Professional Audio Recording

The request was partially successful.

Dear Department for Work and Pensions,

The DWP has stated that those who request that their Atos Work Capability Assessment be audio Recorded that request will be granted and that Atos will supply the equipment.?

The DWP have also stated that claimants could audio record their own work capability assessments if they at their own cost provided professional graded equipment that would be able to produce dual copies of the recording for each party to have copies at the end of the assessment process, can you please tell me what you regard as professional eqipment?

Would any of the Dual Recording Machines produced by the Manufacturer NEAL be of sufficient standard for the DWP/Atos to accept the use of such a machine, baring in mind the DWP use NEAL products already I believe?

Yours faithfully,

Paul Smith

DWP freedom-of-information-requests, Department for Work and Pensions

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J Newman left an annotation ()

Paul, you may well have spotted the latest additional constraint in that it (DWP) regards only tape & CD as acceptable formats. By eliminating mp3 etc.it is obviously trying to make self-recording as hard and as expensive as possible. There is of course no technical or logical reason why some digital formats should be excluded.

Paul Smith left an annotation ()

I am aware of a NEAL DUAL TAPE Machine for sale? I cannot see them legally objecting to myself or others using such a machine, especially as I know that the DWP use the particular machine I have in mind themselves?

John Slater left an annotation ()

Paul,
I would be prepared to bet that the old excuse of needing to have the machine calabrated, tested, certified etc by Atos Staff would be used to try to stop you.

J Newman left an annotation ()

and then there would be the issue of proving you are qualified to operate it. What a nonsense!

Paul Smith left an annotation ()

This machine has already been passed and calibrated and it has all the certificates to prove it?

As for being qualified to operate it, Atos HCPs don't get specific training, you just need to press one button on this machine that's all, the same as for the police?

John Slater left an annotation ()

Sadly we are not dealing with organisations (DWP and Atos) on the basis of being reasonable or for that matter legal. If you look into the history of the DWP pre-ESA in relation to recording it has always had the policy of preventing recordings at all costs, hence the threats and dare I say it lies that it issues. The object of the exercise as far as the DWP/Atos is concerned is to create as many immoveable obstacles as they can between the claimant and getting their WCA recorded. I believe that they know it will deter Nurses and Doctors from being prepared to carry out WCA and will significantly increase the amount of appeals. This last one hits the DWP politically so IDS et al will do all they can to stop that happening.

DWP DWP Medical Services Correspondence, Department for Work and Pensions

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Smith

Please see your FOI response attached

Kind regards

Health & Disability Assessments (Operations)/Department for Work and Pensions/Room 306/Block 31/Norcross/Norcross Lane/Blackpool/FY5 3TA

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Jim Otram left an annotation ()

I note that once again the the DWP has NOT answered the question raised. More gross "lack of transparency".

J Newman left an annotation ()

DWP may be able to impose "reasonable" conditions, but expecting claimants to buy their own £1,500+ device is hardly reasonable. Providing a “complete and accurate copy of the recording at the end of the WCA” can easily be achieved with low-cost digital recorders (incl. mobiles), so there is clearly no reason to limit the format OTHER than to try and put claimants off.

It is our legal right to record and we have to trust that the TS will uphold the law despite DWP’s total disregard of it.