Reach response
Updated 23 March 2020
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1. Background Information
Reach is a group advocacy project, supporting adults with learning disabilities (Reach members).
At one of our meetings on March 3rd 2020, Reach members discussed the Social Security Advisory Committee鈥檚 public consultation on how the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Reach Advocacy Facilitators had created Easy Read posters, based on the main themes of the consultation, to help facilitate a group discussion.
11 adults with learning disabilities (7 men, 4 women, all aged between 40 and 75) attended the meeting. Two attendees are also on the Autistic spectrum. Four have mobility impairments and one has a visual impairment.
2. What People Told Us
鈥淭丑别y [the DWP] don鈥檛 listen. What鈥檚 the point? They never have listened. They just want put people to work, even if they can鈥檛 work.鈥�
鈥淲hy do they drag people in for assessments when they鈥檝e already got the information they need? Why make them come in for an assessment when they鈥檝e got your forms, they鈥檝e got information from your doctors?鈥�
鈥淕et them [the DWP] out here, get their staff going out and meeting people, meeting advocacy groups like this, get them listen to real people.鈥�
鈥淭丑别y should give people a chance to try out a work placement instead of sending them straight into work.鈥�
鈥淚 went for my Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment. Was good to meet somebody and talk face-to-face. I had somebody with me, somebody who works for the city council and helps me sort out my money. He was there if I needed him, if I didn鈥檛 understand something or I got stuck, he could help me out. I was anxious and nervous before I went in but having somebody to support me made me feel better.鈥�
鈥淭丑别y [the DWP] should tell you more, give you more information and be clear about what you should be getting. Getting to talk face-to-face is always best.鈥�
鈥淭丑别y could do home visits, like in people鈥檚 houses, or residential homes, go out to see people who can鈥檛 get out as easy.鈥�
鈥淲hy don鈥檛 they have people with disabilities on their interview panels when they鈥檙e interviewing for new staff? Then they can see how people talk to people with disabilities. See how they treat 鈥榚m.鈥�
鈥淭丑别 DWP are just there to take money off people.鈥�
鈥淲hen you get form after form it can take hours to fill them in if you can鈥檛 understand them.鈥�
鈥淲hen you鈥檙e filling in forms, you can get help to do it, but you have to pay. It cost me 拢30 and that鈥檚 a lot of money to some people. It should be free if you鈥檝e got a learning disability.鈥�
鈥淭丑别 DWP need understand that people with disabilities need forms in a different format. They might need Easy Read, or bigger writing because usually the writing鈥檚 too small. They might need Braille or audio.鈥�
鈥淲orking with Reach/Asist is like working with lots of other organisations. They support us to speak up to the NHS, the city council, lots of others. They write down the information, the things we say and send it on. Could do that with the DWP. DWP should work with advocacy groups.鈥�
鈥淭丑别y need talk to you. Talk to people. Talk to groups.鈥�
3. Additional Feedback
During the discussion, Reach members suggested we share an existing Reach report from 2014 called 鈥楾hinking About Consultation and Engagement鈥�. Reach members said this would have relevant information in it and would be useful for the DWP to see how 鈥楨asy Read鈥� information can be written so it is accessible for people with learning disabilities.