DWP Central Freedom of Information
Team
e-mail
: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xx
Our Ref: FOI2019/42770
11 December 2019
Dear Paul McCormack,
Thank you for your Freedom of Information (FoI) request received on 28 November. You
asked the below, in relation to ‘income related ESA and specifically to single claimants with no
partner’:
I wish to establish DWP current policy in the following circumstances.
A claimant is in receipt of means tested benefits and DWP are notified by the prison authorities
that the claimant has been admitted to prison following sentencing. My understanding is that in
such circumstances, the prison authority notifies DWP and as such this information is updated
on DWP's IT system. I further understand that this information in turn generates a decision
which is then issued to the claimant advising that benefit has stopped on the basis that they
have been categorised as a prisoner. I understand that a computer generated letter is then
issued by DWP advising the claimant as such. The purpose of this request is therefore as
follows - Is this letter sent to the claimant at the the prison in question or alternatively to the
residential address held on the DWP system?
I'd be grateful if you could provide the answer along with the guidance/legislation dealing with
such a scenario.
DWP Response:
We confirm that we do hold the information you have requested. The process that is used for
Employment Support Allowance (ESA) Claims, when a person is imprisoned is detailed
below. This process relates to all ESA claims and includes income based single claimants
with no partner, as specifically requested.
The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) will notify the DWP Central Prisoners
Benefits Action Team (PBAT) for England and Wales, who will take the appropriate action
on an Employment Support Allowance claim to terminate or suspend benefit. Scotland has
its own centralised prisoner claim closure team based in HMP Barlinnie, who carry out the
same process.
Once notified that the customer has gone into prison, the prison address is input into the
computer system and from this point forward, it is used as a correspondence address.
The Operational Instructions for ESA customers are attached as a PDF document.
The legislation relating to this is already in the public domain and currently available on the
House of Commons Library online, and therefore is exempt under Section 21 of the Freedom
of Information Act because the information is reasonably accessible to you. However, to be
helpful you can find the information you seek at
https://intranet.dwp.gov.uk/manual/01-esa-instructions-service-centre-processing/16-
imprisonment-or-detention-legal-custody If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me quoting the reference number
above.
Yours sincerely,
DWP Central FoI Team
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