ESA Form Now Asks If Claimants Have Been In Prison
A fellow disability rights campaigner, who our editor highly respects, is currently supporting a claimant to fill out an ESA form.
She recently informed her Facebook contacts that one of the questions on this form asks whether claimants have been in prison in the last six months.
Same Difference is more than a little shocked by this question. We can’t understand how it is relevant. Since you can’t claim either JSA or ESA while on remand or, we assume, in prison, surely anyone making a claim for ESA would have to have been released before making the claim.
Also we feel that the six month time limit is a bit long. Maybe two weeks or even one month would be a sensible time period, but six months? So does being in prison six months ago make a person less disabled? Or are people supposed to go without benefits for six whole months after release? What would that mean for them if ESA or JSA is their only source of income?
We’ve also seen through the link above that Carers Allowance stops if the person being cared for goes to prison, which makes sense as they no longer need care from their carer on the outside. However DLA also stops, which makes less sense.
Consider the case of Daniel Roque Hall, a severely disabled wheelchair user who still needed a significant amount of personal care while he was in prison.
Same Difference fully understands stopping the transport/getting around component of DLA/PIP for prisoners, since they no longer need to be transported. However, for those prisoners who are severely disabled, wouldn’t continuing the care component make sense?
Your thoughts are very welcome, as always.
Same Difference 
pp asks this but why are they it can only mean they up to no good it seems we now being classed has crooks oh dear
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It is not just those in prison who have issues, DLA or PIP or ESA are stopped after four weeks in hospital regardless of the reason for admission in adults, those with spinal injuries nursed in a general or psychiatric ward/ hospital, or state funded care homes often need their personal carers / assistants as nurses often do not know how to, or are not willing to perform bowel management such as manual evacuation, or able to spot autonomic dysreflexia, or provide sufficient care to prevent pressure ulcers. PIP DLA ESA also cannot be started until the person is discharged.
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are you saying that in this day and age nurses do not carry out routine prevention of bed sores? as an ex nurse i find that utterly disgusting. similarly manual evacuation of bowels is a nursing requirement for those unable to do it in a natural way as in spinal injuries. i assume they dont change colostomy bags either. exactly what DO nurses do these days? they certainly run around like scalded cats all the time but would seem that 2/3 basic nursing procedures are no longer done. possibly more we (or i) have yet to hear about.as for it being only 4 weeks in hospital before DLA is taken off people. when did that happen? i know it was 13 weeks and has been ever since DLA came in./(i was also in later years a benefits adviser at an unemployed workers centre when that benefit first came in, in about 1991.).i usually keep tabs on such things and i know just over 2 years ago it was still 13 when my brother in law was in hospital for over 13 weeks.
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I looked it up as I was in hospital recently, it is now Six weeks according to the .gov website…. this didn’t stop them stopping my DLA after ten days though and then taking 4 weeks to get it reinstated when this was pointed out to them…as I was discharged after 10 days.
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My answer ” Not until I get in front of the corrupt assessor who claims to know everything but knows Feck all. They hide behind the claim that a Disability assessor is a qualification, a qualification is recognised by someone other than the company who assesses the claimant as fit for work. Plus if there is such a qualification why aren’t they turning up at tribunal hearings to defend their reports? ANSWER: Because they are all lies and they know it.
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Reblogged this on sdbast.
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This country has turned into a extreme right wing country that uses Stasi practices & is steeped in Corruption hiding behind the word democracy. In real terms I now believe it to be one of the most Corrupt countries in the world with an unelected Head of State, unelected House of Lords & unelected PM.
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exactly what a taxi driver said to me as he took me to my daughters this afternoon.
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as for having to tell DSS if you have been to prison etc………….what do they need to know that for? its none of their business. and as you say totally irrelevant.
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It’s just another reason to stop benifits there is no care or safety nett for disabled or mentally ill or for anyone but they can pay MPS £600 a day just for turning up how is that when people are being put into poverty , starving children ect evicting people because universal credit only puts 50 p to rent then takes kids off them because homeless ?? Lives so miserable that people become so desperate they take there own lives ? Tell peeps get a job ?
They would if there were any ? Our country has become a place of no care , no help , it sanctions people already hungry and ill when told against human rights they ignore and carry on perceuting people until they would rather die than carry on 😮😥😥😤😤 if you voted Tory I hope u see the disgusting position you have put so many people in the suffering as a result of bully tactics hope your proud you have blood on your hands to .
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well i certainly dont vote Tory. my daughter has just been given notice to quit the house shes lived in for 12 years. why? shes done no wrong. all we know is what the estate agent THINKS. that landlady is doing house up(shes done nothing in last 12 yrs ,hardly any repairs. other than gas safety checks. ) then she is selling it……… who in their right mind would sell at this moment in time? all my daughters been told is get rid of her pets(they are the babies she never had,2 cats and a dog)and come to live with me. seems i dont get a say. (thats what they think), i live in a tiny 1 bed bungalow . have my own dog. nowhere for her to sleep. and she has 3 conditions. 1 of which requires loads of washing of bed linen now. yes shes been my carer for about 14 yrs but there is no room here. my settee is only a 2 seater designed for an OAP not strong enough or big enough to be slept on and i cant afford (nor should i have to) buy a bed settee. i can only take one other pet. plus we truied living together in the past after a break down of her relationship. it does not work. it nearly killed our relationship living on top of each other like that. she has contacted local housing and it is looking positive but none of us are holding our breaths. just saving like mad in case worst comes to worst. she has no bond or money for moving. people just dont care anymore. (im not looking for advice just saying this is sort of thing thats happening. landlords have no idea how hard it is for someone on benefits to find a new home that near to family or the one they care for. )
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