UK brain injury charity responds to UK’s proposed “damaging” welfare cuts

The UK brain injury charity Headway has responded to the government announcements on welfare changes this week, warning the changes threaten to strip away brain injury survivors’ rights to receive help and support.

This week the UK government announced the biggest changes to the welfare system in a generation.

Backed by £1m investment, the government says the reforms aim to support sick and disabled people who can and have the potential to work into jobs.

While the reforms will see the ending reassessments for disabled people who will never be able to work and the scrapping of the Work Capability Assessment, it will also see the reintroduction of reassessments for people on incapacity benefits who have the capability to work and other measures that aims to save £5bn.

Part of these saving measures will be a new single assessment – which will be based on the PIP assessment – that will consider the impact of disability on daily living, not on capacity to work, as well as further face-to-face assessments for PIP to improve the quality of assessment decision.

The government has said it will set out a longer term reform of the PIP Assessment with the intent to carry out a review involving experts and stakeholders to adapt and improve it.

Brain injury charity Headway has raised concerns over the plans, stating that the proposed £5bn cuts would strip away the fundamental rights of brain injury survivors to receive the help, and support they need to live fulfilling and independent lives.

Headway said: “The Government’s latest welfare proposals threaten to strip away this right, with an estimated £5bn in cuts that will inevitably push some of the most vulnerable members of society into even greater hardship.

“Announced a week ahead of the Spring Statement, the Government’s proposal, Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working, primarily concerns Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment (PIP).

“The Government is proposing to reduce eligibility for PIP and replace Work Capability Assessments (WCA), which is currently used to determine additional Universal Credit entitlement, with the PIP assessment process.”

Luke Griggs, chief executive of Headway said: “No one that has experienced the stress and anxiety of having to educate or persuade a Work Capability Assessor who has no specialist knowledge or professional understanding of their condition and how it affects them will mourn the loss of the WCA.

“Brain injury survivors repeatedly tell us that they are made to feel like frauds or cheats due to a deeply flawed process.

“And yet any relief that the WCA is to be abolished has been replaced by abject fear from people who worry they will be pushed into a labour market that they are ill-equipped to navigate.

“With the right help, at the right time, there can be life after brain injury although many brain injury survivors will never be able to return to work due to the cognitive, physical and psychological impact it causes. These people need help, not judgement.

“For other brain injury survivors, returning to work is a crucial part of their journey towards regaining independence.

“But that can only happen if they have access to specialist community-based reablement services, such as those provided by Headway. Local Headway charities provide crucial services to survivors and carers in their communities, including vocational rehabilitation support.

“But many local charities providing these services are already in crisis due to a chronic lack of statutory funding.

“If the Government is genuine in its pledge to give brain injury survivors and other disabled people the tools they need to return to work or education, it must take immediate action to ensure charities such as Headway are still around to deliver these essential services.”

Headway has also emphasised that the onus cannot be placed solely on disabled people, and that employers must be equipped to offer meaningful opportunities to those with brain injuries.

Griggs said: “We urge the Government to engage with employers to educate and equip businesses with the knowledge and tools to understand the reasonable adjustments people with hidden, fluctuating conditions such as brain injury may need.

“The introduction of a so-called ‘right to try’ – allowing individuals to attempt a return to work without the fear of losing their welfare benefits – may sound promising, but without robust protections, it risks forcing vulnerable individuals into unsuitable work.

“The reality is that for many brain injury survivors, work is simply not an option, and no amount of policy rebranding will change that. The Government must ensure that those unable to work due to brain injury are not left without the support they need to not just survive, but live fulfilling and dignified lives.”

Headway will be responding to the government’s consultation on the changes, which will be ongoing until 30 June 2025 to push back against what it views as damaging cuts.