The State of our Welfare The role of the private sector

Providing advice pro bono ‘A tale of two clients’ Adam No income apart from DLA Had an inheritance and spent it- 5 years ago Suffers from schizophrenia Single- no family help Can be paranoid and aggressive No credit on phone Literacy poor Submitting sick-notes- no benefit paid Needs support- advocacy

3 Ex Social Policy lecturer Grandparent Carer Lives with wife and Grandson, who requires care Affected by ‘Bedroom Tax’ Has a disability Lives in Social Housing- purpose built for Grandson An active campaigner Wants to change unfair policy Researched and came to us Paul Rutherford

Legal Aid and Welfare Benefits - What is covered? From April 2013, Legal Aid for welfare benefits work was reduced significantly. We no longer have a contract to provide Welfare Benefits advice which is funded by ‘Legal Aid’. There are still four areas that could keep this area of work alive. 3

1. Work at the Upper Tribunal However, only work at the ‘permission stage’ and beyond is covered. Once ‘permission’ to appeal has either been allowed or refused, it may then be possible to get help under Legal Aid funding for the next stage. So you or your client may have to do some work yourselves in identifying possible errors of law, which can be edited at a later stage once you have an Welfare Rights Adviser/Solicitor 5

Legal aid remains available to challenge discrimination (look out for disability discrimination). This could be a growing area as we see the DWP using more sanctions. It could be a useful strategy as damages can be claimed. 2. Discrimination

3. Judicial Review 7 This is a public law remedy, often used to hold public bodies to account. There are strict deadlines and cost implications, so it is best to seek advice from a contractor in this area.

Contact the legal aid telephone gateway on , to be referred to one of the few Agencies who hold a contract to provide this kind of work.

4. Exceptional Cases 9 Furthermore it may be possible for cases where you might have an ‘exceptional’ welfare rights problem. The Public Law Project are running a scheme to explore applying for funding for these ‘exceptional cases’ and you could discuss with an adviser/agency if they are able to refer your case.

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