Universal Credit: Work Capability Assessment
(asked on 27th January 2026) - View Source
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) new and (b) existing claimants were waiting for a Universal Credit Work Capability Assessment in each month since January 2025.
The Department for Work and Pensions prioritises assessments for new claims to minimise waiting times and ensure claimants receive the right benefit entitlement as soon as possible. We are working with suppliers to increase capacity for clearing the backlog of reassessment cases, including by accelerating the recruitment of assessors.
The number of new claimants waiting for a Universal Credit (UC) Work Capability Assessment (WCA) in each month since January 2025 can be found in the table below.
Month | Outstanding UC WCAs |
Jan-25 | 220,000 |
Feb-25 | 220,000 |
Mar-25 | 220,000 |
Apr-25 | 210,000 |
May-25 | 200,000 |
Jun-25 | 210,000 |
Jul-25 | 210,000 |
Aug-25 | 210,000 |
Sep-25 | 210,000 |
Oct-25 | 230,000 |
Nov-25 | 240,000 |
Dec-25 | 250,000 |
The number of existing claimants waiting for an UC WCA in each month since January 2025 can be found in the table below.
Month | Outstanding UC WCAs |
Jan-25 | 89,000 |
Feb-25 | 90,000 |
Mar-25 | 91,000 |
Apr-25 | 92,000 |
May-25 | 92,000 |
Jun-25 | 93,000 |
Jul-25 | 89,000 |
Aug-25 | 88,000 |
Sep-25 | 87,000 |
Oct-25 | 83,000 |
Nov-25 | 81,000 |
Dec-25 | 63,000 |
Please note:
- These volumes include all claimants currently within the assessment suppliers’ caseload, including those at the questionnaire stage and those for whom further medical evidence is being gathered.
- Figures have been rounded. Values between 100,000 and 1,000,000 rounded to the nearest 10,000, between 10,000 and 100,000 rounded to nearest 1,000
- This data is readily available from internal Management Information (MI) which is of a sufficiently robust standard.