From: Ruby Cox [Ruby.Cox@towerhamlets.gov.uk] Sent: 13 January 2011 10:30 To: DWP Consultation DLAReform Subject: Tower Hamlets LA Follow Up Flag: Follow up Flag Status: Completed Dear DLA reform team Thankyou for bringing to our attention the above mentioned document. Clearly the majority of questions are best answered by disabled persons themselves, however as a local authority supplying Mobility Support Services (freedom passes, blue badges and taxicards) you have specifically asked for our response to questions 18 and 19. which are given below. 18. How important or useful has DLA been at getting disabled people access to other services or entitlements? Are there things we can do to improve these passporting arrangements? Firstly I would say that we welcome the proposal to make periodic checks on continued eligibility for Disability Living Allowance or the Personal Independence Payment that will replace it. It is most frustrating to receive reports from members of the public who see an able bodied person using a blue badge and not be able to act as the person is automatically entitled to that badge under current legislation which "passports" those in receipt of High Rate Disability Living Allowance Mobility Component to receive a Blue Badge, Freedom Pass and Taxicard as well. It is also more than a little worrying if, as you say in the document, two-thirds of people currently in recipt of Disability Living Allowance have an indefinite award, meaning their continuing eligibility to receive this benefit may never be checked. I would say therefore that periodic checks on eligibility are the key to successful "passporting" arrangements since at the moment they work almost too well, to the point of even encouraging fraud since the possession of a blue badge entitles the holder to such a wide range of other benefits. 19. What would be the implications for disabled people and service providers if it was not possible for Personal Independence Payment to be used as a passport to other benefits and services? As stated above, it is my belief that the "passporting" scheme is entirely appropriate, but the way it has been applied has led to a great deal of unfairness within the current system. The key to a successful scheme has to be ensuring that information about each individual is correct, comprehensive and up to date. It would be altogether unfeasible for separate assessments to be made for each service or benefit applied for, therefore the passporting system has to make sense. For severely disabled people, getting to a mobility assessment as well as actually going through the assessment process has to be extremely stressful and difficult. It is therefore sensible to accept that once the assessment process has demonstrated that the required level of disability exists, one assessment serves to prove eligibility to other services available to those with the most severe disabilities (current legislation states that the requirement for a blue badge is that the person must be virtually unable to walk). Similarly, the cost of separate assessments for each service applied for would be astronomical, especially since the DfT is currently recommending a shift away from GP's letters and other unreliable proofs towards independent assessments by OTs to demonstrate eligibility for blue badges. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: BBES [mailto:BBES@dft.gsi.gov.uk] Sent: 08 December 2010 14:26 To: undisclosed-recipients Subject: Disability Living Allowance Reform Consultation Document Dear All, Disability Living Allowance Reform Consultation Document I am writing to draw your attention to the above mentioned consultation document which was published on 6th December by the Department for Works and Pensions (DWP). The document is on the DWP website at www.dwp.gov.uk/dla-reform. An associated press release can be found at http://www.dwp.gov.uk/newsroom/press-releases/2010/dec-2010/dwp171-10-061210.shtml This consultation document is seeking views on the Government‘s proposals to reform Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and introduce a new objective assessment. I would particularly like to draw your attention to the section entitled ‘A passport to other support’ (on page 25) and Questions 18 and 19, which cover the current link between DLA and other services and support, such as the Blue Badge scheme. Responses should be directed to the DWP at: DLA Reform Team, 1st Floor Caxton House, Tothill Street, London, SW1H 9NA or emailed to consultation.dlareform@dwp.gsi.gov.uk .The closing date for comments is 14 February 2011. Kind regards, Katherine Katherine Lancaster | Blue Badge Team | Travel Concessions Division | Department for Transport | Zone 3/14 Great Minster House -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Think before you print. To save energy and paper please only print this message if you really need to. This email and any files transmitted with it are private and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to which they are addressed. If you are not the intended recipient the E-mail and any files have been transmitted to you in error and any copying, distribution or other use of the information contained in them is strictly prohibited. Nothing in this E-mail message amounts to a contractual or other legal commitment on the part of the Government unless confirmed by a communication signed on behalf of the Secretary of State. The Department's computer systems may be monitored and communications carried on them recorded, to secure the effective operation of the system and for other lawful purposes. Correspondents should note that all communications from DfT may be automatically logged, monitored and/or recorded for lawful purposes. The original of this email was scanned for viruses by the Government Secure Intranet virus scanning service supplied by Cable&Wireless Worldwide in partnership with MessageLabs. (CCTM Certificate Number 2009/09/0052.) On leaving the GSi this email was certified virus free. Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or recorded for legal purposes. ********************************************************************************* Working Together for a Better Tower Hamlets Web site : http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk London Borough of Tower Hamlets E-Mail Disclaimer. This communication and any attachments are intended for the addressee only and may be confidential. It may contain privileged and confidential information and if you are not the intended recipient, you must not copy, distribute or take any action in reliance on it. If you have received this E-Mail in error please notify us as soon as possible and delete this E-Mail and any attachments. This message has been checked for viruses, however we cannot guarantee that this message or any attachment is virus free or has not been intercepted or amended. The information contained in this E-Mail may be subject to public disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Unless the information is legally exempt from disclosure, the Confidentiality of this E-Mail and your reply cannot be guaranteed. If your request relates to a Freedom of Information enquiry, please resend this to foi@towerhamlets.gov.uk ************************************************************************************ Please consider your environmental responsibility: Before printing this e-mail or any other document , ask yourself whether you need a hard copy -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- IMPORTANT: The contents of this email and any attachments are confidential. They are intended for the named recipient(s) only. If you have received this email in error, please notify the system manager or the sender immediately and do not disclose the contents to anyone or make copies thereof. *** eSafe scanned this email for viruses, vandals, and malicious content. *** --------------------------------------------------------------------------------