Being too proud and finding it hard to navigate the system were among the reasons that people helped by a Swansea Council team hadn't claimed benefits to which they were entitled. The welfare rights team helped people claim more than £1m in payments during the last financial year.
The £1m figure was contained in a report which went before a council-led committee, but no further details were given. In response to questions by the Local Democracy Reporting Service the council said the welfare rights team helped 136 people claim £1,155,580 in 2021-22. Some people discovered they were entitled to more than one welfare payment.
The council said some people didn't claim because of the perceived stigma of doing so, others had tried previously and been turned down, while some just didn't realise what they were entitled to. Other reasons for not claiming were being too proud and saying they could manage and also the complexity of the system. You can get more Swansea news and other story updates by subscribing to our newsletters here.
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More than half of the £1.15m was for personal independence payments which are for eligible people who need extra help because of an illness, disability, or mental health condition. The council said the team was a specialist service which liaised with social services and housing staff and partner organisations. It also provides training for frontline staff.
Cabinet member for wellbeing Alyson Pugh said: "Our welfare rights team works very hard to support people to claim the benefits to which they are entitled and it’s good to see so many people getting what they deserve via the service. The pandemic followed by the cost of living crisis is affecting many people and we’re expecting a surge in requests for support in the coming months. But we’d continue to urge families and others not to miss out."
She said help and advice was available via the Money and Pensions Service – an arm's-length body sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions. Cllr Pugh added: "Lots of people are already making use of the independent and free money advice services that are available as we grapple with the cost of living crisis."
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