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Protesters take to the streets to oppose Camden Council budget cuts |
Camden’s vulnerable lose their link to a brighter future
A lifeline for those bewildered by the maze of benefits and employment rights will close this month, writes Mike Haran, manager of the Camden Tribunal Unit
FOR 25 years Camden Tribunal Unit has been giving expert advice to the borough’s most vulnerable residents.
The elderly, the disabled, people working for non-unionised companies and others facing benefits difficulties have all flocked in their thousands to seek representation and advice from the unit.
This year, as a result of Camden Council’s decision to cut funding to advice services, we lost our local authority grant. Since this represents two thirds of our income, we are no longer able to continue operating. Seven staff have been made redundant and we will close our offices, based in Grafton Yard, in Kentish Town, at the end of this month.
The problem our clients will now face is where they can go for similar help, and what alternative provision will be available.
Solicitors are pulling out of legal aid following cutbacks in their funding, and the majority of local advice agencies don’t have the expertise or time to to deal with it. They have large numbers of people seeking advice.
This is a field where we can make a real difference. Social security benefits is an area where there’s a large amount of work. Claiming benefits and employment rights are now so complex that the average person will have great difficulty ensuring they get the full treatment without specialist advice.
If they have to take an employer to a tribunal or want to challenge social security benefits, where are they going to go for specialist advice and representation?
The borough is very varied, from quite wealthy people to the very poor and we believe there’s a real need for this service.
The council said they wanted to reduce council tax, so they made cuts to the voluntary sector budget and unfortunately it’s fallen on us.
It’s a bit short-sighted. Camden Council does have its own welfare rights unit but if someone wants to challenge their own housing benefits, they would be unable to give independent advice on this – and that’s just one example.
Camden Tribunal Unit was established in 1982 to provide a representation service for social security and employment tribunals.
As a result of the cuts, people will no longer have anyone to represent them at tribunals – there’s no dedicated provision for them in Camden.
And it’s often the borough’s most vulnerable clients who are referred to us.
A typical case would be an elderly person applying for an allowance to cover additional disability benefits. When they make an application, typically, the Department for Work and Pensions will send one of their doctors to examine them.
The doctors only have a limited amount of time and they probably don’t know the patient’s previous medical history or circumstances, so the elderly applicant often doesn’t succeed in getting this allowance.
They might get a local advice agency to draft an appeal, but that area of law is extremely complex and the agency would usually refer it on to us.
We would contact the applicant’s own GP or doctor and talk to their carers, and then to the tribunal so they can get a full picture.
This extra help can make a substantial difference to the applicant’s income. It will also allow their carer to get an allowance for looking after them.
We have helped many elderly residents in similar circumstances claim more than £100 a week extra – which can make a significant difference to their lives.
Last year we represented more than 200 people in tribunals and we also provided a telephone advice service for Citizens Advice Bureau staff.
This has enabled people to receive expert advice on difficult areas of law without the need to wait for a further appointment.
Throughout our 25-year history we have taken cases from advice agencies in the borough at the point where they become too complex for generalist advisers to handle.
This involves time-consuming preparations, including obtaining medical reports where necessary, drafting submissions, attending the tribunal and dealing with any appeal.
We have achieved a 95 per cent success rate at tribunal hearings, resulting in total awards of £230,000 and a total increase in income of £200,000 a year.
It is hoped that our reserves can be used to fund a single benefits appeal worker based at one of the other agencies. A decision will be made on this shortly.
This service is vitally important. Camden should consult local advice agencies which refer clients to us and review the situation.
We would like to thank all the organisations which have supported us over the years, our staff, and the members of our management committee, who have given so much of their own time.
If any of our former clients has a new problem, we suggest that they go to their local Citizens Advice Bureau.
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