We have major concerns about the fairness and effectiveness of the Work Capability Assessment (WCA). WCA is the test that is being used to assess who is eligible for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).
The heavily flawed WCA
From April 2011, the WCA test changed and many hundreds of blind and partially sighted people are now being removed both from benefit support and from the help and support they need to find work.
This is bad news for blind and partially sighted people who are finding themselves written off through no fault of their own.
Two areas we think need to be urgently reviewed are:
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The 'fit for work' test is not fit for purpose. This means there is no reliable way to judge the barriers to work a blind or partially sighted person might experience.
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The face-to-face assessment process is flawed. This means inadequate decisions are being made about blind and partially sighted people's capability for work.
Act now!
The concerns are so grave that the Secretary of State for the Department of Work and Pensions appointed Professor Harrington to run an independent review.
In November 2011 Professor Harrington released the results of his review and concluded that more work needs to be done on the WCA. He also made the specific recommendation that his next review "should consider a review of the sensory descriptors."
The government have accepted this recommendation but now we need to make sure that the review is implemented fairly and transparently with a working group made up of experts from the sensory disability sector.
Please take two minutes to download our template letter below and send it to Chris Grayling, Minister for Work and Pensions, urging him to listen to our concerns.
Thank you to the campaigners who got us here
This is a great success thanks to the campaigning efforts of indivduals and organisations working together to send in evidence. Over 40 people did online via our website, all of them sending a powerful message to Professor Harrington that change is needed and urgent.
We joined with other organisations from the sensory disability sector including Action for Blind People, Action on Hearing Loss, Sense, Deafblind UK and The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association to deliver our own verdict on the WCA which you can download below.
Further information
Find out more about
ESA, the WCA and people with sight loss. You will also be able to read Anthony's experience of the assessment process.
On the Citizens Advice website, you can read
Not Working - a joint report from charities including RNIB, published in March 2010 prior to Professor Harrington's first review.