Social Security Experience Panels: Seldom Heard research programme: carers and care experienced people - visual summary

Main challenges concerning specific groups

Young parents

Young parents lacked awareness of benefits and had limited knowledge of application processes.

A few reported getting misinformation about benefits from official sources.

Some reported experiencing a lack of support when they reached out for help with benefits. They specifically mentioned this could be from Job Centre Plus staff.

"Like I can't tell you how many times I have had to have an appointment and I have gone in [Job Centre] and they are like we don't know why you are here, then I have gone away and then asked to come in again."

[Young parent]

Care experienced people

Some care experienced people, particularly those leaving care aged 16, reported having little knowledge and experience with the benefit system.

Others noted the difficulties of not being eligible for benefits until they are 18 years old.

Care experienced people found application processes difficult. Personal Independent Payment forms were frequently mentioned as the most difficult to complete.

Some relied on support from third sector organisations to complete forms.

The long waiting time between benefit application and payment created financial difficulties for many.

Some reported negative attitudes from DWP and Job Centre Plus staff. Many felt staff lacked empathy.

"I can't even claim anything when I'm near enough turned 18. I'm expected to pay my own way, but I've no idea how the Government is expecting people to do it...The system is set up in a way that as soon as you turn 16, you're classed as an adult and you can't claim any sort of benefit until you turn 18. So, what are you meant to do for those two years? I don't understand what it is you're meant to do. Are those two years meant to be a survival challenge?"

[Care experienced participant]

Kinship, foster carers and adoptive parents

Many kinship, foster carers and adoptive parents reported being unaware that they were entitled to benefits.

A few mentioned that biological parents were still claiming benefits for the children that were no longer in their care. Often they were unsure who was entitled to the benefit.

Collecting evidence for accessing some benefits acted as a barrier for some, as official documents required for a claim could be lost or still held by biological parents.

Many who cared for disabled children or a child with a long-term health condition experienced many problems with Personal Independent Payment, Disability Living Allowance and Carers Allowance applications. They found application forms complex and that assessments were not able to take chronic illnesses into account.

Some questioned the frequency of reassessments, especially when conditions were unlikely to change.

"…my son has chronic long-term conditions. They're not going to change. So, a two-year renewal process is just too short. I do get for some people, they might be in a short-term situation, but my son has complex needs and that's not going to change… it's the first time that I've claimed something, I found it really distressing and really, really challenging and I was quite shocked actually about how hard it is to get support."

[kinship/foster carers and adoptive parent]

Single parents

Single parents experienced delays in payments that led to financial difficulties. They frequently reported that this stemmed from a lack of information or misinformation from DWP and Job Centre Plus staff.

Many noted that third sector organisations were essential to them because of the lack of information and guidance from official channels.

Single parents experienced pressure because of having to look for work to access benefits, despite their caring responsibilities. This was detrimental to their mental health as they felt under suspicion from DWP and Job Centre Plus staff.

Many single parents who had experienced benefit changes, for example, being transferred from Income Support to Universal Credit, spoke of financial insecurity. They talked about experiencing debt, rent arrears, using foodbanks and getting payday loans.

"I applied for Universal Credit from ESA last year. It was a nightmare. Just getting paid, the time it took. There was no money available until six weeks or so after my claim. The only support I had was the foodbanks…They give you a loan [advance payment], because they know how your rent arrears will clock up in that space of time while you're waiting for the money to get sorted. So they gave me a loan, and that loan had to be paid back every month at so much per month as well as deductions from Universal Credit as well, which left me just as bad as what it was before I started claiming in the first place. So it was a bit of a rigmarole."

[Single parent]