As proposed cuts to disability benefits spark national concern, the spotlight has turned once again to Personal Independence Payment (PIP), a benefit designed to support disabled people with the extra costs of daily living. But according to those who work closely with the system, charities, case workers, and advocates, it is “not fit for purpose.”

Chronicle Live journalist Olivia Sheed went behind the scenes of the PIP application process, speaking to those on the front lines of support services for disabled people. What she uncovered was a process described as confusing, emotionally taxing, and fundamentally flawed.

“The process for being awarded PIP is notorious among applicants as being long, drawn out, complicated, and unfriendly to disabled people,” Sheed reported.

The reasons are numerous with excessive paperwork, delays, and assessment procedures that often do not reflect real-life experiences of disability.

Sheed spoke with Melanie, a case worker at the charity Fightback4Justice, which supports people through benefit claims and appeals. Melanie explained that one of the biggest hurdles is the language of the application itself.

Melanie believes the PIP descriptors are “deliberately worded to be confusing and difficult for people,” particularly those with mental health conditions or chronic pain, who may struggle with concentration and clarity.

The form often lacks sufficient space to explain how a condition affects someone’s daily life. As Sheed described, “It’s not enough to simply have a diagnosis, applicants must prove how their disability impacts their functional abilities across a number of specific tasks.”

Even after submitting the application, claimants often face long waits for assessment, with no financial support during the interim. Melanie said: “It's not unusual for someone either to have a change in treatment or assistance needed, have a new diagnosis or deterioration,” before they’ve even been assessed.

In that time, applicants live with constant uncertainty about whether they will receive the support they need.

At Disability North, service team manager Keith Moore told Sheed that many applicants don’t know where to turn for help.

“Not everyone's aware of ourselves or the likes of Citizen's Advice or welfare rights. So people sometimes give up because they just don't know where to turn to,” Sheed reported.

Appeals are common, and often successful, but the process is lengthy and draining. Sheed emphasised that claimants often feel they are being asked to prove their suffering to “faceless” decision-makers.

Following the government’s recent Green Paper suggesting tighter rules for PIP eligibility, Sheed said charities like Fightback were “inundated with calls from anxious disabled people.”

Melanie told her the organisation had “suicidal clients on the phone” in response to the proposed changes.

From every conversation Sheed had, one sentiment was consistently voiced by those working in the system, that PIP, in its current form, is not fit for purpose.