Social Welfare Training

Welcome to Social Welfare Training. We provide quality welfare benefits training and consultancy based on legal rights.

Our training supports-

poverty reduction
tenancy sustainment
independence for disabled people
getting into work
service efficiencies
staff development

Features of our courses-

legal rights based- grounded in Social Security Law. We explain legal rights and how to enforce them, for example by explaining tactics for participants and how to empower customers.
high quality- regularly updated, produced by experts with over 20 years experience, reviewed by a Senior peer reviewer for the Legal Service Commission, delivered by experts.
well reviewed- 96% of participants tell us our training is excellent or good.
part of ongoing learning- our courses are one part of a package which includes free newsletters, Benefit rate posters and downloads.
cost effective- competitively priced.

'at a glance' guide to benefit changes

Cold Weather Payments Increase—	Make permanent the increase in the £25 weekly award of cold weather payments.
Mortgage Housing Costs Decreased—	From 5/1/2011 claimants start to be affected by the introduction of a 2 year limit on housing costs for JSA claimants from 5/1/2009.
Yearly Uprating of State Retirement Pension —	Uprated by a “triple guarantee” of earnings, prices or 2.5 per cent, whichever is highest, from April 2011.
Yearly Uprating of most benefits —	Rises by consumer price index instead of retail price index from April 2011.
National insurance contribution conditions for JSA(C) and ESA(C)—	A change in the first contribution so that the claimant needs to have actually paid, or being treated as having paid, at least 26 weeks of Class 1 contributions on relevant earnings at the year’s lower earnings limit in one of the two tax years prior to the claim(£97 2010/ 2011).
Permitted Work Higher Limit/ Supported Permitted Work increase—	Earnings increase from £93 to £95 from 1/10/10. Also applies to DLA board members and councillors.
DLA High Mobility on the basis of severe visual impairment—	Claims start to be assessed from 15/10/2010. Entitlement and payment will not start until 11/4/2011.
Work Choice starts—	Replaces Workstep, Work Preparation and the Job Introduction Scheme from 25/10/2010.
Lone Parents and Income Support—	The youngest child must be aged under 7 for new lone parent claims for income support from 7/10/2010.
Housing Costs Interest Rate Large Reduction—	Instead of 6.08%, Bank of England Average rate used to set housing costs interest rate. 3.63% from 1/10/2010.
Work Focused Health Related Assessments—	Suspended for two years from 19 July 2010.
Crisis Loans—	Crisis Loans can be made over the telephone without a signature for the first and second claims from 14/7/2010.
Bereavement Benefits—	Telephone claims allowed for bereavement payment, widowed parent’s allowance, bereavement allowance and Social Fund Funeral Payments from 29/7/2010.
Carers Allowance Earnings Limit—	Increased from £95 to £100 from 12/4/2010.
Young People and Housing Benefit—	Young people in non advanced education aged 20 can claim HB and CTB as long as they enrolled, started or were accepted on the course before they were 19 from 5/4/2010.
Work for your Benefit Pilots Started—	For those having completed the Flexible New Deal without getting employment for 6 months or more. Affects Cambridgeshire and Suffolk, Norfolk, Greater Manchester Central, and Greater Manchester East & West from 22/10/2010.
Tax Credit Overpayments—	Policy change by Inland Revenue regarding overpayments where there is a change in household from couple to lone parent and vice versa. Non recovery of overpaid benefit(discretionary from 18/1/2010).
Flexible New Deal—	Second phase due for roll out completing national coverage from October 2010.
Fraud, First Offence and Loss of Benefit—	4 week loss of benefit for first offence for those guilty of criminal conviction or accept administrative penalty/ caution from 1/4/2010. JSA(IB)/ IS/ IB/ ESA(IR) are paid at a reduced rate.
Sick Notes—	Sick notes replaced by fit for work notes from 6/4/2010.
Retirement Age for Men and Women—	Phased increase in retirement age for men and women from age 65 to age 66 during the period November 2018 – 6/4/2020.
Retirement Age for Women—	Phased increase in retirement age for women from age 60 to age 63 during the period 6/4/2010 – 6/4/2016. Then a phased increase from age 63 to age 65 during the period 6/4/2016 – November 2018. Affects those born after born after 6/4/50.
Pension Credit Starting Age for all claimants—	As a consequence of the increase in the retirement age for women, a phased increase in the starting age of Pension Credit during the period 6/4/2010 – 6/4/2020.
Winter Fuel Payments Starting Age for all claimants—	As a consequence of the increase in the retirement age for women, a phased increase in the starting age of winter fuel payments during the period 6/4/2010 – 6/4/2020.
Home Responsibilities Protection—	Replaced by National Insurance Credits for those getting child benefit for a child under 12 and some carers from 6/4/2010.
Relaxing NI Conditions for State Retirement Pension—	Introduction of single contribution condition of 30 years of paid contributions/ credits to get a full pension. 1 year minimum to qualify for a reduced pension. From 6/4/2010.
Permitted Work Earnings Disregard—	Full earnings disregard of permitted work for housing and council tax benefits from April 2010.
Child Maintenance Disregard—	Full earnings disregard of child maintenance for IS/ JSA(IB)/ ESA(IR) from 12/4/2010.
Working Tax Credits—	A new group who may qualify from April 2011- those working at least 16 hours and are age 65+.
Yearly Increases In Benefits—	State pension to rise by 2.5% and in work benefits by 1.8% from April 2010.
Housing Benefit Local Housing Allowances Reduction —	Reform of local housing allowances to eliminate claimant gain from having a rent that is less than the local housing allowance from April 2011.
Mortgage Interest Rate Frozen—	The standard rate for mortgage interest used to calculate housing costs will remain at 6.08% until at least 30/6/2010.
Crisis Loans—	A need to claim in person for crisis loans for living expenses (usually where 2 have already been made within the last year) from 14/12/2009.
Changes To When/ How State Pension is to be Paid—	For new claims, State Pension to be paid in arrears and with a frequency of the claimant’s choosing from April 2010. Current claims are unaffected.
A2 National Registration Scheme Extension—	Extension of registration scheme to end of 2011(and possibly 2 years after that) for claimants of countries that joined the EU in January 2007 – Romania and Bulgaria.
Cold Weather Payments continue at high rate—	Cold weather payments carry on at £25 per week from November 2009.
Lone Parents And Job Seekers Allowance—	New lone parent income support claims for those with their youngest child aged 10 and over not allowed from October 2009(job seekers allowance instead).
Work Focused Interviews—	Incapacity claimants age 18-24 will have to undertake 3 new work focused interviews if on benefit for more than 1 year from Oct 2009.
Permitted work Increase—	Increase in the permitted work earnings limit from £92 to £93 (employment and support allowance/ income support/ incapacity benefit) from October 2009.
Child Benefit Disregarded—	When calculating housing and council tax benefit, child benefit will be disregarded from October 2009.
Flexible New Deal To Be Introduced—	Flexible New Deal will replace the mandatory New Deal for Young People(18-24) and New Deal for the long Term Unemployed(25+) from 5/10/2009. It will be mandatory after 12 months on JSA.
Capital Disregard To Be Increased—	For pension credit and housing and council tax benefit for pensioners, the lower savings threshold will be increased from £6,000 to £10,000 from November 2009.
Winter Fuel Allowance increase—	Increase in the winter fuel allowance from £200 to £250 (over 60’s), and £300 to £400 (over 80’s) from Sept 2009.
Mortgage Interest Rate Frozen—	The Budget 2009 announced that the standard rate for mortgage interest used to calculate housing costs will remain at 6.08% for at least 6 months to support homeowners during the recession.
Extension Of Return To Work Credit Scheme—	A new self employment strand for return to work credits (disregarded for housing and council tax benefit calculations) from 6/4/2009.
Changes To When And How Benefits Are Paid—	‘payday and periodicity' changes are being phased in for many working-age benefits- bereavement allowance, incapacity benefit, income support, JSA, maternity allowance, severe disablement allowance, widowed mother's allowance; widowed parent's allowance and widow's pension. It will mean payment fortnightly in arrears from 6 April 2009.
A8 National Registration Scheme Extension—	Extension of registration scheme to 30/4/2011 for claimants of countries that joined the EU in May 2004 - Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia and the Czech Republic.
Reduction In Prescription Charges In Scotland—	As part of the Scottish Government’s aim to abolish prescription charges by 2011, charges for pre payment certificates and wigs/ fabric support will be reduced from 1/4/2009.
Exemption From Prescription Charges For Those With Cancer—	All cancer patients are entitled to apply for a 5-year exemption certificate for all their NHS prescriptions from 1/4/2009.
HRT Test Exemption For Zimbabwe Residents—	Exemption from the habitual residence test for those residents of Zimbabwe who are invited to settle in the UK and arrived 28/2/2008- 18/3/2011(from 18/3/2009).
Yearly Increases In Benefits—	Most National Insurance benefits rise by 5% and most income-related benefits by 6.3% from April 2009.
Pre Claim Questionnaire For DLA Claims—	The DWP announced in March 2009 that it will extend nationally a pilot to use a 'DLA960 checklist' to try to filter out claims that have no chance of success.
Welfare Reform Bill (Queen's Speech 2008)—	The Bill proposes to abolish income support. Claimants will instead have to claim either jobseekers allowance if they’re well or employment and support allowance if they’re sick. Dependents additions for maternity allowance and carer’s allowance are also due to be abolished. Council tax benefit will be renamed council tax rebate. Blind people will be entitled to the high rate of the mobility component of DLA from April 2011.
Mortgage Housing Costs Increased—	A reduction in the waiting period for housing costs from 39 weeks to 13 weeks from 5/1/2009.
Mortgage Housing Costs Increased—	An increase in the maximum loan that counts from £100,000 to £200,000 from 5/1/2009.
Mortgage Housing Costs Decreased—	An introduction of a 2 year limit on housing costs for JSA claimants from 5/1/2009.
Lone Parents And Job Seekers Allowance—	New claimants will generally claim JSA instead of income support if their youngest child is aged 12 or above from 24/11/2008. This will reduce to age 10 from October 2009 and age 7 from October 2010. Existing claimants will move to the new system from March 2009(where their youngest child is 14 initially).
Benefit Appeal Tribunal Rules—	Tribunals have an overall duty to act 'fairly and justly' from 3/11/2008.
Employment And Support Allowance Introduced—	Replaced income support and incapacity benefit for new claims from 27/10/2008. Old claims will be 'migrated' over by 2013. There is a whole new set of rules relating to rates of benefit and medical tests.
Pension Credit, Housing And Council Tax Benefits Backdating Reduced—	Backdating for new claims for over 60's reduced from 12 months to 3 months from 6/10/2008.
Housing And Council Tax Benefits Backdating Reduced—	Backdating for new claims for under 60's and some men aged 60-65 reduced from 12 months to 6 months from 6/10/2008.
Housing Benefit Local Housing Allowances—	Local housing allowances introduced for new claims from 7/4/2008.

Tel 0117 9514 337

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Social Welfare Training