Mental Health and Benefits Handbook 1st edition - with new materialPart 3: Key topics Chapter 18: In education, hospital, a care home or prison
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Chapter 18: In education, hospital, a care home or prison
Key facts
    •You may be unable to claim means-tested benefits like universal credit if you are in full-time education. If you are studying part time, you are often able to claim these benefits. In either case, student funding can affect how much means-tested benefit you get.
    •Being in hospital or in a care home reduces or stops many benefits after a period of time. There are different rules for different benefits.
    •Most benefits are affected while you are in prison. Some end, some are suspended and some can only be paid in part.
    •If your partner or another member of your household is in education, hospital, a care home or prison, it may affect your benefits.
1. Education and benefits
Being in education can affect your entitlement to some of the benefits covered in this Handbook. This can apply if you are a student at university, a pupil at school or college, or if you are undertaking a full-time or part-time course.
What happens when you are in education
For more information, including rules about student income, taking time out from your course, and work-related requirements 1Activities connected with finding or preparing for work that some people must undertake to receive universal credit or employment and support allowance. while studying, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook. If you are not sure how these rules apply to you, you can get independent advice – see advicelocal.uk.
Disability benefits
Being in education does not affect your ability to claim personal independence payment (PIP), adult disability payment (ADP), disability living allowance (DLA), child disability payment (CDP) or attendance allowance (AA).
Universal credit
You cannot usually get universal credit (UC) while you count as ‘receiving education’.1s4(1)(d) WRA 2012 There are exceptions – eg, people who are responsible for children, some people getting PIP, ADP, DLA or CDP (see here), and people waiting to return to a course after taking time out because of illness.2Regs 13(4) and 14 UC Regs. See also regs 3, 8 and 13(1)-(3) UC Regs
Importantly, not every student or person on a course counts as ’receiving education’. You are only classed as receiving education if:3Regs 5 and 12 UC Regs; para H6035 ADM
    •you are undertaking a full-time course of advanced education; or
    •you are undertaking a full-time, non-advanced course of study or training for which a loan or grant is provided for your maintenance; or
    •you are a qualifying young person 1A young person aged 16 or over who can still be included in their parent/guardian’s benefit claim in the same way as a child would be, usually because they are in education. There are slightly different definitions for different benefits. who is not on a traineeship or a relevant kind of training scheme; or
    •you are on a course that is incompatible with your UC work-related requirements. You might argue that this should not apply to you because your work-related requirements are excessive for health reasons (see here) or because your course should be seen as ‘voluntary work preparation 2Carrying out activities to prepare for a future return to work, such as training or CV writing.‘ and therefore reduce your work-related requirements.4Reg 95(4) UC Regs; DWP, Universal Credit Guidance, ‘Students: eligibility, conditionality, student income’, v29.0, House of Commons library deposited papers, available at rightsnet.org.uk/universal-credit-guidance
If none of these describe you, you are not classed as receiving education and can get UC under the same rules as a non-student.
If you have student income, it may affect the amount of UC you get.5Regs 68-71 UC Regs
 
Universal credit for students getting disability benefits
You can get UC despite ‘receiving education’ if:6Reg 14(1)(b) UC Regs
    •you get PIP, ADP, DLA or CDP; and
    •you are assessed as having, or treated as having, limited capability for work for UC (see here) or employment and support allowance (ESA) (see here); and
    •the work capability decision is made before the date you start receiving education.
This rule is not always helpful in practice. It can be difficult to get a work capability decision before you start a course – eg, because you have not had a long enough break in education to be assessed, or because you did not need to claim UC until after you started your course.
Examples
Simone (40) gets UC and was assessed last year as having limited capability for work. She also gets ADP. She enrols on a full-time university course. Although she is now classed as ‘receiving education’, her eligibility for UC is not affected because she gets ADP and had her work capability decision before she started her course. The amount of UC she gets might still be reduced by student income.
Beth (21) is already a full-time university student when her mental health problems start. She is able to claim PIP, but cannot claim UC because (a) she counts as receiving education and (b) she does not come under any of the exceptions that let someone claim UC while receiving education. Crucially, she did not get a work capability decision before she started studying – if she had, she would have come under the exception for UC for students getting disability benefits.
Jorge (19) is enrolled on a full-time, non-advanced life skills course. He has a severe mental health problem and gets PIP. After turning 19, he stops being included in his parents’ UC and tries to claim UC in his own right. He is told that he does not qualify because he is receiving education and no exceptions apply that allow him to claim UC. Jorge and his parents get independent advice, and successfully challenge the DWP’s decision by arguing that Jorge does not fit the definition of ‘receiving education’. In particular, they argue successfully that his course is not incompatible with any work-related requirements that could reasonably be set for him, since any work-related requirements would need to be extremely limited due to his severe mental health problem.
Income-related employment and support allowance
If you are ‘receiving education’ you cannot get income-related ESA unless you are also getting DLA, CDP, PIP, ADP or armed forces independence payment.1Sch 1 para 6(1)(g) WRA 2007; regs 18, 32 and 33 ESA Regs
Note: not every student or person on a course counts as ‘receiving education’. You are only classed as receiving education if you are:2Regs 14 and 15 ESA Regs; RVS v SSWP [2019] UKUT 102 (AAC)
    •a qualifying young person 1A young person aged 16 or over who can still be included in their parent/guardian’s benefit claim in the same way as a child would be, usually because they are in education. There are slightly different definitions for different benefits. who is not on a traineeship; or
    •undertaking a ‘course of study’. This generally means that you are a full-time student on any type of course except a traineeship or a course accepted as work-related activity (see here).
Contributory employment and support allowance and pension credit
Being in education does not affect your ability to claim pension credit or contributory ESA.
Housing benefit
If you are a part-time student, you can normally get working-age housing benefit (HB). If you study full time, you can only get working-age HB if you meet certain criteria, such as:1Regs 8(1)(e), 55-58 and 92(7) HB Regs
    •also getting UC or income-related ESA; or
    •meeting the conditions for the severe disability premium (see here); or
    •being a lone parent.
There are some other rules that may apply, including rules about your accommodation, that you must satisfy before you can get working-age HB as a full-time student. See CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook.
Being in education does not affect your ability to claim pension-age HB.
2. Benefits in hospital
Being in hospital can reduce or stop your benefits after a period of time. There are different rules for different benefits.
What happens when you are in hospital
For more information, including rules about carers, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook. If the rules below will cause you difficulties (eg, you are at risk of losing a tenancy), you can get independent advice – see advicelocal.uk.
Personal independence payment, adult disability payment, disability living allowance and attendance allowance
These benefits stop being paid when you have been a patient for 28 days, if you were 18 or over when you went into hospital.1AA Reg 8(4) SS(AA) Regs; reg 25 SS(C&P) Regs
DLA Regs 8(2B), 10(6) and (7) and 12B(9A) and (12) SS(DLA) Regs; reg 25 SS(C&P) Regs
PIP Regs 29(3) and 30(3) and (4) SS(PIP) Regs; regs 2, 3(4A) and (5B) and 19 PIP(TP) Regs; reg 50 UC,PIP,JSA&ESA(C&P) Regs
ADP Regs 28(1) and (2) and 34(3) DAWAP(S) Regs
 If you were under 18 when you went into hospital, these benefits continue unaffected.
There is a 28-day ‘linking rule’ which means that:2AA Reg 8(2) SS(AA) Regs
DLA Regs 10(5) and 12B(3) SS(DLA) Regs
PIP Reg 32(4) and (5) SS(PIP) Regs
ADP Regs 28(3) and 31(5) and (6) DAWAP(S) Regs
    •different periods spent as a patient that are separated by 28 days or less are linked together and treated as one period;
    •for personal independence payment (PIP), disability living allowance (DLA) and attendance allowance (AA), periods spent as a resident in a care home (or, for PIP, in prison) link with periods spent as a patient if they are 28 days or less apart;
    •for adult disability payment (ADP), a period spent in a care home or in prison links with a period spent as a patient if you transfer directly from one place to the other.
So, for example, if you are in hospital for 14 days, and are then readmitted less than 29 days after discharge, your benefit stops 15 days into your second hospital stay.
There are very limited exceptions to the 28-day rule, including one for terminally ill people living in certain hospices.3AA Reg 8(3)-(5) SS(AA) Regs
DLA Regs 10(3), (6) and (7), 12B and 12C SS(DLA) Regs
PIP Reg 30(2)-(4) SS(PIP) Regs
ADP Regs 29 and 32(2)(b) DAWAP(S) Regs
You continue to be entitled to PIP, ADP, DLA and AA even when they are no longer being paid. This means you do not need to reclaim them when you leave hospital. You should notify changes of circumstances to the DWP 1The Department for Work and Pensions. A central government department that pays many benefits in Great Britain. or Social Security Scotland 2A Scottish government department that pays many devolved benefits in Scotland. (SSS) in the normal way even while you are not being paid.
If you are entitled to these benefits, you stay exempt from the benefit cap 3The maximum yearly amount of benefits that someone can receive. Not all benefits are included and not all people are affected. even after 28 days in hospital.4Reg 75F(1)(f) HB Regs; reg 83(1)(h) UC Regs
Child disability payment
You continue being paid child disability payment regardless of how long you are in hospital.1Reg 21 DACYP(S) Regs
Universal credit
You are automatically treated as having limited capability for work while you are in hospital.1Reg 39 and Sch 8 para 2 UC Regs In practice, any work-related requirements 1Activities connected with finding or preparing for work that some people must undertake to receive universal credit or employment and support allowance. are likely to be paused.
If you are single, universal credit (UC) continues to be paid while you are in hospital, but the housing costs element stops if your stay in hospital exceeds, or is expected to exceed, six months.2Sch 3 para 9 UC Regs
If you have a partner, you are no longer treated as a couple for UC purposes if your stay in hospital exceeds, or is expected to exceed, six months.3s39 WRA 2012; reg 3(6) UC Regs At this point, you may both need to reclaim as single people.
A child or non-dependant 2An adult, other than a partner, who lives with the person claiming benefit – eg, a grown-up daughter or son. There are some special rules about who is included. is no longer included in the calculation of your UC award if their stay in hospital exceeds, or is expected to exceed, six months.4s10 WRA 2012; reg 4(7) and Sch 4 para 11(6) UC Regs
Income-related employment and support allowance, pension credit and housing benefit
These benefits can often continue in hospital, but the amount you get might change. If you get a severe disability premium, it is affected when your disability benefit stops (see above). A disability premium or enhanced disability premium can continue but might be affected after you have been in hospital for 52 weeks. If you have a partner, you will not usually be treated as a couple after your stay in hospital exceeds 52 weeks.1ESA Reg 156(1)-(3) and Schs 4 and 5 para 13 ESA Regs
HB Reg 21(1) and (2) and Sch 3 HB Regs; reg 21(1) and (2) and Sch 3 HB(SPC) Regs
PC Regs 5(1)(a) and (5)(b) and 6 and Schs 1 paras 1(1)(b) and (2)(b)-(ba) and IIA para 6 SPC Regs
For pension credit, you are not treated as a couple while one of you is detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 (see here).2Reg 5(1)(c)(i) SPC Regs
For employment and support allowance (ESA), you are automatically treated as having limited capability for work while you are in hospital.3Reg 25 ESA Regs You are not entitled to a work-related activity or support component in your ESA once you have been in hospital for a continuous period of more than 52 weeks.4Sch 5 para 13 ESA Regs; reg 63(1) ESA Regs 2013
You can usually get housing benefit (HB) or help with housing costs for a maximum of 52 weeks while you are in hospital.5ESA Sch 6 para 5(11) ESA Regs
PC Sch II para 4(11) SPC Regs
HB Reg 7(16) HB Regs; reg 7(16) HB(SPC) Regs
 However, you cannot get this help if you have permanently left your normal home. Your child or non-dependant is included in the calculation of your HB for a maximum of 52 weeks while they are in hospital.6Regs 21(1) and (2) and 74(7)(f) HB Regs; regs 21(1) and (2) and 55(7)(f) HB(SPC) Regs
Contributory employment and support allowance
You are automatically treated as having limited capability for work while you are in hospital.1Reg 25 ESA Regs; reg 21 ESA Regs 2013 You are not entitled to a work-related activity or support component in your contributory ESA once you have been in hospital for a continuous period of more than 52 weeks.2Sch 5 para 13 ESA Regs; reg 63(1) ESA Regs 2013
What counts as being in hospital
If you are getting inpatient treatment in hospital for a mental health problem (see here), it is likely that you will count as a hospital patient for benefit purposes. You generally count as a hospital patient if:1PIP s86(2) and (3) WRA 2012; reg 29(2) SS(PIP) Regs; para P3012 ADM
ADP Reg 28 DAWAP(S) Regs
UC Reg 8(3) and Sch 8 para 2 UC Regs
ESA Reg 25 ESA Regs; reg 21 ESA Regs 2013
Other benefits Reg 2(4) SS(HIP) Regs; reg 6 SS(AA) Regs; regs 8 and 12A SS(DLA) Regs; Vol 3 Ch 18, paras 18021, 18028-33, 18041 and 18059 DMG; R(DLA) 2/06
All White v CAO, The Times, 2 August 1993, reported as R(IS) 18/94; Botchett v CAO, The Times, 8 May 1996, 2 CCLR 121 (CA); R v North and East Devon Health Authority ex parte Coughlan [1999] 2 CCLR 285; R(DLA) 2/06; SSWP v Slavin [2011] EWCA Civ 1515, reported as [2012] AACR 30
    •you are having medical or other treatment as an inpatient in a hospital or ‘similar institution’; and
    •for PIP and ADP, any of the costs of your treatment, accommodation and related services are paid for ‘out of public funds’ (this usually means they must be paid by the NHS); or
    •for other benefits except UC and ESA, you are being maintained free of charge (again, usually by the NHS).
Note:
    •A care home can sometimes be classed as a ‘similar institution’ to a hospital.2Vol 3 Ch 18 paras 18060-63 DMG; s86(2) and (3) WRA 2012; reg 29(2) SS(PIP) Regs; para P3062 ADM; reg 28(4) DAWAP(S) Regs; R(DLA) 2/06
    •If you are detained in hospital while serving a prison sentence, you may be treated as a prisoner (see here) rather than a patient for benefit purposes.3UC Reg 19(1)(c) and (4) UC Regs
    ESA Regs 69(3)-(5) and 160(3)-(4A) and Sch 5 para 12 ESA Regs; reg 96(3)-(5) ESA Regs 2013
    PC Reg 8 and Sch 3 para 2 SPC Regs
    PIP Reg 31(3) and (4) SS(PIP) Regs
    Other benefits Reg 2(3), (4) and (4A) SS(GB) Regs
    All CSS/239/2007; JB v SSWP (IS) [2010] UKUT 263 (AAC)
For UC, you count as being in hospital from the day you are admitted until the day you leave. For HB, the days when you count as a patient depend on which legal rule is being applied. For other benefits, you count as a patient from the day after you enter hospital up to and including:4AA Reg 6(2A) SS(AA) Regs
DLA Regs 8(2A) and 12A(2A) SS(DLA) Regs
PIP Reg 32(2) SS(PIP) Regs
ADP Reg 31(2) DAWAP(S) Regs
ESA Reg 2(5) SS(HIP) Regs; reg 69(2) ESA Regs; reg 63(5) ESA Regs 2013
PC Reg 1 SPC Regs, definition of ‘patient’; reg 2(5) SS(HIP) Regs
HB Regs 7(18) and 28(11)(e) HB Regs; regs 7(18), 22(5) and 31(11)(e) HB(SPC) Regs; reg 2(5) SS(HIP) Regs
    •for ADP, DLA, AA and, usually, PIP, the day before you leave hospital; or
    •for the remaining benefits, and for PIP if you go straight on to a care home or prison, the day you leave hospital.
Practical considerations if you go into hospital
If you go into hospital for your mental health, you might be worried about what to do about your benefits. These worries might be affecting your mental health. Remember that being in hospital is likely to count as a ‘good reason’ for missing benefit deadlines or appointments. While you are focusing on your wellbeing, you can ask other people to help manage your benefits. You can ask hospital staff to get you in touch with someone who can support you with this if you need to.
    •When you go into hospital, it is important to notify the DWP, SSS, the local authority or any other body that is paying you benefits of this change. Someone can do this for you if you are not able to.
    •See Chapter 20 on how someone else can help you manage your benefits while you are in hospital, including information on appointees and third-party representatives.
    •Your benefits are not normally affected for the first 28 days in hospital (although you need to be aware of the ‘linking rules’ above if you have recently come out of hospital and are now being readmitted).
    •For UC and ESA, you are automatically treated as having ‘limited capability for work’ while you are in hospital. In practice, all work-related requirements are likely to be paused while you are in hospital.
    •If you need reasonable adjustments, such as changes to the way the body paying your benefits communicates with you while you are in hospital, you can ask for them (see here).
    •It is important to clearly tell the bodies paying your benefits if your mental health problem has got worse (eg, if this is why you have gone into hospital) as you may now be eligible for a higher rate of benefit.
Example
Tyrece, who is 31 and single, is getting treatment for his mental health problem as a hospital inpatient. This is his first time in hospital and he ends up staying for four months. Before going into hospital, Tyrece was getting UC (including help to pay his rent) and PIP. During his time in hospital, his UC continues to be paid in full, but his PIP stops being paid after the first 28 days. On leaving hospital, his PIP can start being paid again without Tyrece needing to make a new claim.
When he is first admitted to hospital Tyrece is not well enough to contact the DWP’s PIP and UC departments to let them know about his change of circumstances. His mum, Deborah, contacts them instead and asks to be made Tyrece’s appointee (see here) because he is not currently well enough to manage his finances. As Tyrece’s appointee, Deborah receives his benefits on his behalf and can pay his rent and bills. She asks the DWP to end her appointeeship as soon as Tyrece is well enough to manage his benefits again.
3. Benefits while staying in a care home
Staying in a care home can reduce or stop your benefits after a period of time. There are different rules for different benefits.
Note:
    •Sometimes while staying in a care home you are classed as a hospital patient (see here).
    •The rules for care homes do not apply to other types of supported or sheltered accommodation, even if you are receiving personal care services there which are provided by your local authority.
What happens while staying in a care home
For more information, including rules about carers, children, non-dependants, savings and Abbeyfield homes, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook. If the rules below will cause you difficulties (eg, you are at risk of losing a tenancy or you are not sure how to pay for your care home), you can get independent advice – see advicelocal.uk.
Personal independence payment, adult disability payment, disability living allowance, child disability payment and attendance allowance
After 28 days you cannot usually be paid the daily living component 1Part of personal independence payment and adult disability payment paid if someone has difficulties with certain daily living activities. of personal independence payment (PIP) or adult disability payment (ADP), the care component 2Part of disability living allowance and child disability payment paid if someone needs supervision or assistance because of a disability or health condition. of disability living allowance (DLA) or child disability payment (CDP), or any attendance allowance (AA).1AA/DLA ss67(2)-(4) and 72(8)-(10) SSCBA 1992; regs 7 and 8(1) and (3) SS(AA) Regs; regs 9 and 10(1) and (3) SS(DLA) Regs
PIP s85 WRA 2012; regs 28 and 30(1)-(2) SS(PIP) Regs
CDP Regs 2, 17(2) and 20 DACYP(S) Regs
ADP Regs 2, 27(2) 32(1) and (2)(a) DAWAP(S) Regs
 You can continue getting the mobility component 3Part of a disability benefit paid if someone has difficulties getting about, including for mental health reasons. There is no mobility component of attendance allowance. of PIP, ADP, DLA and CDP.
These rules only apply if the costs of your accommodation, board or personal care are met out of public or local funds – ie, not if you are self-funding.2AA Reg 8(6) SS(AA) Regs
DLA Reg 10(8) SS(DLA) Regs
PIP Reg 30(5) SS(PIP) Regs
CDP Reg 17(4) DACYP(S) Regs
ADP Reg 27(4) DAWAP(S) Regs
All Steane v CAO and Secretary of State, 24 July 1996, reported as R(A) 3/96; R(A) 1/02; CA/3800/2006; CAO v Creighton and Others [1999] NICA 13, reported as R 1/00 (AA); SSWP v DA [2009] UKUT 214 (AAC)
There is a 28-day ‘linking rule’ which means that:3AA Reg 8(2) SS(AA) Regs
DLA Reg 10(5) SS(DLA) Regs
PIP Reg 32(4)-(5) SS(PIP) Regs
CDP Reg 17(3) DACYP(S) Regs
ADP Reg 27(3) DAWAP(S) Regs
    •different periods spent in a care home that are separated by 28 days or less are linked together and treated as one period;
    •for PIP, DLA and AA, periods spent as a resident in hospital (or, for PIP, in prison) link with periods spent in a care home if they are 28 days or less apart.
There are limited exceptions to the 28-day rule, including one for terminally ill people living in certain hospices.4AA Reg 8(4) and (5) SS(AA) Regs
DLA Reg, 9(3), (4)(a)-(c) and (5) and 10(6) and (7) SS(DLA) Regs
PIP Regs 28(2)(f), (3)(a)-(b) and (4) and 30(3) SS(PIP) Regs
CDP Regs 17(5) and 21 DACYP(S) Regs
ADP Regs 27(5) and 29 DAWAP(S) Regs
You continue to be entitled to PIP, ADP, DLA, CDP and AA even when they are no longer being paid. This means you do not need to reclaim them if you move out of the care home. You should notify changes of circumstances to the DWP 4The Department for Work and Pensions. A central government department that pays many benefits in Great Britain. or Social Security Scotland 5A Scottish government department that pays many devolved benefits in Scotland. in the normal way even while you are not being paid.
If you are entitled to these benefits, you stay exempt from the benefit cap 6The maximum yearly amount of benefits that someone can receive. Not all benefits are included and not all people are affected. even after 28 days in a care home.5UC Reg 83(1)(h) UC Regs
HB Reg 75F(1)(f) HB Regs
Universal credit
If you are single, universal credit (UC) continues to be paid while you are staying in a care home, but the housing costs element stops if your stay exceeds, or is expected to exceed, six months. You cannot get the UC housing costs element for any rent you pay to your care home.1Sch 3 paras 3(d) and 9 UC Regs
If you have a partner, you are no longer treated as a couple for UC purposes if your stay exceeds, or is expected to exceed, six months.2s39 WRA 2012; reg 3(6) UC Regs At this point, you may both need to reclaim as single people.
A child is no longer included in your UC claim if their stay in a care home exceeds, or is expected to exceed, six months.3s10 WRA 2012; reg 4(7) UC Regs
Income-related employment and support allowance, pension credit and housing benefit
These benefits can often continue when you are staying in a care home, but the amount you get might change. Once payment of AA, the DLA/CDP care component 1Part of disability living allowance and child disability payment paid if someone needs supervision or assistance because of a disability or health condition. or the PIP/ADP daily living component 2Part of personal independence payment and adult disability payment paid if someone has difficulties with certain daily living activities. stops (see above), the severe disability premium is affected. You may also lose the disability or enhanced disability premium if the only reason you qualified was because you were receiving AA, the DLA/CDP care component or the PIP/ADP daily living component.
If you or your partner move into a care home permanently, you usually no longer count as a couple. You may both need to reclaim benefits as single people. If you or your partner move into a care home temporarily, you usually still count as a couple for up to 52 weeks.1ESA Reg 156(1)-(4) and Sch 5 paras 4 and 5 ESA Regs; CIS/1544/2001
PC Reg 5(1)(1)-(b) SPC Regs
HB Reg 21(1)-(2) HB Regs; reg 21(1)-(2) HB(SPC) Regs
If you are living temporarily in a care home, you can usually get housing benefit (HB) or help with housing costs on your normal home for a maximum of 52 weeks. You cannot get this help if you have permanently left your normal home. You cannot usually get HB for any rent you pay to your care home.2Reg 9(1)(k) HB Regs; reg 9(1)(k) HB(SPC) Regs; Sch 3 para 9 HB&CTB(CP) Regs; HB/CTB A20/05
Contributory employment and support allowance
Contributory employment and support allowance is paid as normal while you are staying or living in a care home.
4. Benefits in prison
Most benefits are affected while you are in prison. Some end, some are suspended and some can only be paid in part.
Note: if you are detained in hospital while serving a prison sentence, you may be treated as a prisoner rather than a patient for benefit purposes (see here).
What happens while in prison
Except where otherwise stated, these rules apply whether you are serving a sentence or on remand – ie, being held in prison awaiting trial or sentencing.
For more information, including the rules about carers, children and non-dependants, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook. If the rules below will cause you difficulties (eg, you are at risk of losing a tenancy), you can get independent advice – see advicelocal.uk.
Personal independence payment
You normally stop being paid personal independence payment (PIP) after 28 days in prison, whatever the outcome of the proceedings against you. There is a ‘linking rule’ which means that different periods spent as a prisoner separated by one year or less are linked together and treated as one period. Periods spent in a care home or hospital are also linked with periods spent as a prisoner.1s87 WRA 2012; reg 31(1)-(2) and (5) SS(PIP) Regs You may be able to resume getting PIP on release without making a new claim, depending on the length of your award, so keep notifying the DWP 1The Department for Work and Pensions. A central government department that pays many benefits in Great Britain. of changes of circumstances in the normal way even while you are not being paid.
Adult disability payment
You normally stop being paid adult disability payment after 28 days in prison, whatever the outcome of the proceedings against you. If you are aged 16 or 17, you can get the mobility component 1Part of a disability benefit paid if someone has difficulties getting about, including for mental health reasons. There is no mobility component of attendance allowance. while you are in prison.1Regs 3(3)(b), 30 and 32(2)(c) DAWAP(S) Regs
Child disability payment
You continue to be paid the care component 1Part of disability living allowance and child disability payment paid if someone needs supervision or assistance because of a disability or health condition. of child disability payment for the first 28 days that you are in prison, and you continue to be paid the mobility component 2Part of a disability benefit paid if someone has difficulties getting about, including for mental health reasons. There is no mobility component of attendance allowance. during any period when you are in prison.1Reg 18 DACYP(S) Regs
Disability living allowance, attendance allowance, contributory employment and support allowance
When you are in prison awaiting trial or sentencing, these benefits are suspended pending the outcome. If you are given a prison sentence, you are not paid these benefits during your time in prison. If you are not convicted or given a prison sentence, full arrears of any of the benefits that have been withheld are normally payable when you are released.1AA/DLA s113(1)(b) and Sch 9 para 1 SSCBA 1992; regs 2 and 3 SS(GB) Regs; R(S) 1/71; R(S) 8/79
ESA s18(4)(b) WRA 2007; regs 159-161 ESA Regs; regs 95-97 ESA Regs 2013
Universal credit
If you are a single person and you go to prison, you can continue getting the housing costs element in your universal credit (UC) for up to six months, but only if you have not been given a sentence that is expected to extend beyond that six months. You do not get any other elements of UC. Your work-related requirements 1Activities connected with finding or preparing for work that some people must undertake to receive universal credit or employment and support allowance. are switched off during this six-month period.1Regs 2 and 19 UC Regs as interpreted by the DWP at E3030 and 3040 ADM. See also DWP, Universal Credit Guidance, ‘Prisoners’, v16.0, House of Commons library deposited papers, available at
rightsnet.org.uk/universal-credit-guidance.
If you are a member of a couple and you go to prison, your partner can make a UC claim as a single person. If your time in prison exceeds, or is expected to exceed, six months, you no longer count as a couple and your partner’s benefit is calculated accordingly. While you do still count as a couple, your and your partner’s income and capital 2This includes (but is not limited to) savings, shares, certain lump-sum payments and most property that is not a person’s main home. are still assessed jointly, even though their UC amount is that for a single person.2s39 WRA 2012; regs 3(3)(c) and (6), 18, 22(3) and 36(3) UC Regs
A child cannot be included in your UC claim if they are in prison.3Reg 4(6)(b) UC Regs
Income-related employment and support allowance and pension credit
These benefits usually stop immediately if you go to prison (with a limited exception for housing costs elements). If you have a partner, you are no longer treated as a couple.1ESA Regs 69(2) and 156(4) and Schs 5 para 3 and 6 para 5(11) and (12) ESA Regs
PC Regs 1(2), 5(1)(c), 6 and 7(3) and Sch 2 para 4(11) and (12) SPC Regs
Housing benefit
If you are in prison awaiting trial or sentence, you can usually continue to get housing benefit (HB) for your normal home for a maximum of 52 weeks. If you are convicted and given a prison sentence, you can get HB for up to 13 weeks (from the date you went into prison), provided you are unlikely to be away from your home for longer than this.1Reg 7(13)-(17) HB Regs; reg 7(13)-(17) HB(SPC) Regs; CSH/499/2006; KdeS v Camden LB (HB) [2011] UKUT 457
If you have a partner, you continue to count as a couple for HB while you are in prison provided you intend to live together again and you are unlikely to be away for substantially longer than 52 weeks.2Reg 21(2) HB Regs; reg 21(2) HB(SPC) Regs