So far, much of the press around the introduction of Universal Credit (UC) has been far from positive. Just last week the National Audit Office said UC has not and may never deliver value for money. But UC has huge potential to transform people’s lives. So how can it be made a success?
Most of the problems that hit the headlines last autumn related to people losing their job, claiming UC and then having to wait at least six weeks before they received support. It’s worth considering why.
At the heart of the problem was the fact that UC assesses entitlement monthly, in arrears. However, almost half of people moving onto the scheme were previously paid weekly (barely a quarter were paid monthly.) The failure of UC to respond to individuals’ needs was a major cause of trouble.
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