soo annoyed with the assessment team
I got a phone call about an hour or so before my appointment last Wednesday saying that my appointment had to be cancelled.
I don't even know why it was cancelled.
I got a letter from them today saying that they have rearranged my appointment for 9.30am on the 17th of this month..were also getting our internet put on then too.
I think they forgot that I'd put on my form that afternoons are best fore due to my mum working nights otherwise they would've done an afternoon appointment..
In a way I prefer afternoons, but mornings are better as I can get the appointment out of the way quicker and have the rest of the day to myself.
Comments
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Hi @BrianMcFaddenFan82 I am sorry your appointment was cancelled at such short notice. It is annoying as you have got yourself all worked up to deal with it.
I hope your appointment on the 17 October goes well.
Fingers crossed you get the result you would like.
Take care.
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So so frustrating and so unfair they know the impact this has psychologically I find it extremely cruel hoping your assessment goes well don't be intimidated by them all designed to keep us down speak your truth every last detail are you asking for it to be recorded
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Why is it cruel? Unfortunately, things do happen in everyday life and as much as some people don't like those assessment providers, they are still real people. People become ill for whatever reason and sometimes call in sick for work, no one can plan on being ill. If that happens they may not have a replacement for someone else to do the assessment.
Yes, it's frustrating but it can't be helped.
It's a good thing that it was a telephone assessment, otherwise BrianMcFaddenfan, could have been on their way to the assessment. This happened to me quite a few years ago so had to turn back and go home.
Hopefully the next appointment will go ahead as planned.
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I find them heartless bullies they do know the effect thier having all the experience I've had of them are not pleasant from my experience lying in reports I could say endless things no I strongly disagree the whole system is inhumane
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And this is not an isolated case they call people unexpectedly cancel last minute The DWP have had me on my knees I have no Respect for them it's run from toxicity and comes from top to the bottom and who suffers US I've worked in the job centre the staff used to comment on people appearance smelly benefit Bums I have to work so why can't they laughing when people kicking off stopping money rude aggressive you start to become numb unking uncaring just to survive the job awful the good people leave and the ones who been there for years become hardened by human suffering almost eye rolling tutting I feel like Oliver hand to mouth begging trying to prove I'm mentally ill its stomach turning vile
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Didn't you say in a previous comment that you've never had any issues with your work capability assessment?
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Yes this is true I had one assessment and rest paper based but pip another story completely treated like a criminal 2016 was nearly the end for me with the vilest of treatment so I have my opinion you have yours seems your trying to call me out what for I don't know ?
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It seems it has been some time since you were involved with job centres. I believe that if you were to visit a job centre in the future, you would find them to be more customer-focused, with professional and supportive staff.
In early June this year, I accompanied a friend who is currently off work due to high anxiety to validate her ID documents. She requested my support because she felt she couldn't attend the appointment alone.
We initially had to cancel her first appointment due to my work commitments. However, the job centre was very accommodating and was happy to rearrange her appointment for a later date, allowing me to accompany her.
When we arrived for the rescheduled appointment, I was impressed by the level of assistance provided. A concierge greeted us at the entrance and directed us accordingly, and the staff member who assisted my friend was both kind, professional and accommodating. She even enquired if my friend needed an advance to help her until her Universal Credit was processed.
In early August, she completed a form regarding her ability to look for work, and by the end of that month, she was assessed as having LCWRA, which relieved her of the need for fit notes, job interviews, or job searching. She was also informed that the planned future interview booked with the job coach had been cancelled.
Although she anticipated another interview at the job centre to assess her fitness for work after submitting the form, she later received a message indicating that her assessment had been completed via paperwork, eliminating the need for any further interviews.
From my observations, the support provided from the DWP has been commendable. While my friend experiences anxiety, she does not have any significant mental health issues. Since June, she has only had one work-related interview over the phone, during which the advisor mentioned a follow-up in three months.
I should also mention that during our appointment, while we waited to be seen, I observed many other individuals either with advisors or waiting for their turn. We were there for just over an hour, and I did not witness any shouting or upset individuals regarding financial issues. Additionally, I did not hear any staff members say anything derogatory about the claimants.
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Catherine, Poppy is not trying to call you out at all but basically saying not everyone has a bad experience with assessments. The assessors are human just like we are and can get ill and not able to work. Just because an assessment is cancelled it doesn't mean 'they' are out to get you it means there is a problem and your assessment unfortunately has to be re-arranged. All people deserve respect regardless of their job.
Your 'vile experience' was yours and we only tend to hear about these kinds of assessments. There are lots of people who don't post because their experience was good and conducted with respect. Posting about the bad experiences doesn't help those who are waiting for their assessments.
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That's very true I agree I'm quick to read and set assumptions
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That’s not true at all, I’m not trying to call you out. Why would I do that when usually I do quite the opposite and help you in anyway I can. 🙄
What I’ve basically said is that everyone gets ill and appointments have to be cancelled sometimes, this is part of life and can include any appointments, not just assessments for benefits.
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I know I'm sorry I always take things wrong I apologise because I really respect you and the group I always put my foot in it if i knew how to delete I would of deleted it as I shot from the hip amd instantly regret my daughter says you act a certain way but it's not you just think before you say I appreciate everything you do i really do
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Thankyou I did feel like I'd messed up again as I do like being part of the group andI express myself or write as I think I regretted so badly the last time I took everything personally I can over share and ramble but honestly I mean no harm I
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@vikki66 I do not jump onto every thread where someone has mental health problems and try to close them down!!!
Wow, seriously so rude!! I haven’t actually spent much time on the forum lately because of people like yourself deciding to have a go at me when they feel the need to for absolutely no reason at all!!!
I don’t appreciate being spoken to like this at all. I’m not a child!!
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Wow! I put a post on about my LCW telephone appointment being cancelled and rearranged and it seems to me that everyone is expressing they're annoyance with them too.
Me and my fiancé hate our local job centre as both of our work coaches are on the very top floor of the building and the lift only goes up to the next floor, which is no good for people like me n my fiancé who struggle with walking upstairs.
My current work coach actually said to me when I last saw her that she was looking at the additional needs part of my UC claim and noticed that I'd put something about struggling with stairs and she said that when I next go and see her to ask them to let her know that I'm there and she'll come down and see me on the ground floor.
For some reason I'm not sure if the job centre is still using the middle floor of it's building or not for appointments anymore.
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Poppy you help a great amount off people on here and without your advice on benefits and a lot off other things we’d be lost, and as far as I’m aware there isn’t many people on here that have the knowledge you have around benefits.
I really hope you can switch off for the rest off the night as I know how much things like this get to you, easier said than done I get that.
Take care ❤️3 -
I think what others have tried to say is that we can have polar opposite views from a personal experience(s), but they're just that, our personal experience(s). However, even looking at this forum, where people will post either something positive or negative about an assessment for example, they often seem to balance each other out. Then if we look at statistics, these show that although things are not always great, more people are awarded PIP than not, & many are successfully awarded LCWRA for example, so knowing about these, this influences our comments here.
What no-one usually does is judge another; we all respect that members may have physical or mental health problems, & often a combination of both, so we have a great deal of understanding even if we're not living in the others shoes. We also show each other respect. If something is picked up 'wrongly' then members will comment to redress that.
I'll leave the Online Community team to step in if something, often inadvertently is said, but am finding yourself @vikki66 to be the one that's judging others, which is just not your place, &, unlike poppy, you're not respecting another member.
poppy has helped Catherine21 & many others with MH problems, & has never discriminated between those with either MH or physical problems, & never, ever would. If you'd witnessed the patience she shows, but there can be a few moments where you've repeated yourself so often, even trying to find different words, that there may be the occasional 'here we go again moments,' as you don't know what else can possibly be said, as it's all been said before to the best of your ability.
poppy has disabilities too, please show her some respect, as we do each other.
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I apologise my post has started all of this I thank vikki for writing what I was trying to express no malice intended to anyone
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@Catherine21 - we know you never intend anything wrong, but it's good of you to apologise nonetheless. We all make mistakes; we're human, but here these can usually be resolved.
I'd also like to thank you publicly for changing your review on Trustpilot, that meant a lot to me, as I think we all feel that this community is a completely safe place to exchange our views & continue to support each other, as we all have disabilities 😊
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Thank you @vikki66 - but I'm not in the least mixed up. I appreciate that you didn't use the word 'discriminating,' but your post was mainly, if not all, about the difficulties some people with mental health may experience. We all have some understanding about this, even if you don't feel this is apparent. It is however good that you acknowledge some of the difficulties poppy faces in trying to help members here.
A lot of the perceived tension on the forum has not been necessarily what you think; some of this was brought to a head recently (but from past events). We are far more united in helping each other with our various disabilities than you may think.
When I say 'we' it's all of us; those members that are supportive, & those who give advice from their understanding, &, or, previous occupations. Please try to not be so obtuse, as nothing I said was intended to mean a 'royal' we obviously.
IMHO no-one is 'entitled' to an opinion, tho you can say it how you find things.
I was only trying to say that if there are perceived problems, then we have our moderators, the Online Community team to look into these; not you, nor me. They will look at everything; support everyone, which they tirelessly do, & tho I'd say they don't 'judge,' neither should you.
As is known to several members, poppy is indeed a dear friend of mine, whom I've had the pleasure of meeting several times. I didn't want her to say this, as I didn't want it to colour your perception, but she wanted to say so. I would never support her if I disagreed with anything she says on the forum; poppy is exactly the same with myself. This simply doesn't come into the equation.
I don't believe I have been disrespectful to yourself, & have tried to reach out to you in saying let's have a fresh start…..I'm not saying it's my place to decide how everything is on the forum, so please don't misquote me.
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