of evidence the department uses to decide entitlement. There are a range of regular governance and monthly performance meetings to support delivery of the contracts to ensure that where action is required, it can be focused and targeted.</p><p>We have a strong and collaborative relationship with Capita and Independent Assessment Services (IAS) and work closely with them to further improve the quality of assessments, including clinical coaching, feedback, and support available to Health Professionals. Providers share training materials between themselves to encourage best practice, standardise processes and improve the claimant experience. They also regularly engage with medical experts, charities, and relevant stakeholders to strengthen, maintain, and update their training programmes.</p><p>The Department is also bringing forward a Green Paper on health and disability support, focusing on the welfare system. The Green Paper will explore how the welfare system can better meet the needs of disabled people and people with health conditions now and in the future, to build a system that enables people to live independently and move into work where possible.</p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 10/03/2022 14:23:46 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1402684

registered interest
date	13/01/2022
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	Access to Work Programme
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 reduce the required application frequency by disabled people for support through the Access To Work scheme, where their needs have not changed.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	103678
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/01/2022 answer text <p>Access to Work is committed to improving customer experience and transforming the service disabled people receive. This will introduce a new digital customer journey and explores how we can streamline the current processes, including reviewing the frequency of applications.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, we are developing the Adjustments Passport which aims to reduce the need for holistic assessments where the customer’s needs remain the same. The Adjustments Passport is currently being piloted with freelancers, contractors and universities. In 2022, it will include the Armed Forces service leavers and various Department for Education programmes supporting young disabled people.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 21/01/2022 13:58:19 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore

1355389

registered interest
date	14/09/2021
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	Jobcentres: Hearing Impairment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department plans to take to help ensure that all Job Centre Plus sites are accessible to people with hearing loss.
tabling member constituency	Southport
tabling member printed	Damien Moore
uin	49265
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/09/2021 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is committed to making its services accessible for all its customers together with those who may have additional communication needs including hearing loss.</p><p>Deaf and hard of hearing customers visiting Jobcentres are able to access different support based on how hearing loss affects their communication needs. Job Centres are equipped and currently provide mainly portable, but also some fixed hearing loops across the network, for those customers with hearing loss. There is a new initiative to improve our environments for disabled customers and those with health conditions which will include people with hearing loss. This work is due to start in October. <strong> </strong></p><p>For those customers who are deaf or hard of hearing and attending a prearranged appointment with DWP, staff will already be aware of the customer’s communication needs from DWP’s computer systems and have access to a language services contract to pre-book an interpreter to support face to face contact. The interpreter will be skilled in providing non-spoken language support including British Sign Language (BSL).</p><p>Furthermore, a Disability Employment Adviser (DEA) is assigned to each Jobcentre site. The DEA is skilled in understanding the needs of disabled customers, including those who with hearing loss. The DEA provides support to Work Coaches to ensure that Work Coaches are able to increase their awareness and empathy when dealing with customers who have hearing loss.</p><p>The Employer and Partnerships role within DWP forms effective networks with a variety of local stakeholders, including organisations and charities that support customers with hearing loss. These relationships are vital to ensure that DWP is able to provide consistent and effective support to its customers.</p><p>On a national level, DWP has established a range of networks with its stakeholders to provide a voice for the customer. The Taskforce for Accessible Information, the Reasonable Adjustments Forum and the Operational Stakeholder Engagement Forum all regularly meet with a cross section of groups representing disabilities including those with hearing loss. The purpose of these forums are to ensure that DWP elicits feedback and insight into how its services are being used by those with additional communication needs and to seek continuous improvement.</p><p>Following the expansion of Video Relay Service last year, whereby deaf customers are now able to make an inbound telephone call to DWP via a British Sign Language interpreter using a video connection, DWP is currently exploring how this technology can be adapted to support video remote interpreting. This will increase the flexibility for DWP to conduct face to face and telephony based contact with deaf and hard of hearing customers.</p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 24/09/2021 16:05:26 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4669 label Biography information for Damien Moore