WCA Postponement - no audio recorders

J Newman made this Freedom of Information request to Department for Work and Pensions This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

The request was partially successful.

Dear Department for Work and Pensions,

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/hom...

In relation to audio recording WCAs, this newspaper article states “Atos has apologised on its website for not providing the equipment to record the meetings quickly enough” and Atos is quoted to have said "Atos Healthcare are (sic) happy for work capability assessments to be recorded where requested. However, under the terms of our contract with the department, we cannot postpone an assessment on the basis of audio-recording."

Please provide the information that confirms this point about not being able to postpone WCAs if recording equipment is not available. I have checked the Medical Services contract previously provided and there is no such clause.

Yours faithfully,

J Newman

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

This is an automated confirmation that your request for information has
been accepted by the DWP FoI mailbox.

By the next working day your request will be forwarded to the relevant
information owner within the Department who will respond to you direct. 

If your email is a Freedom of Information request you can normally
expect a response within 20 working days.

Should you have any further queries in connection with this request do
please contact us.

For further information on the Freedom of Information Act within DWP
please click on the link below.

[1]http://www.dwp.gov.uk/freedom-of-informa...

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. http://www.dwp.gov.uk/freedom-of-informa...

Dear Department for Work and Pensions,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Department for Work and Pensions's handling of my FOI request 'WCA Postponement - no audio recorders'.

In the absence of any form of update after 20 days, all I can do is make this request.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/wc...

Yours faithfully,

J Newman

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

This is an automated confirmation that your request for information has
been accepted by the DWP FoI mailbox.

By the next working day your request will be forwarded to the relevant
information owner within the Department who will respond to you direct. 

If your email is a Freedom of Information request you can normally
expect a response within 20 working days.

Should you have any further queries in connection with this request do
please contact us.

For further information on the Freedom of Information Act within DWP
please click on the link below.

[1]http://www.dwp.gov.uk/freedom-of-informa...

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. http://www.dwp.gov.uk/freedom-of-informa...

Jim Otram left an annotation ()

It's dogged as does it, John. Best of luck with this and all your continuing efforts.

As I post, the Atos website announcement of the untruth you specify remains unchanged.

That is, of course, disgraceful.

J Newman left an annotation ()

Unbelievably I had from Atos only a few days ago in response to a general enquiry, an assurance (in writing) that my request for recording would be accommodated.

I have another line of enquiry underway that being more personally orientated is inappropriate for FoI, but examines the same principles. I will of course find a way of "sharing" the outcome.

PS Has Mr Grayling been directly replaced or is the assumption that ID-S has ample venom for two?

DWP DWP Medical Services Correspondence, Department for Work and Pensions

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Newman

Please find enclosed a response to your request for information under the
Freedom of Information Act by the Medical Services Contract Correspondence
Team Freedom of Information Officer, who apologises for the delay in
providing you with a response.

<<3682-3147 Mr Newman Response.pdf>>

Kind regards

Medical Services Contract Correspondence Unit, Department for Work and
Pensions, Room 306, Block 3, Norcross, Norcross Lane, Blackpool, FY5 3TA
Tel 01253 611556, extn 69956

Please consider the environment before printing

show quoted sections

Dear Department for Work and Pensions,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Department for Work and Pensions's handling of my FOI request 'WCA Postponement - no audio recorders'.

It is very wrong of you to claim that DWP policy has remained consistent, when it has regularly shifted. On 1 February 2012 in a private members debate Chris Grayling stated: “On audio recording, we will offer everyone who wants it the opportunity to have their session recorded.” This statement was not in any way qualified.

You are now only offering the facility on a “best endeavors” basis and leaving the level of service provided totally at the discretion of Atos – if no machines are available (due to poor management & maintenance), no recordings will take place. It also provides Atos with the ability to manipulate equipment availablity as they see fit to acheive whatever objectives they have in mind in a way that is not transparent and therefore open to abuse.

The end result wil be that some people who want recording will get it, some will not, split on a totally arbitrary and unpredictable basis. As a recording is a critical piece of evidence within an appeal, you are deliberately placing some claimants at a huge disadvantage compared with others, which breaks your commitment to treating all claimants equally and potentially allows you to influence the outcome of an appeal.

Many appeals arise due to disputes over what was and wasn’t said during the WCA and neither DWP nor Atos will accept statements that cannot be substantiated. This is precisely why the suggestion to record arose and you are denying (some) claimants the opportunity to prove their case.
Whilst this position is completely untenable, I do not expect you to admit it here, but I do believe in the interests of accuracy and honesty, to should correct your suggestion that policy has not changed when clearly it has. Continuing in denial only reflects on DWP's integrity.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/wc...

Yours faithfully,

J Newman

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

This is an automated confirmation that your request for information has
been accepted by the DWP FoI mailbox.

By the next working day your request will be forwarded to the relevant
information owner within the Department who will respond to you direct. 

If your email is a Freedom of Information request you can normally
expect a response within 20 working days.

Should you have any further queries in connection with this request do
please contact us.

For further information on the Freedom of Information Act within DWP
please click on the link below.

[1]http://www.dwp.gov.uk/freedom-of-informa...

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. http://www.dwp.gov.uk/freedom-of-informa...

DWP DWP Medical Services Correspondence, Department for Work and Pensions

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Newman,

Please find attached response to your Freedom of Information request.

<<IR573 Newman response.pdf>>

Thank you

Correspondence Team

Business Management Team | Department for Work and Pensions | DWP
Contracted Customer Services Directorate | 306, Block 3 | North Fylde
Central Office | Norcross | FY5 3TA|  [1]www.dwp.gov.uk | Please consider
the environment before printing

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. http://www.dwp.gov.uk/

B. Adams left an annotation ()

John, I thought that in one of your FOI's the DWP said that the claimant would not be sanctioned if delays were caused by the non availability of the equipment.. Are they playing with words here, an implied threat.. ““the case will be withdrawn from the system and returned to the referring officer in DWP, due to the need to make a decision on the Work Capability Assessment (WCA).””... What does that mean, are they suggesting we are imposing conditions? Or does it just get referred back again later, they don't actually say what will happen .... The other bit “”Therefore some claimants may be asked to attend an unrecorded assessment”” ...they can “ask”, but is it a requirement... People being sanctioned for their incompetence doesn't make sense..not a lot does though.

J Newman left an annotation ()

I had hoped IR573 was a reply to my IRR of 19th Sept, but sadly not.

J Newman left an annotation ()

Sorry, 13th Sept

J Newman left an annotation ()

Hi Bill.

DWP increasingly has no qualms about contradicting itself on almost a day to day basis. The principles described in the Civil Service Code became pretty meaningless long ago. It seems almost resigned to the mess it is in and takes the view ‘if you don’t like it complain or appeal’. Then they can abdicate the issue to ICO or ICE. There is nobody in the Civil Service or Government man enough to address the decay by reinstating the basic concepts of public and customer service. Their mantra is more accurately “right eventually with a following wind” rather than “right first time”, which they don’t even take the trouble to measure.

There is wordplay here I am sure – note the possible outcomes of the referral back to DWP are not mentioned. Almost certainly the DM will decide that the WCA cannot wait and will have to proceed without recording and if you don’t like it, tough. Make a fuss and show yourself to be “uncooperative” at your peril and face the (financial) consequences – it will be your own fault and don’t say we didn’t warn you. Even though we have behaved unreasonably beyond comprehension, if you don’t like it you can appeal/complain.

Sounds jaundiced, but is perfectly true. They have assessed me wrongly 3 times in succession and cannot guarantee they will get it right with #4. On each occasion when I appealed, they would not accept anything I claim was/wasn’t said in the WCA as evidence as it could not be proven. I think I have indisputable grounds for recording #4, but they won’t promise that either. I’m happy to take my own recorder and copy the file for them before leaving the building, but it appears this is not acceptable.

I think I am being wholly cooperative rather than the reverse. It is not about making sense, more about bullying.

Jim Otram left an annotation ()

The bullying is all too blatant, I am afraid. In every case I have followed where a claimant, having asked for a recorded WCA, has been told that it will not be possible but has stood their ground, the DWP has eventually backed down, and the WCA has been postponed, sometimes for months, until it has indeed proved 'possible'.

But that 'standing one's ground' needs to extend to:-

Sending every communication in duplicate to both Atos and DWP by recorded delivery; including written confirmation of all telephone calls; phoning immediately before setting out for the examination centre and refusing to go ahead if they will not confirm it will be recorded; refusing to undergo a WCA if you turn up in the day having been told that it will be recorded only to find that, oh dear, equipment and \or 'consenting' HCP , are not in fact available after all; refusing to budge even when directly threatened with loss of benefits; and in two cases I have read about, getting an MP involved in writing letters in support.

For many people, the uncertainty and stress of standing up to such bullying is simply too much for them on top of their existing illness\disability – and for many new claimants the delay in establishing one's right to the benefit is in any event financially impossible.

The DWP doesn't actually dare to let a case get to an upper chamber hearing on this because of the wildfire effect on the internet if they were reported as behaving illegally - which I believe they would be. But it is taking everything it can 'to the wire' to try to stop claimants establishing a clear and undisputed right to a recording, every time.

The very nasty, utterly cynical, 'game' the DWP has being playing with the lives of the vulnerable for the last few years, is no more glaringly evident than in its handling of this recording issue.

And it had the gall to claim, in a recent response here, that the DWP does not try to frighten people!

On a somewhat different tack, has anyone here had an automated acknowledgement of receipt from the DWP this month? I certainly haven't.

Perhaps we are seeing the commencement of a fresh cynical DWP 'policy' designed to provide room for them to equivocate about receipt\date of receipt of FoI requests.

J Newman left an annotation ()

I hadn't realised, but no Jim, I don't think I have and what other motive can their be than the one you have suggested. On a quick scratch round, looks like nobody has.

Arithmetic is certainly an issue - I have just had an IRR that states day 21 is ok.

A C Smithson left an annotation ()

"The bullying is all too blatant, I am afraid. In every case I have followed where a claimant, having asked for a recorded WCA, has been told that it will not be possible but has stood their ground, the DWP has eventually backed down, and the WCA has been postponed, sometimes for months, until it has indeed proved 'possible'."

That was my experience. Once I asked for audio-recording, my assessment kept getting rescheduled but no one would confirm if audio recording equipment would be available at the rescheduled assessment. I was then told that my assessment could not keep getting rescheduled and I may have to attend an unrecorded assessment. I then requested the audio-recording as a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act. I phoned them a few days before my assessment and it had been arranged.

The process can be quite stressful but they tend to back down once they realise that you won't be intimidated by their tactics.

DWP DWP Medical Services Correspondence, Department for Work and Pensions

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Newman,

Please see the attached response.

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

show quoted sections

Dear DWP DWP Medical Services Correspondence,

I assume you have deliberately chosen to miss the point in my IRR of 13th Sept, which was about the accuracy of a statement you made in VTR 3683-3147 and made perfectly clearly. It stated

“The MSCCT FoI Officer would like to assure you that DWP policy regarding the recording of WCAs has not changed”

This is patently not the case as I pointed out by quoting Chris Grayling’s statement in the HoC, which placed no restrictions whatsoever on the availability of recording.

I will leave you with a thought. It is apparently “unreasonable” to delay a WCA by more than 4 weeks if no recording equipment can be made available, but not “unreasonable” for Atos to get away with not being able to provide equipment within 4 weeks – for heaven’s sake, how long does parcel delivery take???. With no control, there is ample opportunity for deception, victimisation and denial. To me that looks like a rather obvious bias within DWP.

Also interesting to note that whilst DWP claims to consider cases on an individual basis to ensure decisions are fair, it is not prepared to do so here. Duplicity has no bounds it seems.

No DWP response required.

Yours sincerely,

J Newman