Government Response

The Government responded to this petition on Tuesday 3rd September 2019

DWP conducts a robust programme of assessment observations and audit of assessment reports, providing assurance and maximising quality. We therefore do not believe an independent review is necessary.

The department fully appreciates the positive impact scrutiny from an Independent review can have on service quality. DWP has already accepted many of the recommendations of the most recent Independent Review conducted by Paul Gray, and is working hard to implement these recommendations alongside what the Department feels is a robust quality assurance programme, including observation of PIP assessments by DWP officials and audit of assessment reports.

The department is determined to ensure individuals receive high quality, accurate assessments, without compromising their experience of interacting with the service. In addition to the current quality assurance process, DWP is reviewing PIP service delivery through the Health Transformation Programme, seeking opportunities to optimise quality throughout the service. The department’s commitment to customer experience is exemplified by the recent decision not to re-assess individuals who exceed the state pension age.

The department is working to transform the way PIP is delivered in the future, while implementing a number of recommendations of the Paul Gray Independent Review of PIP in the immediate term and therefore cannot commit to another Independent Review.

We set our PIP assessment providers challenging targets and monitor performance closely. The requirements set out in the contract are demanding and we robustly manage the providers against those requirements. Service level agreements set out our expectations for service delivery, including quality of consultations, number of days to provide advice to the department and evidence of claimant satisfaction, taken from the Claimant Satisfaction Survey. I am pleased to confirm PIP providers consistently exceed the Customer Satisfaction target of 90%.

We also set PIP providers a target for no more than 3% of the reports they submit to the department being deemed ‘unacceptable’, above which a ‘no pay’ mechanism is applied. This ensures that PIP providers focus on improving the most crucial elements of the assessment process. The Department’s quality standards for PIP assessments are published at www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-assessment-guide-for-assessment-providers

There are regular meetings between senior DWP clinicians and the Chief Medical Officers of both providers. This cross-provider working drives consistency in the understanding and implementation of PIP policy.

We have a relentless focus on quality and consistency, which delivers improvements in assessment quality performance. Assessment providers have ongoing assessment quality improvement plans in place which include clinical observations and procedures and tailored training and development tools.

We have developed and maintain a strong, collaborative working relationship with both Independent Assessment Services and Capita and work closely with them to further improve quality. There are a range of regular governance and monthly performance meetings to support delivery of the contracts highlighting where action is required and agreeing solutions.

Assessment providers employ quality teams who undertake an audit of assessment reports to ensure they meet the department’s strict quality criteria. The audit process confirms the information in the report is sufficiently detailed to enable the department to make a decision. An independent audit function has also been rolled out across the contracts since 2016, which is used to judge how the providers are performing against set contractual targets ensuring the advice provided to the department is of suitable quality, fully explained and justified.

We have also made some changes to the way in which we monitor assessment provider performance. Since 2016, we have given assessment providers more time in which to complete assessments and return reports back to the department. This gives assessment providers’ greater flexibility to obtain further evidence, ensuring as much relevant information as possible is considered and allows more time for scheduling appointments that suit both the assessment providers and claimants as well as undertaking more quality assurance processes prior to returning cases to DWP.

The department and its PIP assessment providers remain dedicated to making continuous improvements increasing the trust in the system going forward.

Department for Work and Pensions.

This is a revised response. The Petitions Committee requested a response which more directly addressed the request of the petition. You can find the original response towards the bottom of the petition page (https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/241560)