Hi, my name is 100clive! pip result

Hi @100clive,

Sorry you've not been able to get through to the helpline this week. 

There is Birmingham Law Centre and they can help with Upper Tribunal appeals. Legal Aid might be available for this type of appeal but BLC will confirm this. See their information about Upper Tribunal appeals.

I hope that you can understand that this is a very complex area of law and requires legally qualified advice. Welfare Benefits advice was completely removed from legal aid back in 2013 so it's really hard getting free legal advice. The places which offer it, are usually inundated. This is completely out of our control and advice services up and down the country are under enormous pressure, I can't stress this enough. What's great about this community is how we all come together and try to help. We don't always have the answers but the support and a kind word is always on offer. I understand how frustrated you are about your situation and we feel for you and will try to help you as best we can.

If you're not able to get help from Birmingham Law Centre or anywhere else, I would be willing to go through your letter with you and see if I can help explain why the tribunal made their decision. As CR has stated, the tribunal looks at how you fulfil the criteria and ensures the correct laws have been applied. They are independent so will have studied all of the evidence very carefully before reaching their decision. That's not to say you don't have a case but without seeing what the letter says and how they reached their decision, it's impossible to advise.

You can contact me directly at the helpline by emailing helpline@scope.org.uk, mark your email for me and it will be forwarded to me. I can arrange to call you and we can talk it through.

Best wishes
Debbie

@100clive

You could make an appointment to see your MP at their surgery and ask them to explain the letter's contents to you.