History of LCW Descriptors and Scores

Bailey2025
Bailey2025 Community Member Posts: 15 Listener
edited October 4 in Universal Credit (UC)

I'm taking the DWP to tribunal over my LCW assessment.

What is the history of the assessment, the descriptors and the scoring scheme for each descriptor? By this I mean, who wrote them, when and why?

What input did the assessors eg Capita HAAS, have in these?

Comments

  • Rachel_Scope
    Rachel_Scope Posts: 5,417 Scope online community team

    This is an interesting question @Bailey2025. I don't know the history myself but hopefully someone else does.

    How are you feeling about the tribunal?

  • OverlyAnxious
    OverlyAnxious Community Member Posts: 6,491 Championing

    The initial WCA was designed for ESA back in 2007 as part of the Welfare Reform Act. It has had a few minor tweaks since then, but that's where the basic framework came from.

    Capita and HAAS had nothing to do with it. It was designed by the DWP themselves.

  • WhatThe
    WhatThe Community Member, Scope Member Posts: 6,456 Championing
    edited October 5
    https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/149183/history-of-lcw-descriptors-and-scores

    The descriptors haven't changed much but the qualifying criteria has. Designed by Iain Duncan Smith, the Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) regulations were signed off by Stephen Timms in March 2008.

    Schedules were changed through amended 2011 ESA regulations then in June, IDS inserted what he called a 'Correction Slip' into the regs which, in reality, corrupted the qualifying criteria; instead of adding to the text, he replaced it. This was cemented into the Welfare Reform Act 2012 and rolled out under an untested Universal Credit scheme on 1st April 2013.

    The first (failed) National Reassessment Programme for incapacity benefit claimants took place between 2011 and 2014 under those corrupted rules and thousands of sick and disabled people died. IDS had claimed that too many people qualified for ESA - despite everything - and that rules would have to change again.

    In 2015, IDS pretended to have spotted "a fundamental flaw in the (ESA) regulations" and the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016 was born, minus the main route into the Support Group due to substantial risk, Reg 29(2)(b) .

    Two assessments for two groups - LCWRA or LCW - have been effectively reduced to one in the current reassessment programme meaning LCW claimants are now considered 'disabled jobseekers' and expected to find work.

  • Bailey2025
    Bailey2025 Community Member Posts: 15 Listener

    Many thanks to all respondents.

    I had a feeling IDS would be involved in some way. He is a nasty piece of work!

    So, @WhatThe , it sounds like the current legislation regarding LCW is based on one nasty man's sneaky underhand moves to make his prejudice the law, and the Tories went along with it, because they are the nasty party. Is there anyway of challenging the legality of the assessment if IDS did what you say he did?

    And @Rachel_Scope I have mixed feelings of nerves (1st time doing this) but also intrigued by the whole process, people involved.

  • Rachel_Scope
    Rachel_Scope Posts: 5,417 Scope online community team

    It's completely understandable that you'd be nervous @Bailey2025. I feel that understanding something better can definitely make it feel less scary so you asked a great question.

    I've been through a PIP tribunal via video call and found it ok. They asked lots of questions but I didn't feel interrogated. It was more that they wanted to understand my condition. Hopefully you have a positive experience too.

  • Bailey2025
    Bailey2025 Community Member Posts: 15 Listener

    @Rachel_Scope Whoever wrote and compiled the bundle for the DWP against me seems to be a bit of a psycho, and could be on the war path. I wonder if he/she will attend personally, or if a minion will be sent to fight the case.

  • Rachel_Scope
    Rachel_Scope Posts: 5,417 Scope online community team

    What did they write that makes you think that?

  • wecandothis
    wecandothis Community Member Posts: 34 Contributor

    @Bailey2025

    One thing I discovered after talking to DPAC is the are Groups like DPAC, Z2K, Inclusion London, and several legal teams are actively pushing cases and reviews. Some challenges focus on discrimination, some on procedural fairness, and some on the wider human rights angle.

  • OverlyAnxious
    OverlyAnxious Community Member Posts: 6,491 Championing

    The bundle is just made up of all the paperwork DWP have on your case. It isn't made by one single person.

    If you're referring to the use of confrontational language in the decision letter such as "you said you can't do X but I think you can" then that's all scripted and mostly cut & paste. It's basically the same for everyone.

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