Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department takes to make claimants aware of financial assistance in the event that they experience financial difficulty while being transferred to universal credit.

If transferring from other benefits, claimants are automatically entitled to an advance without a needs assessment. For those making a new claim, any need for an advance payment or other financial or budgeting support is established at the outset of a claim for Universal Credit, this includes existing benefit claimants who move to Universal Credit through a change of circumstances. In the initial new claim interview, work coaches are trained to offer personal budgeting support and assess whether claimants need help to manage until their first Universal Credit payment, if so they are advised to apply for an advance. Furthermore, we have taken steps to increase awareness of this support by amending guidance to ensure that claimants are aware at the start of their claim of the maximum amount they could receive as an advance and the maximum repayment period.