Fincan Member Forum 27 Oct 2015

AGENDA Welcome and introductions DWP – Carol Daniell Nat Fed – Pippa Bell Break Q&A session AOB

3 Universal Credit Carol Daniell Paul Robson DWP Durham and Tees Valley Jobcentre Plus

4 Welfare Reform Our reforms … Welfare Reform has introduced a simpler, fairer benefits system that helps ensure people are better off in work than on benefits. Prepare the long-term unemployed for the world of work Provide unconditional support for those who need it Ensure people receive a fairer pension and are encouraged to save for retirement Help to ensure people are better off in work than on benefits Support families to stay together

5 Welfare Reform We have already introduced… Personal Independence Payment Targeted support, helping disabled people to lead independent lives. Benefit Cap & Housing Benefit Cap Benefits no longer greater than average weekly wage or average rents Greater conditionality Responsibility to actively seek work Jobseeking support Tailored support through the Work Programme, Universal Jobmatch and substantial investment in Youth Contract

6 Universal Credit is at the heart of these reforms. It is a radical new service that reduces poverty by making work pay. Work is the best route out of poverty; under Universal Credit, people are more likely to be in work. Welfare Reform

7 One simple payment Paid monthly For people in and out of work Use PAYE in real time information (RTI) Universal Credit Income based Jobseekers Allowance Income related Employment and Support Allowance Working Tax Credits Child Tax Credit Income Support Housing Benefit Universal Credit – overview

8 Universal Credit is at the heart of these reforms. It is a radical new service that reduces poverty by making work pay. Work is the best route out of poverty; under Universal Credit, people are more likely to be in work. Welfare Reform

9 Universal Credit - it’s all about work Universal Credit aims to reward work Universal Credit will encourage a new type of relationship with claimants Universal Credit aims to support jobseekers through the Claimant Commitment Universal Credit claimants are expected to use Universal Jobmatch

10 What’s different about Universal Credit? IT ENCOURAGES WORK IT’S LIKE WORK IT’S ABOUT WORK PAID MONTHLY PAID DIRECTLYTO THE CLAIMANT CLAIMANT COMMITMENT IS LIKE A CONTRACT IN AND OUT OF WORK CLAIMANT COMMITMENT REQUIREMENTS FULL TIME WORK SEARCH EARNINGS, NOT HOURS A TAPER SO BETTER OFF IN WORK EASY TRANSITION FROM UNIVERSAL CREDIT TO WORK (AND BACK)

11 Changes for claimants Make claim online Single household payment Paid monthly Housing costs paid direct to tenant Claimant Commitment Cohesive support

12 Universal Credit claimant journey I get information or advice about how to claim Universal Credit. I receive a telephone call inviting me to attend an interview in the jobcentre. I attend my interview at the jobcentre, taking along any paperwork that has been asked for. I sign my Claimant Commitment, which records the activities I’ve agreed to do in return for receiving Universal Credit. I receive my Universal Credit decision letter. It tells me when I will receive my payments, and confirms what I need to do in return for getting Universal Credit. I telephone the helpline if there is a change in my circumstances, including if I start work. My Claimant Commitment is reviewed and may be changed to take into account my new situation. I make my claim online at GOV.UK. If I need help, I can telephone the Universal Credit helpline for assistance. I receive an (or text message if no address) to remind me about my interview at the jobcentre. I undertake my agreed activities. I can get advice on jobseeking, budgeting and going online from my work coach. I regularly visit the jobcentre where my work coach and I discuss the actions we’ve agreed in my Work Plan. If a change in my circumstances means my Universal Credit payments change, I receive a letter confirming the new details.

13 24/09 Date of Claim +7 days 1 st Universal Credit Payment Calculation / notification to claimant: 01/11 1 st Universal Credit Payment Received by Claimant: 07/11 Regular Universal Credit Assessment Period 2nd Universal Credit Payment Calculation: 01/12 2 nd Universal Credit Payment Received by Claimant: 07/12 An example claim 31/10 30/11 7 waiting day Period 01/10 End of waiting days

14 Example: rent of £110 per week

15 Delivering the policy - how Universal Credit is rolling out to eligible claimants April 2013 – Universal Credit began in Ashton-under-Lyne in Greater Manchester for single jobless claimants April 2014 – Universal Credit live starts in the North West of England June 2014 – taking new claims for Universal Credit from couples November 2014 – expansion of Universal Credit to families starts February 2015 – Universal Credit began to be rolled out to all jobcentres and local authorities across Great Britain for single claimants March 2015 – all original 96 live sites started taking claims from families 21 September 2015 – rollout in County Durham, new claims (single non- householders)

16 Offered to anyone claiming Universal Credit Now included as part of the work coach role Online budgeting tools for claimants who are able to self-help. Worked closely with the Money Advice Service to produce a range of products Money advice services offered via the LA using a mix of face to face and telephony support Longer term will be delivered via Universal Support – delivered locally through delivery partnership agreements – more about this later The Universal Credit personal planner on GOV.UK: Personal Budgeting Support - Money Advice

17 A personal planner is available on GOV.UK to help claimants understand and prepare for financial changes arising from the introduction of Universal Credit. Up to 1.3 million potential Universal Credit claimants currently do not use a transactional bank account to manage their benefit payments. On 15 December 2014, nine banks and building societies have made a voluntary commitment to improve basic bank accounts, including removing unpaid item fees on basic bank accounts and making a strong statement about preventing unauthorised overdrafts and overrunning. Better basic bank accounts go live in December 2015 which will also offer users the ability to set up and pay by direct debit and pay bills. DWP has worked with a range of stakeholders to enable Universal Credit to be paid into all types of credit union account from 6 April Personal Budgeting Support available from DCC Welfare Rights Team, referral by Work Coach at first interview. Personal Budgeting Support – financial products

18 Step 1 – Check what changes they need to make They can use the online Personal Planner at Step 2 – Make sure tenants have a suitable account such as a bank, building society or credit union account for their monthly payments Step 3 – Work out their monthly budget by planning ahead and ensuring that bills are paid promptly They can use a simple monthly budget planner, like the one available on the Money Advice Service websiteMoney Advice Service Preparing for Universal Credit - tenants

19 Changes for landlords Direct payment of housing costs to tenants Closer relationship with tenants needed – assessing needs and understanding the support available Role to support tenants during transition – helping them prepare Ensuring rent is paid New relationship with DWP Be prepared

20 We have worked particularly closely with the social rented sector supported by the National Housing Federation We have introduced rent arrears triggers to help protect landlords and tenants alike We have taken steps to improve the take up of budgeting support We have set up new dedicated teams as a result of feedback to manage housing and Alternative Payment Arrangement cases We have conducted business tests in the North West involving landlords in the housing costs verification process We are continually reviewing our strategy to ensure we have it right as Universal Credit expands, working closely with landlords, the National Housing Federation and others, learning as we go and implementing service improvements We are listening, testing and learning…

21 As part of our commitment to continuous improvement, we have introduced some further practical adjustments to strengthen the Universal Credit offer for claimants and landlords. They include: -Dedicated teams to manage housing and Alternative Payment Arrangement cases -Provision of single point of contact details to LAs and social landlords -Better designed and simpler notifications and forms -A new dedicated external address for landlords - enabling them to escalate request for Alternative Payment Arrangements and deductions for arrears in cases where they are considering formal pre-eviction action We are listening, testing and learning…

22 Universal Support – delivered locally Local Delivery Partners - What we are hoping to achieve The purpose of the partnerships approach is joined up “coherent claimant journey” for claimants with complex needs, from benefits dependency to independence and, where appropriate, work

23 Useful links for stakeholders An introduction to Universal Credit video Universal Credit – managing your money video E4oMIiL&index=17 Universal Credit pages on GOV.UK A toolkit for Partners The Claimant Commitment commitment A Personal Planner to help claimants prepare for Universal Credit A pictorial representation explaining Better off in Work w-uc-tops-up-earnings-to-make-work-pay.pdf w-uc-tops-up-earnings-to-make-work-pay.pdf Budgeting help and support Operating Guidance for Personal Budgeting Support & Alternative Payment Arrangements rsonal-budgeting-support-cover-note.pdf rsonal-budgeting-support-guidance.pdf rsonal-budgeting-support-cover-note.pdf rsonal-budgeting-support-guidance.pdf

24 Useful links for stakeholders The Local Support Services Framework local-service-support-framework.pdf local-service-support-framework.pdf The Money Advice Service A Money Advice Service Universal Credit video Making work pay comparison graph explaining how Universal Credit compares to the current system when claimants increase their hours w-uc-helps-to-make-work-pay.pdf A quick guide for employers about Universal Credit and RTI claimants-quick-guide HMRC and RTI Eight Ways Universal Credit can help your business w-uc-can-help-your-business.pdf

October 2015 Pippa Bell, Policy Officer Universal Credit

APA requests Secure (form on gov.uk):gov.uk GSI.GOV.UK GCSX.GOV.UK GSX.GOV.UK CJX.GOV.UK CJSM.NET GSE.GOV.UK PNN.GOV.UK A different form is available for unsecure (link)link

Contacting the service centre Only use after completing the ‘business as usual’ process, and not receiving a satisfactory outcome within the timescales. Might lead to call back from the Housing Team

7 day waiting period Introduced on 3rd August 2015 Applies to whole UC claim incl housing element Wait served after claim has been made Applies where single claimant or at least one member of a couple is in the All Work-Related Requirements Group

Third party deductions Applied for on APA form Rent arrears 10-20% of standard allowance No more than 3 deductions in total No more than 40% deducted in total Priority list Rent arrears 10%

Current issues Data sharingLetters Service centre phone line Payment identifier number Rent changes

Housing association experience

Preparing for UC What do you need to know? Now and at different stages of roll out? Can you record/retrieve information needed from your management system? Sharing data – how, when and with whom? Knowing your tenants Who needs training and in what? Does your organisation have the right skills (digital inclusion, financial inclusion, debt management)? How do you make better use of staff resources? Do you need to review staff structures? Do teams work together? Can people access the right information and share information? Working with Staff

Preparing for UC (2) What is your message? Are your communications consistent internally and with JCP, LA etc? General v targeted messaging? Automated v driven by staff? Communications How can you make sure that UC claim covers correct amount of rent/eligible service charge? How easy is it for tenants to pay rent? How will tenants and systems cope with monthly payments in a weekly rent regime? Do you need to adapt your IT or finance system? Do you need to review your arrears procedure? Rent collection

Preparing for UC (3) Who are your stakeholders? How do you build good relationships? Do you have means to share information and learning? What about support to get people into work? Building relationships with stakeholders

Resources Learning from NW Video: Housing association experiencesHousing association experiences Reports: Universal Credit One Year In, Early learning from the North West pathfindersUniversal Credit One Year InEarly learning from the North West pathfinders Tips: Preparing for Universal CreditPreparing for Universal Credit DWP (Universal Credit and rented housing)Universal Credit and rented housing) Landlord support pack Frequently asked questions Service charge guidance Rent arrears form

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