Agenda item

Heather Clark (Economics),Service Development Manager, to present report.

Heather Clarke, Service Development Manager, introduced the report which outlined the approach taken to mitigate the negative impacts arising from the transition onto Universal Credit to claimants living in Wolverhampton.

The Service Development Manager introducedHelen Winfield, Head of Community Financial Support, to comment specifically on the work done by members of the Welfare Rights Team and other organisations to reduce the financial impact on residents when moving onto Universal Credit.

The Head of Community Financial Support outlined the background to the introduction of Universal Credit and the timetable for migrating of claimants to the benefit. The target is that all legacy benefit claimants will have been moved to Universal Credit by December 2023. The Head of Community Financial Support outlined the new changes to making a claim and the detailed conditions that have to be met, for example, the requirement for people to manage their account online to record actions and to update the DWP of any changes in circumstances.

The Head of Community Financial Support commented on the potential financial impact of not following the requirements and the subsequent increased demand of public services as a result of payment being suspended for a period.

The Head of Community Financial Support outlined the challenges facing residents in the transition to Universal Credit and the work being done to ensure that residents have access to the correct information and support. The Head of Community Financial Support commented on the challenge residents likely to face in dealing with the five week wait for the first payment, at a time when it is estimated that 20% of residents are in debt. In addition, a further challenge is the high number of claimants who lack the confidence to set up and manage their account online. A lot of work is being done to support people who are digitally excluded and may need help with personal budgeting. The work will be supported in the future from advisers based at  Wolverhampton CAB.

The Head of Community Financial Support updated the panel on the work being done with Wolverhampton Homes to reduce rental arrears and highlighted the importance of working with tenants. Wolverhampton Homes staff are based in DWP offices to provide financial checks to support Universal Credit claimants.

Wolverhampton Homes is reported as performing better than other housing providers in this area. The current average arrears are £430 for Wolverhampton Homes compared to £780 nationally.

The Head of Community Financial Support advised the panel of future developments in the rollout of Universal Credit from July 2019 to 2023 and the likely financial implications of the changes for Wolverhampton residents, who will have to comply with new rules. The Head of Community Financial Support highlighted the importance of having a correct email address when claimants making a claim and also the difficulties experienced by some people in in dealing with a complex set of rules and regulations.

The Head of Community Financial Support commented that the services is  supporting people who have difficulty in managing their money, some with literacy issues and short-term contracts are the likely to be affected most by the changes. In particular, when failing to notify the DWP of changes in their financial situation. The Head of Community Financial Support commented that people that they are helping can struggle to understand official letters sent to them and the concern was that people did not seek help earlier enough which has led to serious debt problems.

The panel congratulated both presenters on excellent report and detailed briefing on the work being done to mitigate the financial impact on people moving to Universal Credit.

The panel expressed their views that the policy and introduction of Universal Credit had been poorly conceived and led to a lot of financial hardship. Furthermore, the criticisms expressed at the time about the impact on families had been ignored and that local authorities had been forced to provide services to help people in very difficult circumstances. The panel criticised the decision to introduce a delay in a person getting a payment from DWP which had created debt problems as they would to repay the debt from their future payment.

The Head of Community Financial Support commented on the requirement on claimants to manage their universal credit journals and a failure to do so could lead to the payment being stopped. A number of claimants have reported difficulties in completing the document and they have had to be supported in these circumstances.

The panel discussed the impact of the 1-week gap for rent tenants in receipt of Universal Credit and the financial implications for claimants and also Wolverhampton Homes, where their arrears are likely to increase. The panel suggested that letters should be sent to tenants to advise them of the shortfall in their income and to think about how they can avoid getting in arrears.

The panel discussed the work done to educate children and young people about personal budgeting. The panel discussed the importance of giving students good financial education that also includes helping them to understand the requirements of Universal Credit.

The panel suggested the experience of University of Wolverhampton graduates who currently offer legal advice should be used to support claimants with their appeals and suggested this option should be pursued.

The panel discussed the impact of a full rollout of Universal Credit and suggested work should be done to assess this and consider what extra resources are needed to mitigate the impact. Based on current experience there is likely to be an increase in homelessness and demand for support from services, for example local foodbanks and debt advice.

The Service Development Manager advised the panel that there is a plan to produce a booklet with details of location of foodbanks and other sources of help and advice in anticipation of an expected increase in evictions following the rollout of Universal Credit.

The panel welcomed the report and thanked the presenters.

Resolved:

1.    The panel fully support the approach being taken to supporting new Universal Credit claimants and also to residents that will be claiming the benefit during the transition period.

2.    The Service Development Manager to investigate and report back on the suggestion of University of Wolverhampton graduates providing an advocacy resource to help claimants with their appeals.

3.    The Service Development Manager to consider drafting a letter to alert tenants of the impact of the one-week gap for rent tenants in receipt of Universal Credit and to offer advice on how this shortfall could be mitigated.