Access to information on benefits must improve for groups most at risk of poverty

Responding to today’s report by the Public Accounts Committee, Department for Work and Pensions: using leaflets to communicate with the public about services and entitlements, Child Poverty Action Group’s Chief Executive, Kate Green, said:

“Easy access to clear information is vital if people are to access the benefits they are entitled to. The high level of literacy in English needed to understand many leaflets is of great concern, both for those who do not have English as a first language, or for other groups such as the learning disabled.

“The Committee found particularly poor provision of information for disabled people, who are at a greater risk of poverty. Take-up of disability benefits is very low, so the need to get the right form of information and advice to disabled people and their families must be a priority.”

 

Notes to Editors

The CPAG report, Out of Reach: benefits for disabled children, published in December 2006, found families with disabled children face significant problems accessing benefits, including:

• 46% believe they have missed out on benefits and tax credits because they have not been told they could apply.
• 43% had not claimed Disability Living Allowance or took more than 2 years to find out their child could be entitled.
• 39% had been put off applying because of claim forms.
• 30% have not had advice about benefits entitlement in over a year.

An executive summary of the report and its recommendations can be found here: http://www.cpag.org.uk/publications/extracts/Out_of_Reach_exec_summ.doc

Read more about Out of Reach: benefits for disabled children

For further information please contact:
Tim Nichols
CPAG Press Officer
Tel. 020 7812 5216 or 07816 909302
press@cpag.org.uk