A £15 million funding boost to the Help to Claim scheme will support thousands of people moving from Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) to Universal Credit, the Department for Work and Pensions announced earlier this week. The cash injection will support the free and independent advice delivered by Citizens Advice, in partnership with Citizens Advice Scotland, which has supported over one million people making a claim to Universal Credit since the programme launched in 2019. The additional funding follows an announcement at Budget bringing forward benefit reform with more than 800,000 people on the old ESA benefit moving to Universal Credit by March 2026 instead of 2028.
DWP finally admits ordering more than 30 secret reviews into universal credit harm and deaths last year#DWP #UniversalCredit #IPRshttps://t.co/GBrngb5Ndc — Disability News Service (@johnpringdns) November 7, 2024 The acceleration will bring more people into a modern benefit regime, continuing to ensure they are supported to look for and move into work, and comes ahead of the Get Britain Working White Paper – set to be unveiled later this Autumn. Minister for Social Security and Disability, Sir Stephen Timms MP, said: “This funding boost will support many people as they make the move from old benefits to Universal Credit – ensuring customers feel confident and informed throughout the application process.
“I want to encourage anyone receiving a migration notice over the coming months to act witho.