Belfast City Council and DfC urged to continue support for service which has helped thousands of city residents to keep their benefit entitlement
Belfast City Council has been urged not to axe a service which has successfully represented thousands of city residents at benefit appeals over the last three years, at a time when the demand for representation is likely to soar with the implementation of Welfare Reform.
The Belfast Citywide Tribunal Service (BCTS) is set to close its doors on 31st December, when current funding comes to an end. Eight staff will lose their jobs as a result.
The Service, which has been funded by Belfast City Council, with support from the then Department of Social Development (now the Department for Communities), since June 2013 is based in Ligoniel Improvement Association in North Belfast and is overseen by Belfast Advice Group.
BCTS was originally established in anticipation of Welfare Reform, to address the potential impact it would have on the people of Belfast who are claiming benefits such Disability Living Allowance, Employment Support Allowance, and those affected by the introduction to Personal Independence Payments, which will replace Disability Living Allowance for working age adults by 2020. The service provides support and assistance to clients appealing decisions by the Social Security Agency, and can be accessed by anyone living in the city through any of the 21 Council funded advice services.
Gerry Tubritt, who chairs the Belfast Advice Group, said: ‘Since the Belfast Citywide Tribunal Service was established, staff have provided representation at 3,203 appeals, and helped Belfast citizens secure benefit entitlement totalling £9.6 million. The funding that Belfast City Council has provided for this service has really benefitted Belfast citizens, and we are very grateful that they took the initiative to help meet this need.’
‘Many of those accessing the service are vulnerable, with a range of health problems, as well as physical, mental and learning disabilities. The benefits system can be difficult for those people to navigate at the best of times, but particularly when it involves turning up in person to a formal hearing before a panel which includes people with a legal or medical background.
‘The service we provide helps make this a much less stressful experience, and ensures that where possible the evidence to demonstrate that people remain entitled to benefit is gathered and presented to those making decisions. It’s well documented that having such representation significantly increases your chances of getting a favourable outcome at a hearing, and over the last three years we’ve had many clients getting in touch after they’ve been supported to thank staff for their help.’
Mr Tubritt added that the number of appeal hearings was set to dramatically increase between now and 2020. The Appeals Service, which administers the appeal process, estimate that there will be over 32,000 appeals in 2017/18, and around 41,000 the following year, as the process of reassessing the 125,000 DLA claimants across Northern Ireland gets into full swing. In parts of Belfast, one in five people currently receive this benefit.
Mr Tubritt added: ‘There is some irony in the fact that the Appeals Service is putting in place the additional resources it believes it needs to hold more hearings in Belfast at the same time as the ability of those attending to access effective representation is potentially being lost’.
‘Losing access to representation at such a crucial time will leave thousands of Belfast residents at a disadvantage, not only in terms of having no-one available to provide effective representation that often changes the initial decisions made by the Social Security Agency, but also in terms of accessing the Mitigation payments provided to those who will lose benefit, which can only be accessed if they formally appeal the initial decision.’
‘The rationale for the Citywide Tribunal Service is if anything more relevant now than it was in 2013, and we would urge Belfast City Council to keep funding the service whilst seeking support from the Department of Communities or other relevant government departments to sustain it until 2020. We welcome the Mitigation package of front line support but DFC has failed to address the need for tribunal representation a vital service if people have to appeal to access mitigation payments and challenge decision making.’
For further information on this matter contact Gerry Tubritt at Ballynafeigh Community Development Association on 07793467931 or 02890491161 or Sinead McKinley at Ligoniel Improvement Association on 02890391225 or email advice@ligonielvillage.com.
The Service, which has been funded by Belfast City Council, with support from the then Department of Social Development (now the Department for Communities), since June 2013 is based in Ligoniel Improvement Association in North Belfast and is overseen by Belfast Advice Group.
BCTS was originally established in anticipation of Welfare Reform, to address the potential impact it would have on the people of Belfast who are claiming benefits such Disability Living Allowance, Employment Support Allowance, and those affected by the introduction to Personal Independence Payments, which will replace Disability Living Allowance for working age adults by 2020. The service provides support and assistance to clients appealing decisions by the Social Security Agency, and can be accessed by anyone living in the city through any of the 21 Council funded advice services.
Gerry Tubritt, who chairs the Belfast Advice Group, said: ‘Since the Belfast Citywide Tribunal Service was established, staff have provided representation at 3,203 appeals, and helped Belfast citizens secure benefit entitlement totalling £9.6 million. The funding that Belfast City Council has provided for this service has really benefitted Belfast citizens, and we are very grateful that they took the initiative to help meet this need.’
‘Many of those accessing the service are vulnerable, with a range of health problems, as well as physical, mental and learning disabilities. The benefits system can be difficult for those people to navigate at the best of times, but particularly when it involves turning up in person to a formal hearing before a panel which includes people with a legal or medical background.
‘The service we provide helps make this a much less stressful experience, and ensures that where possible the evidence to demonstrate that people remain entitled to benefit is gathered and presented to those making decisions. It’s well documented that having such representation significantly increases your chances of getting a favourable outcome at a hearing, and over the last three years we’ve had many clients getting in touch after they’ve been supported to thank staff for their help.’
Mr Tubritt added that the number of appeal hearings was set to dramatically increase between now and 2020. The Appeals Service, which administers the appeal process, estimate that there will be over 32,000 appeals in 2017/18, and around 41,000 the following year, as the process of reassessing the 125,000 DLA claimants across Northern Ireland gets into full swing. In parts of Belfast, one in five people currently receive this benefit.
Mr Tubritt added: ‘There is some irony in the fact that the Appeals Service is putting in place the additional resources it believes it needs to hold more hearings in Belfast at the same time as the ability of those attending to access effective representation is potentially being lost’.
‘Losing access to representation at such a crucial time will leave thousands of Belfast residents at a disadvantage, not only in terms of having no-one available to provide effective representation that often changes the initial decisions made by the Social Security Agency, but also in terms of accessing the Mitigation payments provided to those who will lose benefit, which can only be accessed if they formally appeal the initial decision.’
‘The rationale for the Citywide Tribunal Service is if anything more relevant now than it was in 2013, and we would urge Belfast City Council to keep funding the service whilst seeking support from the Department of Communities or other relevant government departments to sustain it until 2020. We welcome the Mitigation package of front line support but DFC has failed to address the need for tribunal representation a vital service if people have to appeal to access mitigation payments and challenge decision making.’
For further information on this matter contact Gerry Tubritt at Ballynafeigh Community Development Association on 07793467931 or 02890491161 or Sinead McKinley at Ligoniel Improvement Association on 02890391225 or email advice@ligonielvillage.com.