Source · Select Committees · Scottish Affairs Committee
Recommendation 88
88
Furthermore, once a claimant does manage to access a device suitable for navigating the Universal...
Conclusion
Furthermore, once a claimant does manage to access a device suitable for navigating the Universal Credit system Scotland’s geography and rurality present further digital access issues. Nina Ballantyne of Citizens Advice Scotland highlighted that rural areas in Scotland make up ‘about 48% of the entire land mass. Only 40% has good 4G coverage, and something like one in 25 premises in Scotland cannot access a decent fixed broadband connection’.218 Polly Jones from The Trussell Trust agreed commenting that people who visit their food banks raise this as an issue and are ‘seeking more support’219 with it.
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
The Department considers the existing resource to be sufficient. There is already assistance available to help claimants to make and maintain their Universal Credit claim using the Freephone Universal Credit helpline. Throughout the pandemic, Jobcentres have remained open for anyone who needed face- to-face support and could not be helped in any other way. Jobcentres in Scotland resumed full face to face services, returning to normal opening hours from 9am to 5pm, on 26 April 2021. All Jobcentre Plus offices have Wi-Fi and computers available for claimants to access the internet. Work Coaches will continue to support those who need it to maintain their Universal Credit claim. To support DWP’s ongoing commitment in helping claimants, it has recruited an additional 1,152 Work Coaches in its Jobcentres in Scotland. DWP agreed to fund Citizens Advice Scotland to deliver Help to Claim for another year (up to 31 March 2022) to provide support to people to make a new claim to Universal Credit. If Citizens Advice Scotland Advisers identify that a Help to Claim client cannot make their Universal Credit claim on-line, then they will support the claimant to make a claim by phone. Through Help to Claim, DWP has also funded Citizens Advice Scotland to provide Public Access Terminals to enable people who don’t have access to a device to go on-line to claim Universal Credit.