Work Capability Assessment (WCA) – Year 2, Harrington Review, call for evidence - closes 16th September 2011
Work Capability Assessment – Year 2 call for evidence
As part of his second independent review of the Work Capability Assessment Professor Harrington has launched a call for evidence. He is particularly interested in views and evidence about:
- the implementation of his Year 1 recommendations and the impact they are having
- what, if any, further work is required in future reviews, and
- the face-to-face assessment.
Who this call for evidence is aimed at
This call for evidence is aimed at organisations and individuals who have information that is relevant to how the Work Capability Assessment is operating and what further changes, if any, are needed to improve the process.
We have sent this call for evidence document to a large number of people and organisations who have already been involved in this work or who have expressed an interest. Please do share this document with, or tell us about, anyone you think will want to be involved in this call for evidence.
The call for evidence
While general evidence about the WCA is not excluded we would ask that, where possible, you focus your evidence on addressing the specific questions in the call for evidence. The questions are introduced in Part 2 of the main document. They are also listed in this separate response document.
- Response document – Work Capability Assessment – Year 2 call for evidence (102KB) Rich Text Format
How to respond to this call for evidence
Start date 14 July 2011
End date 16 September 2011
You can respond using the response document or respond in your own way.
Please send your responses or queries by email or post to:
wca.evidence@dwp.gsi.gov.uk
WCA Independent Review Team
Floor 2, Section B
Caxton House
Tothill Street
London
SW1H 9NA
Please ensure your response reaches us by 16 September 2011.
When responding, please state whether you are doing so as an individual or representing the views of an organisation. If you are responding on behalf of an organisation, please make it clear who the organisation represents and, where applicable, how the views of members were assembled. We will acknowledge your response.
Alternative formats
This document can be provided in a range of formats, including large print, Braille, audio, BSL video/DVD, and Easy Read on request from the WCA Independent Review Team at the address above.
These alternative formats may take some time to prepare, so please let us know as soon as possible if they are required.
More information
There is more information about the Work Capability Assessment independent review on our policy pages.
PDF version The Work Capability Assessment: the DWP's 'Call for Evidence'
PDF version available for download (PDF help)
Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and the Work Capability Assessment (WCA)
ESA was introduced in 2008 as a replacement for Incapacity Benefit (IB). It is designed for people who have limited capability for work (who are placed in the Work Related Activity Group), and people who have limited capability for work related activity (who are placed in the Support Group). The WCA is contracted out to Atos Healthcare; reports from Atos are used by JCP Decision Makers to decide whether a claimant should be assigned to the Work Related Activity Group, the Support Group or is fit for work.
Last year the government began moving existing claimants from IB to ESA, which meant that they were required to take the WCA - 39 per cent of those tested failed and thus lost entitlement to all benefits for incapacity. The WCA has been increasingly criticised for excluding many people who face severe disability-related obstacles to employment.
The Harrington Review
In 2010, the government asked Prof Malcolm Harrington to review the operation of the WCA. He found that the WCA should be used to assess ESA eligibility, but that it is not working as well as it should and made a number of recommendations to improve the fairness and effectiveness of the system including:
Improving the capability and confidence of Jobcentre Plus Decision Makers.
Telephoning claimants to make sure they understand what is happening.
Improving the Atos assessment.
The report also set out a programme of work for a second review, in 2011, which is also being led by Professor Harrington. This review is looking at:
The descriptors for mental, cognitive and intellectual conditions and other fluctuating conditions.
Whether the assessment should incorporate more 'real world' or work-focused elements.
What happens to people placed in the three Support and Work Related Activity groups and those found Fit for Work.
The DWP has published a 'call for evidence' .Prof Harrington will make recommendations to the Secretary of State, which will be laid before Parliament before the end of 2011. This document poses 9 questions:
Have you noticed changes to the WCA process as a result of the Year 1 recommendations? If so, what are these changes?
Are there further areas of work that you think should be added to the programme of work for Year 3? If so, what should these consider?
At what stage should we stop making changes to the system and let the changes already being made bed in to ensure they are having the desired impact?
Does the Year 1 recommendation go far enough in placing the right emphasis on the face-to-face assessment?
Do you have any robust evidence about the face-to-face assessment processes and outcomes which will help us make recommendations for future improvements?
Are you aware of any concerns about the face-to-face assessment, and if so where have these been focused?
If you have heard specific concerns about the IT supporting the assessment (i.e the Logic Integrated Medical Assessment or LiMA system), do you have any robust evidence about how this adversely affects the assessment or its outcome?
Is there a need to present and explain the face-to-face assessment in a different way, making it very clear to claimants what it will involve and how a functional assessment relates to work capability?
What one thing would you change about the WCA to make it operate more fairly and effectively?
The TUC will submit evidence in response to this consultation - if you have comments or evidence you think we will find useful, please send them to:
Richard Exell, Economic and Social Affairs Department, rexell@tuc.org.uk by 5.00 on 8 September.
Briefing document (700 words) issued 19 Jul 2011
Picked up via @LassaVoice on twitter (http://www.lasa.org.uk/)
"Mind survey data on new WCA http://www.rightsnet.org.uk/forums/viewthread/1898/ @MindCharity #welfare reform for Harrington review http://www.dwp.gov.uk/consultations/2011/wca-call-for-evidence.shtml #dwp"
We have published a report, in partnership with 5 other charities, calling for vital changes to make benefits assessments fairer for people with fluctuating conditions.
If people are to get the right support it's essential that the assessment process is greatly improved.
Steve Ford, Chief Executive
Large numbers of people with long-term conditions like Parkinson's are wrongly being found fit for work after undergoing a Work Capability Assessment (WCA). We reported this in our September 2010 response to the Harrington review (PDF, 87KB).
The WCA is the test used to assess eligibility for Employment and Support Allowance.
Making it work for fluctuating conditions
The new report - Making it work for fluctuating conditions (PDF, 608KB) - puts forward 12 recommendations for changing the assessment process.
This includes improving the test's wording, as well as making sure that it properly recognises the barriers facing people with fluctuating conditions who have been told they are fit to work.
We are also calling for more guidance and training for assessors to improve medical knowledge and understanding.
The report is part of Professor Malcolm Harrington's independent review of the WCA, to be submitted to the Government later this year.
Professor Harrington said:
This represents a real step forward in developing more relevant and effective questions in getting to a better, fairer Work Capability Assessment.
Professor Malcolm Harrington
"The group have done a terrific job. I think this represents a real step forward in developing more relevant and effective questions in getting to a better, fairer WCA.
"I look forward to receiving final the final recommendations from the charities and independent scrutiny group later this year."
Once the report has been reviewed by a panel of independent experts we will have further opportunity to influence proposals before they are sent to the Government via Professor Harrington.
As part of his second independent review of the Work Capability Assessment Professor Harrington launched a call for evidence on:
- the implementation of his Year 1 recommendations and the impact they are having
- what, if any, further work is required in future reviews, and the face-to-face assessment.
The closing date for responses was 16 September 2011.
DBC response to the year two review
The DBC response is based on the results of a survey collecting the views of welfare advisers and caseworkers. You can view the response and the survey results below.
More information
- dbc response to harrington 2nd review
Crisis criticises Work Capability Assessments
Crisis has warned that the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) system is still failing vulnerable people despite changes proposed in an independent review a year ago.
The warning comes as the call for evidence for the second of five annual reviews of the system by Professor Harrington of the University of Birmingham, on behalf of DWP, closed last week. Crisis claims there has been little improvement and many vulnerable people are still being declared fit to work despite suffering from mental health conditions.
The WCA was introduced in 2008 to replace the incapacity benefit system and people need to ‘earn' 15 points to be eligible for the Employment and Support Allowance benefit.
One of Crisis' clients said: "I think everything went well because I was being seen by a professional, but I only got six points because of my disabled hand, there was nothing about my depression."
Crisis also points at the costs of the appeal process which are spiralling out of control.
Crisis, in their official response, is calling for more rigorous monitoring on staff that carry out the tests and declare people fit to work. The charity is also calling for them to receive greater training in understanding and assessing mental illnesses and fluctuating conditions such as Multiple Sclerosis. There is also a need for improved communication with claimants as they go through the WCA process.
Read Crisis' full response here
When the full document containing all submissions is available we will publish the information so that people can read the full document and all submissions, including our own.
Just to briefly mention the area's we covered
- HIV & Stigma - Why is asking "How you got HIV?" is at all relevant and to ask the review to instruct on banning such questions.
- Accuracy - You told us how inaccurate, inconsistent and fallacious the Medical Reports (ESA85's) were following your Work Capability Assessment (WCA) we have covered this with example.
- Supplementary evidence ignored - We are concerned that the additional information claimants may provided is ignored. For those with fluctuating and complex health needs this evidence and any supporting medical evidence, usually from specialists, is ignored. We argue that taking more care here would reduce Appeals as many would simply appeal on the basis that supporting medical evidence and the ATOS opinion are in conflict. We also argued that for people living with HIV/AIDS the ESA & WCA process, for a consistent approach across the DWP, follow the DLA route with regard to seeking a consultants medical report in the first instance for those with HIV/AIDS. The DWP already recognises that many GP's will not have sufficient information or any information on this patient cohort.
- Slow or No progress on Year One recommendations - We are concerned that the recommendations from Year One are being actively resisted operationally given so few have yet to see full implementation.
- Recording of WCA - Although a First Year recommendation and subject to a completed pilot. We advocated that the full implementation of this would overcome many of the issues aforementioned. It would also all confidence that people living with HIV/AIDS were not subject to questioning that may stigmatise them and lead to prejudicial treatment.
We were also concerned at the differences, in process, between new claims and migration from Incapacity benefit. Also more detail and transparent plans, with timelines, were required for operational delivery of recommendations accepted. Finally we were concerned at the "ping-pong" that exists between ATOS healthcare and the Jobcentre Plus. Any complaint should be handled through one route, via the Jobcentre Plus. That it is for them to manage the response from internal or external agents accordingly.
http://www.disabilityalliance.org/dbcharrington.htm?utm_source=twitterfe...