ESA and Corona Virus Govt Help — Scope | Disability forum
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ESA and Corona Virus Govt Help

svalentine60
svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
Apologies if this has been answered somewhere else but I can't find it. I know the Chancellor keeps talking about £20 extra a week for those on Universal Credit and Tax Credits. However, he still has not mentioned those on Employment and Support Allowance who have not been moved to Universal Credit. Does anyone know why that is? Why those  on this legacy benefit, most of whom have both phsyical and/or mental health issues are not getting this help? Surely those on this benefit are the most vulnerable and I do find it shocking that nobody has taken the government to task over this. My very healthy 24 year old nephew is getting £20 a week extra to help him as he is on UC, but my 59 year old disabled sister who is on ESA is not getting this extra help. How is that right or fair and why is nobody speaking up for them?  Have people on this benefit simply been forgotten by the government?
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Comments

  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 10,821 Scope online community team
    Hello @svalentine60
    I believe the temporary increase only applying to UC and Working Tax Credits was because it was aimed at low-income workers who found themselves suddenly unemployed or with fewer shifts/80% pay. That said, I think we're all seeing an increase in our bills!
    Community Manager
    Scope
  • svalentine60
    svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
    Thanks Adrian. That can't be true because now they're talking about raising Pip to help people during this time. Those of us on ESA are also usually on Disability Living Allowance as we have not been moved over on either to Pip and UC. So it can't be about those suddenly unemployed. Also everyone on UC is getting whether suddenly unemployed or unemployed for years. They've just totally ignored legacy benefits and are ignoring it for a second time. I realise i sound petulant but it does make me feel a bit forgotten. I've had to pay a bit extra to a carer to come in a little more and so i have added expense. It's not really that though it's that we've been totally forgotten as though not as important. Most of us on these two benefits have long term chronic health conditions either physical or mental or disabilities and nobody is mentioning these benefits at all anywhere.
  • gillian72
    gillian72 Community member Posts: 304 Pioneering
    @svalentine60, hello I'm also on esa an been in support group since 2013,  an I have put a claim in 4 pip I'm now waiting for the NO award reply no doubt again,, I've been in a bad way with. mental health probs as well as health probs this is the only contact I have on here with the real world an I'm in the same boat as you ?
  • svalentine60
    svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
    Hi Gillian. I'm still on Disability Living Allowance. I just can't get an answer as to why those on UC are getting extra money and now Pip is being looked at for extra money but the two legacy benefits people are on who haven't yet been moved over to UC and Pip are ignored. I've asked tons of people and nobody responds. I've even emailed scope and that was ignored and never answered. 
  • gillian72
    gillian72 Community member Posts: 304 Pioneering
    @svalentine60, hiya, I'm sure someone on here will answer you soon they are good on here,  @Adrian_Scope , has told me I can claim uc an my esa support group would be put on uc as lcw, I'm having memory an confusing probs atm so I'm worried about swapping over atm, but yes I have noticed ppl can work an alsorts on benifits, my mental health must be worse then I thought ?
  • gillian72
    gillian72 Community member Posts: 304 Pioneering
    @svalentine60 , I know @tomm. @bob123  are still on legacy benifits aswell  so there are a few of us around on here who r in the same boat  as us too ?
  • svalentine60
    svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
    I don't know why it's peeving me so much but it is. They're aware or at least they must be aware and yet we're ignored while others who were moved onto pip or UC are getting over £80 a month extra. That's a lot of money to me. I have no idea why scope, mind etc aren't shouting this from the rooftops.
  • svalentine60
    svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
    I think when you're sat in your home for weeks talking to yourself things tend to feel worse.  I have my 24 year son home now because he finished uni but he's always online in his room so might as well be on my own lol This is a huge deal and is absolutely unfair. I thought they'd look at it and when they did they just said pip will get the extra. So that still doesn't help those of us on ESA and DLA. I've contacted DWP, Mind, Scope, Rishi Sunak lol etc Not one single person got back to me. 
  • svalentine60
    svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
    Just to add my very healthy 24 year old son who finished uni and because of the present situation has been unable to go find a job yet, was put on UC and last week got an extra £100 in his monthly money. Kind of makes you feel like you're not worth quite as much to the government.
  • gillian72
    gillian72 Community member Posts: 304 Pioneering
    @svalentine60 sorry I didn't reply straight back to u ? Haven't been coping to well atm, yes I feel the same way about this I've been living on £248 a fortnight since my daughter quit collage in 2017 it's kept the bills paid & bailiff away till now, anyway I just don't give a s.... anymore, they can't have what I haven't got,   uc  can ram it were the sun doesn't shine  ? Lol ??
  • svalentine60
    svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
    lol yeah, the problem is though that those who were also on esa and getting £248 a fortnight the same as us are now getting an additional £40 on top of that. We aren't getting it simply because we haven't been moved to UC credit yet. Nobody seems to be interested including scope whose forum this is and mind. No idea why. Now pip is getting extra and those of us on DLA will not. So basically we are getting a lot less now than those with the same problems on UC and PIP. It's disgusting that nobody is pushing the govt to give a reason as to why. I've even been ignored on here when i mailed them.
  • gillian72
    gillian72 Community member Posts: 304 Pioneering
    @svalentine60, I think ur  better off with more then £40  on uc?? I'm not sure if u mean £40 pw / pf / or per month ??  I've tried the benefit culculator advice I was giving  but I'm thick as s... atm get confused following instructions tried it twice lol , was  we ment to switch to uc are self or was dwp  ment to automatically do the switch for us ?  Lol ? Told u I was thick lmao ?
  • svalentine60
    svalentine60 Community member Posts: 8 Listener
    No hun this post has been talking about the extra money during covid 19 that is being given a week to everyone on Universal Credit which includes those moved from ESA to Universal Credit. They are getting an extra £20 per week on top of normal money for a year. Those still on ESA are not getting that extra money. Now they are looking at giving those on pip the extra £20 a week for a year to cope with the covid epidemic. Those on DLA will not get it. So everyone on the legacy benefits of ESA and DLA who have not been moved over to Pip and Universal Credit are not getting the £20 extra a week..

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