The Universal Credit Bill becomes law. Here are the changes to disability benefits you need to know

I completely agree.

I have been on this site and many others fighting the cause for the disabled, even when the other lot were in.

You are right to say that the Disability Budget and "the Budget to get people back into work" are TOTALLY DIFFERENT.

This was one of the points I raised in writing the White Paper. If you read it carefully the budget was allocated to assist Disabled (Neurodiversant, as the word Disabled "cannot and should not be used in the assessment process.) (I will clarify that later) people back into work, assist in adaptions at home and at work, if already working, allowing courses and meetings with Professionals to teach, and help understand their conditions, what can be expected in the future, so far as treatment, administering of Drugs that cannot be bought over the counter, or operation consultation as to what can be achieved and what might be achieved, and whether it is a quick fix, to aleviate the problems now b ut in the long term what might be the results.

I have to talk plainly since not all disabilities are the same. Some can be fixed and some sadly cannot. But to call anyone that claims a benefit on the sick, and is long term on the DOLE disabled? Is incorrect.

That budget is set forn those in Parliament who have not looked at long term sick benefits and the reason they are on long term sick. Reason 1. Extended long term sick without assistance from anyone to talk to as to what the claimants goals are, causes stress, Mental Issues that surround going back to work, after a long period of illness, and the fact that they believe that everyone one thinks they are screwing the system, can be the first hurdle to climb.

In the last year I have reinstated 5 people in Cardiff back into work, because I talk to the Employers, and Occupational Health, AND THE CLAIMANT FIRST, TO UNDERSTAND the barriers, as its not just money its the UNSEEN ILLNESSES that cause other ablebodied, working age people to tar everyone with the same brush.

Yes, with some adaptions they can go back, and this is what the government is doing now. Great, but how many bother to go back and revisit the claimant after a week, or a month to see that everything that was agreed is being adhered to, BY BOTH SIDES. I can tell you, none. In my cases I visit the works prior to the Claimant speaking to Occ Health, and agree a smooth transition of say an hour one day a week, thenif both agree increase it to two or three times a week, then to the agreed hours, which must also take into account, "the job" where if targets are set before going on the sick, they are reviewed, even if it means sitting with someone who is now doing their job and not actually using a computer but understanding that changes may have been made to the system that needed "tweaking"

The Disability budget is exactly that. If you are registered as "disabled" then why do we need to fight to get what we are entitled to? How can someone alter the Assessment process unless the changes to the assessment process have been agreed?

The assessment Charter and Laws are set in PDF Documents that cannot be altered. You can amend the document, but both parties have to sign that they agree to the changes made, date the agreed changes, and show on a top copy the NEW AMENDMENT NUMBER. This all comes under Bond Solon Part 35 Section 2 paragraphs 1.00 to 1.15. Where any one of the 15 bullet points not met the "report cannot be used" even as an opinion unless acredited supporting evidence is used.

So statements that say, I did not see any of this at the Face to Face interview, and therefore……. do not hold water. This being one of many statementys still being used by the ASSESSORS. The White Paper is there for a reason, and to close discussion before parts have already been agreed is also against the LAW. This comes under CANDOUR. Where no third party company, may alter or amend a Charter or Law without the Main Holders Concent.

The main holder of the assessment contract are the DWP the very people altering the assessment process, yet why have certain parts already been agreed and implemented? Its because before and during the Pandemic certain rights were given to the assessment providers HIRED BY THE DWP TO ASSESS CLAIMANTS, which has not been resinded.

We are not in a Pandemic, so why hasn't the Medical Board looked at any assessments or the changes to the Charters and Laws we have already agreed and allowed the NHS who already assess us for treatment to take back the assessment process and the money paid for the assessment process put back where it belongs, INTO THE NHS as the NHS was supposed to be self funding, IN ALL DEPARTMENTS NOT JUST A & E.

The last time I looked a simple assessment was £850. Yes, £850 for an assessmnet that the NHS already do. You don't see these assessment providers in A & E? Why not? Because they are there not to give a medical assessment but they can overwrite an assessment report given by a Doctor or a Surgeon to name some, or reduce benefits and in somecases remove them all together?

If you are going to use assessment providers hired by the DWP to assess us for access to benefits, then supply all the other documentation that they are supposed to supply withb every report. This is where the original £850 was supposed to be used. I will not pay £850 for an opinion, since I already am an appointee I will under cut them and only charge you (or the DWP) £650/assessment as they also do not represent the DWP in Court, neither do the unions. I know because I have asked for the Skills matrix of many union reps, and they don't have anywhere near the expertise I have.

10 cases last year (to get benefits reinstated), 5 placements back into a working enviornment. How many has this labour party placed back into work without some sort of cut to benefits insteady of assistance we require and a fight.

I am not saying that I am the best thing since sliced bread, but some common sence should prevale somewhere.

I joined Scope Senedd last year and was thankful for that by members here. My "fight" should be not to get an increase in the cost of living or a change to Pension Rights as other people get paid big bucks for that I DON'T.

(You can always call me Sir? As I also lecture.)

Thank you for sharing your extensive experience with disability advocacy and return to work support. Your practical approach to graduated returns to employment, with regular check-ins and adjustments, shows how important proper support and follow-up are for successful outcomes.

However, I would like to clarify a few points about the assessment framework. While Bond Solon provides valuable training materials, the legal requirements for assessments and expert evidence are governed by the Civil Procedure Rules, Part 35, and its Practice Direction. The specific paragraph numbering you mentioned, 1.00 to 1.15, reflects a training guide, not statutory law.

This distinction matters because while Bond Solon's guidance helps practitioners meet legal standards, assessments can't be invalidated solely for not following their format, what matters legally is whether the assessment meets the core requirements set out in CPR Part 35 for expert evidence to be reliable, objective, and within the expert's area of expertise.

Your points about the procedural changes introduced during the pandemic, and the role of contracted assessors compared with NHS professionals, raise important questions about oversight and value for money. The £850 assessment cost you referenced is particularly concerning if these assessments duplicate services already provided within the NHS.

The fact that you have personally reinstated five people into work in Cardiff, with follow-up, employer mediation, and phased transitions, while the wider system fails to do so, speaks volumes. Treating people as humans rather than metrics is not just practical, it is transformative. And your ten overturned benefit decisions? That is ten lives disrupted by procedural injustice, and ten times you refused to let the system win. Well done!

Thank you Catherine I will look at that later.