Work Capability Changes Indicate Positive Move Says, Brain Injury Charity,
Atos, the company which administered the controversial Work Capability Assessments has withdrawn from its contract with the government and a new firm will be appointed early next year.
The divisive scheme, which determines levels of Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), was introduced in 2008 with Atos carrying out face-to-face assessments with claimants. Since its inception, there have been a number of methods introduced to try and improve the process which follows guidelines set down by the DWP (Department of Working Pensions). Despite this, it has still remained a largely unpopular procedure.
What Headway Says
Headway UK is one of the country’s leading brain injury charities and it believes that people who have survived a brain injury are not being fully considered in the process. Peter McCabe is the CEO of Headway and he has welcomed the news about the company withdrawing. He said: “The firm’s record of failure in understanding brain injury and the challenges it presents was clear, with Headway service users repeatedly turning to the charity for help with appealing unfair decisions.”
Despite the pleasing news, Mr. McCabe still said that the charity was reticent about the future of the scheme and that many people who have had a brain injury are still reporting that they have not had a positive experience with the organisation and are still making appeals.
He said that the government needs to provide the newly appointed organisation with criteria for the assessors, adding that the problem with the system may not necessarily be the provider of the administration. He added that the government should introduce performance targets for the DWP and that feedback should be included in the process.
Claiming Compensation For Brain Injury
If you have experienced a brain injury or a member of your family has, then you could be able to make a personal injury claim if the reason for your injury was through no fault of your own. For more information and advice on making claim please call us on 0333 358 3034 or complete an online claim form.
Published 13th February 2015.