Welfare reform
Why is this important?
Benefits are an essential source of income for many people with
Parkinson's. A survey showed that 30% of our members receive
Disability Living Allowance, 41% receive Attendance Allowance, and
10% receive Incapacity Benefit.
We lobby government around their plans for welfare reform to
ensure that people with Parkinson's can access the financial
support they need.
Take action
You can give your experiences on the importance
of benefits to disabled people in a Disability
Benefits Consortium survey that we're helping to promote. The
results will help us to lobby government on welfare reform.
The survey takes 15 minutes to complete and runs to 20 October
2010.
What we are doing
Employment and Support Allowance Report
Employment and Support Allowance
(ESA) was launched in October 2008, replacing Incapacity Benefit
for new claimants.
We have published a report - Of little benefit and not working
(PDF, 85KB) - about the experiences of people with
Parkinson's of claiming Employment and Support Allowance.
The report shows that the new assessment process is failing to
take into account the full range of symptoms and fluctuating nature
of Parkinson's.
The Disability Benefits Consortium
We are a member of the Disability Benefits
Consortium (DBC), a coalition bringing together interested
organisations which campaigns on welfare benefits as they relate to
people with disabilities. We actively contribute to the joint
lobbying undertaken by the DBC.
Submissions
We respond to government and other consultations likely to
affect people with Parkinson's.
Our response to the
Welfare Reform Green Paper 'No one written off' (PDF, 86KB) -
October 2008
Advice and information
For information about benefits and other support available
please visit our Advice section
Have your say
Our online discussion forum includes a
forum on employment and benefits, a chance for you to share
your views and experiences about employment benefits issues with
other people with Parkinson's.
Find out more
To find out more, or to let us know about your experience of the
benefits system, contact our Policy and campaigns team on campaigns@parkinsons.org.uk
- email
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