This course, run by Citizens Advice Devon, is designed for people across Devon who work in voluntary sector organisations that support disabled adults over the age of 16, as well as; benefits advisers, including generalist Citizens Advice advisers, social prescribers, housing providers, local authorities, or anyone who meets people in the course of their work who are struggling to make ends meet.
Introduction and Aim
Many people get turned down for Personal Independent Payments (PIP), however around 70% of people who appeal (with the support of advisers), win those appeals. But what about those people who don’t even claim when they could, or those who don’t challenge decisions when they could?
This course is for anyone who supports people with disabilities and is in a position to encourage them to claim or challenge a decision. The cost of living crisis makes it more important than ever that people, in particular those with a disability or long term health condition, are able to maximise their income. On occasions they may also feel excluded by the ever increasing reliance on technology to access information, to communicate with the state and to claim benefits.
Participants will go through the conditions of PIP entitlement, how to claim, how to make sure you can evidence entitlement, what the process is for challenging decisions and how best to get help with this.
Objectives
This course, held in person at the Devon Communities Together offices in Exeter, will enable participants to play a part in ensuring that as many disabled people as possible secure their rightful entitlement to Personal Independence Payments (PIP). It will also enable them to:
- Identify key conditions of entitlement to PIP
- Assist people with claims
- Understand when to evidence entitlement
- Identify the process of when and how to challenge decisions
- Make appropriate referrals
About your tutor:
Vincent Wilson - Vincent has worked for the Citizens Advice service in Devon since 1985. As an experienced trainer, he has provided benefits training for many years to voluntary and statutory sector staff, covering all aspects of the benefits system from introductory courses to Tribunal Representation. He has been a benefits caseworker for most of his working life, having taken cases to the Upper Tribunal level. He has been involved with national Health Education England in the design of an e-learning module on social welfare legal support and money guidance for social prescribers and has provided training locally on the financial support available to people worst affected by the rise in the cost of living. He is Chief Officer at Citizens Advice Teignbridge.