Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether Personal Independence Payment Assessors are allocated to assessments based on their medical experience and specific knowledge of relevant conditions.

Assessment providers are required to ensure that all health professionals (HPs) carrying out Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessments have training and knowledge of the clinical aspects and overall functional effects of a wide range of health conditions and impairments. This includes the disabling effects of strokes on a claimant’s life.

The department does not believe it is necessary for providers to allocate HPs to assessments based on whether they are specialists in the specific conditions or impairments of the claimants they are assessing. Instead, the focus is on ensuring that HPs are experts in disability analysis, with emphasis on the effects of health conditions and impairments on the claimant's daily life.

HPs can access a wide range of clinical resources to research any conditions presented. This includes evidence-based protocols, e-learning modules or case studies, as well as keeping knowledge up to date through Continuous Professional Development (CPD). Both PIP providers have a condition insight report on strokes and their effects on claimants’ lives.

The department is committed to improving our services and works continuously with providers to improve the assessment process. The Shaping Future Support: The Health and Disability Green Paper, explored how the welfare system can better meet the needs of claimants now and in the future. The aim is to improve claimant experience of our services, including accessibility, enabling independent living, and increasing employment outcomes. We are considering all the responses to the Green Paper proposals and what future policy changes might look like. These will be set out in the White Paper later this year.