ESA typical day

bluefox

Hello all,

I was wondering what a typical day means on your ESA medical report. If you deviate from a typical day, does that go against you? I find it really confusing 

poppy123456

What matters is how you're affected the majority of the time.

calcotti

A typical day is clearly not every day. Days differ. Benefits are based on the majority of days.

bluefox

Cheers guys. 

Does the majority of days mean 50% of the year, so 184 days out of 365?

calcotti

sierrafox said: Does the majority of days mean 50% of the year, so 184 days out of 365?

Yes.

bluefox

Or is it based on what happens in a week?

calcotti

Looking at just one week would clearly not cover the majority of time as circumstances can vary from week to week.

You could look at
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1039927/wca-handbook.pdf
See pages 72 and 73.

bluefox

Can I also ask you? Would I have been put into LCWRA for anxiety and suicidal thoughts? 

There’s also a bit of a lie on my report which says I get panic attacks every time I leave the house. Panic and anxiety attacks yes but not panic all the time. 

poppy123456

sierrafox said:

Can I also ask you? Would I have been put into LCWRA for anxiety and suicidal thoughts? 

Yes, substantial risk could apply here. See link. https://wcainfo.net/issues/substantial-risk-lcwra

sierrafox said:

There’s also a bit of a lie on my report which says I get panic attacks every time I leave the house. Panic and anxiety attacks yes but not panic all the time. 

As advised, you don't need to be affected all of the time, it's the majority of the time that counts. The report is just part of your evidence, it's not the decision letter.

bluefox

I never received a decision letter for ESA. Just a letter from Job Centre + to say I was in the support group. 

poppy123456

As you're claiming UC as well then if you have a journal then it may have been uploaded on there. WCA decision letters are very basic anyway and don't usually go into any detail as such.

bluefox

I can’t find it in my online journal. Where would it be? I’m sure I had one from the job centre with no details. 

poppy123456

Decision letters for ESA don't come from the job centre, they come from DWP. If it was on your journal for UC then it would be uploaded as a letter. As advised, they have very little detail, other than to say which group you're placed into so i wouldn't worry too much of where the letter came from.

bluefox

Yeah that’s all I got. From Job Centre Plus DWP. You have been placed into the support group. 

Something about severe disability in carrying out personal actions. But that’s probably because of self care issues…… I think!!

L_Volunteer

I can hear you would like to hear why you have been placed into the support group @sierrafox. Is this right?

If so, I am just wondering if you might be able to ask someone. To give you the understanding you are looking for.

If we can do anything to support you with this, please don't hesitate to let us know. We are all here for you   

bluefox

L_Volunteer said:

I can hear you would like to hear why you have been placed into the support group @sierrafox. Is this right?

If so, I am just wondering if you might be able to ask someone. To give you the understanding you are looking for.

If we can do anything to support you with this, please don't hesitate to let us know. We are all here for you   

Who can tell me?

From my medical report I can see that it mentions suicidal thoughts 

L_Volunteer

In all honesty, this is not my area of expertise @sierrafox. Hopefully, someone with more knowledge and experience in this area can respond to you soon.

In the meantime, I would assume the people who made the decision at the Job Centre! If you feel comfortable talking to them, of course. I could be wrong though.

How are you feeling at the moment? We are here for you if you want our support with this 

poppy123456

L_Volunteer said:

In the meantime, I would assume the people who made the decision at the Job Centre!

That's not correct, Job centre don't make decisions on work capability assessments. They are made by a decision maker from DWP.

sierrafox said:

From my medical report I can see that it mentions suicidal thoughts 

As advised, based on that it's likely to be through suibstantial risk which is what a lot of people with mental health get placed into the Support Group for. Link provided above is here. https://wcainfo.net/issues/substantial-risk-lcw

bluefox

poppy123456 said:

L_Volunteer said:

In the meantime, I would assume the people who made the decision at the Job Centre!

That's not correct, Job centre don't make decisions on work capability assessments. They are made by a decision maker from DWP.

sierrafox said:

From my medical report I can see that it mentions suicidal thoughts 

As advised, based on that it's likely to be through suibstantial risk which is what a lot of people with mental health get placed into the Support Group for. Link provided above is here. https://wcainfo.net/issues/substantial-risk-lcw

I was given the LCWRA, Poppy. Is that the correct award for substantial risk?

poppy123456

sierrafox said:

poppy123456 said:

L_Volunteer said:

In the meantime, I would assume the people who made the decision at the Job Centre!

That's not correct, Job centre don't make decisions on work capability assessments. They are made by a decision maker from DWP.

sierrafox said:

From my medical report I can see that it mentions suicidal thoughts 

As advised, based on that it's likely to be through suibstantial risk which is what a lot of people with mental health get placed into the Support Group for. Link provided above is here. https://wcainfo.net/issues/substantial-risk-lcw

I was given the LCWRA, Poppy. Is that the correct award for substantial risk?

Yes i know. Support Group/LCWRA are the same thing and you can't be placed into a higher group than this. Substantial risk is often used for those with mental health. Especially if none of the descriptors apply.

bluefox

poppy123456 said:

sierrafox said:

poppy123456 said:

L_Volunteer said:

In the meantime, I would assume the people who made the decision at the Job Centre!

That's not correct, Job centre don't make decisions on work capability assessments. They are made by a decision maker from DWP.

sierrafox said:

From my medical report I can see that it mentions suicidal thoughts 

As advised, based on that it's likely to be through suibstantial risk which is what a lot of people with mental health get placed into the Support Group for. Link provided above is here. https://wcainfo.net/issues/substantial-risk-lcw

I was given the LCWRA, Poppy. Is that the correct award for substantial risk?

Yes i know. Support Group/LCWRA are the same thing and you can't be placed into a higher group than this. Substantial risk is often used for those with mental health. Especially if none of the descriptors apply.

Thank you, Poppy. 

I was told my ESA award would run only for 12 months. With a review due in December. 

I’ve also been told that for PIP I should tell them my condition has got worse but I explained the ESA customer advisor that I wouldn’t score more points.