Disability benefit advice
If you're living with a health condition or disability and you’re unsure if you’re receiving the right financial support, we can help. Our friendly Welfare Benefits Team offer free and impartial advice to help you access the support you’re entitled to.
How we can help
There are a few different benefits available depending on your circumstances, but not everybody knows what they’re entitled to. We can help you identify what you’re eligible for and assist you in accessing that support. This could include:
•Personal Independence Payment (PIP);
•Employment Support Allowance (ESA);
•Universal Credit;
•Attendance Allowance;
•Carers Allowance;
•Disability Living Allowance (DLA).
We can also help you with filling out application forms and even guide you through benefit appeals if an earlier application has been denied and you think it’s wrong. Whatever your circumstances, our knowledgeable team will support you wherever they can.
Jane’s story*
We recently helped 77-year-old Jane, who lives alone in one of our sheltered schemes. Jane was receiving a low state pension and due to having over £10,000 in savings, she had to pay her own rent, which meant her savings had started to decrease. Jane also suffers from some long-term health conditions and didn’t know about disability benefits.
As she was struggling financially, Jane contacted us to see if she’d be eligible for any help with her rent.
We went to see Jane in her home and completed a full benefit check. We then applied for Pension Credit on her behalf. Not only was Jane’s pension increased, but she was also awarded full Housing Benefit and council tax support, meaning that her rent is now taken care of, and she only pays for a few services herself. Jane also received a back payment of over £2,000 from the government, and we were able to refund her an additional £2,346.66 now that her rent was in credit.
Due to Jane’s health conditions, we also applied for Attendance Allowance on her behalf. The application was successful, and Jane was given the low rate for frequent help or supervision during the day and night, as well as back pay of over £500. Lastly, we supported Jane with her application for a blue badge for parking, which she received.
By reaching out to us and telling us her circumstances, Jane has been able to improve not only her finances but her health and wellbeing too. With her blude badge, Jane no longer feels stuck indoors. She can attend medical appointments more easily and do her shopping. She has also been able to go on holiday since contacting us.
Terry's story*
Terry attended one of our drop-in sessions at the Parkside Community Hub, and a CHP team member noticed him saying that he’d been denied his disability benefit. The team member asked if Terry wanted to chat about this in private. Following support and assistance from us, Terry regained his benefit along with a significant backdated payment of £3,328.
Contact us today for support
To book a phone appointment, call 0300 555 0500. You can also email us at mb-welfarebenefits@chp.org.uk.
*To protect our customers’ identities, we’ve used different names.