Last week I visited Bexhill, East Sussex to see for myself how full service Universal Credit works.
Over recent months there have been lots of claims and counterclaims in the media about the new system which sees 6 benefits combined into one monthly payment, with a single assessment system. Instead of dealing with HMRC, the DWP and Torbay Council to claim Tax Credits, Housing Benefits and ESA (plus 3 other benefits) residents will instead only deal with the DWP. The system is slowly being rolled out across the country with Torbay due to see it introduced in September.
I decided to visit Bexhill Job Centre as Universal Credit Full Service (UC) has been in place since July 2017. As a seaside town with seasonal work and a higher than average number of people working in the care industry it has similarities to our bay, despite its geographical distance. Having expressed a wish to see the system in action for myself the local MP, Huw Merriman, organised my visit.
During the visit I was able to talk with one of the work coaches who has been using the system since July, have a demonstration of it and observe (With the customer’s permission) a real interview session. I also discussed with the team at Bexhill how those unable to use a computer to access the online application system are catered for, along with the position of landlords being able to request direct payments if there are problems with collecting rent from those in receipt of UC.
The visit was re-assuring and I also discussed with Huw what impact he had seen in terms of his casework from UC being introduced. There will be a lot of work to be done before UC comes to the bay in September, but today’s visit provided a lot of reassurance.
On Monday I also asked Ministers for clarity about how they promote the ability to get an advance payment to avoid going into debt. You can listen to my question and the answer by clicking here.