Since the changes to Disability Living Allowance (DLA) were announced as part of the Welfare Reform Bill, ecdp has worked to ensure the lived experience of our members is reflected and fed back to those working on how Personal Independence Payment (PIP), the benefit which will replace DLA, will work.

Today is the deadline for feedback to the Department for Work and Pensions on their first draft assessment criteria and regulations for PIP.

Here, we publish our final comments to DWP on the PIP criteria and regulations: ecdp comments - PIP draft criteria and regulations

ecdp Comments — PIP Briefing Notes and Draft Assessment Regs, August 2011

All of our PIP work is informed by the lived experience of ecdp members. In particular, we gathered views on PIP through:

• A dedicated PIP Reference Group of approximately 20 people of all impairments, which has met twice (in May and July)
• A dedicated online survey, which received 50 in-depth responses
• A further focus group with 22 members, who were interested in adding their contribution to the previous work of the PIP reference group
• Experiences captured from ecdp’s Lived Experience Log
• Discussion and feedback provided through ecdp’s various social media channels, including Twitter and Facebook.

You can read our other main reports on this work here:

• PIP draft criteria and regulations: ecdp interim report (July 2011)
• PIP draft criteria and regulations: ecdp’s first report, to inform DWP’s summer testing (June 2011)
• ecdp’s DLA reform consultation response (February 2011)

We will continue to work with members to shape and inform the introduction of the Personal Independence Payment.

If you would like speak to someone about your experience of DLA or your opinions on PIP please contact Faye Savage, ecdp’s Lived Experience Officer, by email fsavage@ecdp.org.uk or phone 01245 214023.