Move from ESA to UC - LATEST

[anonymous-28]

My son has had an invitation to a meeting to speak to a work coach to explain how his disability affects his ability to work and to agree to tell them if his circumstances change.

When we attended the meeting to produce his ID documents I was told that I could speak for him but would not have to have the benefits paid to me. Is that what is called an Appointee?

I'd like to prepare for the meeting - does anyone know what questions are asked?

UPDATE **The appointment was to read out the commitments to UC and to agree to them. The person knew nothing about ESA or New Style ESA and told me to call the ESA helpline if I needed to know more.

I was so confused that I called the ESA helpline and a very knowledgeable chap explained that my son would now be getting both an new style ESA payment and a UC payment. He stated that my son would be better off. I think we will need to wait a few weeks until things settle down to see if that is the case.***

[Bibbysmum]

Hi,I'm not sure how old your son is but I was offered appointeeship by DWP when my daughter turned 16. So you should apply for that as it's quite straight forward and makes life easier if you need to deal with any finances. I once used it at the bank for my daughters bank account for example.

Regarding the questions they will ask

england.shelter.org.uk/hous....

citizensadvice.org.uk/benef...

These links might be useful.

[Halon1]

Hi, you haven’t said who the work coach works for. You apply to DWP to become his appointee. You need to do it because once people turn 18 you loose all rights to be told anything about your son because he’s an adult. This is a major concern when people are in supported living.

If you have a POA it’s better.

My son is in supported living and for anything, including going to a Doctor he’s asked if he wants his parents to be notified. His decision is final.

Benefits are paid to him via his bank account. I pay his big bills, rent, utilities etc from his account. He use his debit card for day to day living.

I get an update on my phone every time he uses his card so this is a great way to see how money is spent and if he’s somewhere that may be of concern.

There’s also lots of scammers on social media who will try to extract money so having control of a bank account allows you to set the card use/expenditure.

This may seem controlling but believe me there is no common sense post 18 in the care world, regardless of an adult’s mental age. Even if your loved one gets lost there’s a set time before alerting Police followed by parents.

So apply today!

[anonymous-28 in reply to Halon1]

Thank you. It is a DWP work coach as part of the migration from ESA to UC. I have POA for my son but when I explained this to the DWP they were not interested. We have a joint bank account fr hs benefits and to pay bills and another joint account that has a weekly spending allowance ( from the other account) that he can use. I have to watch everything carefully as he may accidentally sign up to something. I have avoided having his benefits paid to me and would like to continue doing so if possible. Ideally I would like to continue to do the administration and speak n his behalf.I am nervous about this meeting as in my son's earshot I try to be very positive abut hs learning disability but am aware that I must be frank with the DWP.

[Halon1 in reply to anonymous-28]

Let them do the talking. Just answer and focus on all negatives. If you mention a positive they seem to make that a central point and water down your negatives. Some are good but they’re always looking to save money from easy targets!

[ssslondon in reply to anonymous-28]

As you have PoA you can manage his finances without them being paid to you - that's what the PoA does - your son has given you his authority to manage his financial affairs. I don't know the answer to this but does your son need to be present for the whole meeting? they need to see him but once they've done that and he has given permission for you to speak for him does he even need to be there? If he does, then I think a bit of work with him ahead of the meeting to prepare him for the negativity of it and why it's important might be helpful. Can you use examples from your own life as that might make it more meaningful for him? something that you struggle with but on a day to day basis just get on with it. I suppose it's a bit like going to the doctor because of a health need - you get on with your daily life without complaining (well, maybe not too much!) but in front of the doctor you need to be very clear about how the health need is affecting you.

[anonymous-28]

Thank you for your support. It is a phone call and they have just confirmed that it is noted that I can speak for him , so I do not intend speaking with him in the room. I have also asked them what information they will need. The call is tomorrow so I will post an update and share my experience.