UC and Students

Why might it be of interest?

The picture for disabled young people who want to claim Universal Credit (UC) is not straightforward and especially when the young person remains in education.

In general, young people cannot claim UC while still in education.  There are a number of exceptions – this document talks about the exceptions that might apply to young people because they have a disability.

Note:  if you are claiming benefits yourself you should take advice from a benefits advisor before going ahead with a claim for your young person in their own right.  Their claim will affect your benefits and you may be worse off.

What I would like parents to be aware of is the potential advantage of establishing a limited capability for work status for their young person (who is in receipt of PIP or DLA) soon after they turn 16.  Information in this document on how to go about that.  Students in receipt of PIP/DLA who have a limited capability for work status established while they are still at school can successfully apply for UC when they leave school even if they are continuing their education.

 

The young person is not a student

When your young person completes their education they are no longer a student and they can make a claim for UC.

UC is an income replacement benefit and the starting point for a UC application is that you are fit for work.  This means that to receive the benefit you have to be actively looking for work and able to take a job.

However, a person with a health condition or disability that affects their ability to work can still apply and receive UC if they are deemed to have a Limited Capability for Work (LCW) or Limited Capability for Work Related Activity (LCWRA).  The LCW or LCWRA status is determined by undergoing a Work Capability Assessment (WCA).

If you meet the criteria for LCW or LCWRA your work requirements are reduced (LCW) or turned off entirely (LCWRA).

The WCA is initially paper based but can involve an interview, either face to face or over the phone.  To be eligible for LCW you have to score 15 points.  To be eligible for LCWRA you have to score the same 15 points plus meet the criteria of one further descriptor.  One other potential option, not part of the descriptors, is that there is substantial risk attached to your young person working.  This is not defined and may change in the future.

The UC work coach can reduce or turn off work related requirements during the assessment.

LCW:  you will have some work related requirements such as attending a work preparation course, writing your CV – but you do not have to look for work.  You receive the standard personal allowance when in this group.

LCWRA:  you have no work related requirements at all – no work preparation activities or looking for work.  You receive an additional payment when in this group.

Fit for work:  if you are deemed fit for work you can only receive the benefit if you are actively looking for work and able to take a job.  The UC work coach has some discretion to temporarily reduce work requirements but not in the long term or to remove them entirely.

 

The young person is a student

If your young person is a student and does not already have an established Limited Capability for Work (LCW) or Limited Capability for Work Related Activity (LCWRA) before they make a claim for UC, the starting point for UC is that students cannot claim UC as they are deemed to be receiving education which is incompatible with working.

In UC, receiving education means that you are:

• A ‘qualifying young person’ – someone aged 16 to 19 who is on a course of non-advanced education for at least 12 hours a week, which they started, were accepted on or enrolled on before they turned 19. You can be a qualifying young person until the 31st August after your 19th birthday
• On a course of advanced education which is full-time (education above A-Level)
• On another course of full-time study or training for which you get a loan or a grant for your maintenance
• Not on any of the above types of course, but you are on a course which is incompatible with your work-related requirements

If your young person falls into one of these groups it is going to be very difficult for them to claim UC.

The first point pretty much covers any young person at school as they are likely to be between 16 and 19 and their course is probably more than 12 hours a week even if it is not full time.

The next 2 points cover university students and students studying at a similar level where there is a loan or grant.

The final point is a catch all.  Your young person may not be on an advanced education course or be receiving a grant or loan but the DWP can still deem that their course is incompatible with the likely work-related requirements.  This is likely when the course is full time or pretty much so.

Having said that, this final category, may be the one you have to argue if your young person is 20+ and still in education (assuming that it is non-advanced).  The argument is that the young person would have no work related requirements attached to their claim and therefore their requirements of their course are not incompatible with their UC work requirements as they would have no UC work requirements.

When you make a claim for UC the starting point is that you are fit for work which means that you would have to be looking for work and taking work even during the assessment period.  If you have indicated in your claim that you have a health condition or disability that affects your ability to work you will undergo a Work Capability Assessment (WCA).  The UC work coach has some discretion to reduce or even switch off work related requirements but they don’t have to.

If the work coach deems that you do fall into the final category and is not willing to reduce or turn off work related requirements your claim is likely to be refused and possibly closed down.

At this point you can ask for a Mandatory Reconsideration and your account shouldn’t be closed.  This is important as while the account is open you have the ability to communicate with your work coach through the journal.  But we do know that some accounts just get closed.  You can ask for the account to be opened again or you can start a new application.  Probably best to do both!

 

Exemptions

I am only considering the exemptions that apply because a young person has a disability – there are others but you will need to take advice from a benefits advisor if you feel they might be relevant.

The 2 exemptions that might apply for a disabled young person:

• Any student whose course falls outside the definition of receiving education, eg:
• • part-time students
  • some students in non-advanced education with no student income for maintenance, whose course doesn’t conflict with their work-related requirements
• Students with limited capability for work who also get Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

 

The first exemption is the one we have been talking about – demonstrating that your young person’s course does not conflict with their work related requirements.  For a non-disabled student this might be possible if their course is only for a few hours a week so they can demonstrate that they have plenty of time for a job – but for our young people that really means that they won’t have any work related requirements.

The second exemption is where a disabled student has a disability benefit – for most of our young people that will be PIP now but there may be a few who are still in receipt of DLA.

However, receiving PIP or DLA on their own isn’t enough.  The student must also have an established limited capability for work – before they start their studies.

Getting the LCW or LCWRA status before you start your studies is the tricky point.  It’s usually a Work Capability Assessment (WCA) which is triggered by an application for UC which establishes the limited capability for work (either status).  But if you are receiving education your UC claim will be refused – so no WCA.

The work around is to apply for another benefit while the young person is still at school – and therefore definitely receiving education so unable to apply for UC anyway – which triggers the WCA.  This is basically in preparation for when the young person leaves school and goes onto another educational setting.

The work around

If you have PIP or DLA, when you turn 16 you can apply for new style Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), credits only.  This is a benefit for people who have been working and paying national insurance contributions so it is not going to result in any money for your young person – but it does trigger a Work Capability Assessment!

And the result of the WCA is binding on UC.  So, if the WCA carried out as a result of your application for new style ESA, credits only is that your young person has an LCW or LCWRA that status goes with them for their UC application.  Of course, the WCA could deem that your young person is fit for work which won’t help with a later UC application.

What this means is that when your young person finishes school, even if they are going on to further studies, they can make a claim for UC and it will be accepted.

More information from Contact here:  https://contact.org.uk/help-for-families/information-advice-services/benefits-financial-help/universal-credit/universal-credit-for-young-people/

 

Why bother?   Why not just apply in the school holidays after they finish school?

Simply because the UC application and the WCA will take too long and the young person will almost certainly have started their course before the WCA is completed and therefore they won’t have an established limited capability for work BEFORE they start their studies.

 

Students 20+ on non-advanced education:  you might be able to argue that they are not receiving education as, because of their disability, they would have no (or minimal) work related requirements.  You might not be successful and may have to go for a Mandatory Reconsideration.

But we do know of young people who have been successful in their applications so it is worth giving it a go.  It’s only anecdotal but sometimes courses that are considered life skills are often not considered a conflict.  I think it might be harder to make the claim for more academic courses.

 

University students:  no chance of receiving UC unless you already have an established limited capability for work.  But do remember that your maintenance loan will be taken into account as income and may well wipe out most of any UC you might receive.  You can’t decide not to take the loan and UC assumes you have the full amount of the loan – even if you don’t because your parents are supposed to make up the amount.  If part of your loan is the special assistance grant then that part is not considered income.  You may be able to get UC in the long holidays so it may be worth applying – just be aware that during term time you’re not likely to receive much money, if any at all, from UC.

 

Fit notes:  you will have to submit fit notes from your doctor during the WCA, whether that’s part of the UC application or the new style ESA, credits only application.

 

If your 20+ young person is still in education and has been turned down for UC because they don’t have an established limited capability for work:  you can go for a mandatory reconsideration but you might also want to make an application for new style ESA, credits only to trigger the WCA that way.

If that results in limited capability for work status you could then use that to continue or make another UC claim arguing that they don’t fall into the definition of receiving education because with no work requirements there is no conflict.  This advice from a recent training course I did with a benefits ad