So they want to replace PIP/DLA money with vouchers?

[moneyinthebinthatsmrtim]

I don't understand it. It is really worrying me.

This payment helps pay for so many things. I doubt these vouchers would cover that, or give the freedom to shop or buy from where you want or need to.

I included DLA because it's really just the child's version of PIP. Eventually, my profoundly disabled child will be an adult and will have to be on PIP

Is there really any truth in this? I can't see any articles directly quoting Labour or Conservative. I might just be in such a worry that I have missed that bit

Apologies if there is another thread on this too. I am happy to get this one taken off if that's the case

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/pip-disability-benefits-plan-rishi-government-critics-b2537209.html

@IAmNotASheep you can't even apply for disability benefits until your condition has been affecting your mobility and care needs for 3 months, by that time even diligent savers have usually used up their rainy day funds.
Most people in the population have less than 3 months living expenses saved up, and it's more expensive to live with disability (especially learning to manage a new disability), so it's unusual for new benefits claimants to still be living well on savings.
The benefits system is designed to provide a safety net to stop people falling into poverty, but in its current form all the delaying and appeals of incorrect decisions mean many people fall into a debt spiral waiting for benefits to kick in.
An immediate and responsive system could well be cheaper than all the tribunal and reassessment costs, as it would allow flexing between occasional work and recovery phases.

Which would make no sense given how disabilities vary. And then you have people like me who don't have a proper diagnosis

Or people like me who are stubborn and don't want their home turning into a disability aid warehouse.

Some people with my disability need a wheelchair; I don't. A chair would be absolutely useless and I would be incapable of using it.

Well exactly.
So if your condition is based on a GP diagnosis and if the benefits are immediately based on a worse case scenario then won’t that be better and quicker for everyone.
If people don’t need something offered like a wheelchair like @Thelnebriati or as @Whooper noted they just don’t need all the disability aids you can just say you don’t need them. I’m guessing the nhs aren’t going to turn up with louds of stuff for the future.

Im just trying to read between the lines of what’s being said, what was asked in the consultation and various articles on the subject.
I assume most are in agreement ? Something has to change and whilst changes won’t fit all, as no one’s situation is the same, it does seem that there does need to be some rejigging of the system.

How would giving money / equipment on the basis of diagnosis work with something like Autism? Some people have totally different needs

Completely.
the people I know in receipt of it for their autistic children, a good chunk goes on replacing things like pans which have got ruined when cooking, clothes that have been picked at, heavy handed use of furniture.

Vouchers don't pay for having to work part time due to fatigue or a cleaner or gardener or support worker or a new phone that can host text to speech apps or increased data plans to use these apps or taxis to get, well, anywhere. If a voucher system could fund all that I'll happily sign up for it.

Yep I concur, I have a couple of friends who have DCs with high needs support autism. They have to replace so much stuff. In one case DLA doesn't even scratch the surface of what has to be repaired and/or replaced.

I think people are getting bogged down with vouchers only.
The consultation isn’t just looking at vouchers it is also looking at
direct support
catalogues for specific equipment
money
eligibility
ability to work
assesments

1. plus what other countries do

and probably other stuff we don’t even know about as the consultation doesn’t end till September.

Again if they can find a way to centrally provide all the additional means of support and personalise the care to the needs of the individual AND save the system some money I will fully support it.

Dos people think this will happen and whan

However at a guess I don’t think support will be personalised as they’re looking at making the system cheaper and that sounds expensive.
Like everyone though it’s just a guess.

According to PP consultation ends in September so usually ( looking at Govn website ) decisions and the process of implementation average a year.

But who knows🤷‍♀️

I thought it was July

That’s the end date for everyone to put in their thoughts etc for the consultation. After that they will be analysed and a report prepared on the findings.
Ready for the next Parliament in September. ( 5 days after the start of Parliament I believe )

So it cud be ages away till something happens

As above and previous pages earlier in this thread the Government historically averages a year after consultation. That’s makes it Sept 2025 🤷‍♀️

The trouble is that when you have to use the supplies that are provided for you, they're inevitably shit quality compared to what you can get elsewhere.

So for example, my 14 yr old DS is still in nappies/pull-ups. In theory, I could get nappies prescribed by the Continence Service on the NHS.

However, the Continence Service often don't want to provide pull-ups, only nappies. My DS is learning how to change his own pull-up. Nappies will set his independence and personal skills back. It is allegedly possibly to get pull-ups prescribed if you're willing to fight but the only brand of pull-up they supply leak and don't fit very well.

As anyone who has used nappies/pull-ups for teens or adults will testify, a good fit is absolutely vital. Not every brand will fit someone in the right way, and will cause leakage. My DS is very slim so some brands gape in the leg which is obviously an absolute disaster.

Being given money means I can try out different brands and find one that fits him properly, even if it's more expensive than the ones the NHS would provide. Hence why I haven't bothered getting any on prescription and I just buy our own.

This is just one example but it's this kind of thing that would be problematic. I can virtually guarantee that by trying to save money they'll insist on prescription only supplies for things like this which don't take any personal needs into account.

People who don't have a disability or don't care for/live with someone who has a disability don't necessarily realise that it's not as simple as "have this thing that you need" - it's sometimes necessary to shop around or find alternatives that work better. Vouchers or equipment from the government will inevitably deny disabled people the choice to get the best items.

Did you complete the consultation form.
It would give you an opportunity to make your views count.