An Introduction To Welfare Benefits For Front Line Staff
An Introduction To Welfare Benefits For Front Line Staff
Introduction To Welfare Benefits For Front Line Staff
For anyone involved in advising the public on benefits claims requiring an introduction or refresher covering local authority-administered means-tested benefits. Suitable for customer service advisers, HB assessors in need or a refresher, or other staff interested in learning about what goes on “under the hood”.
NEXT WORKSHOP:
Tuesday & Wednesday,
21st & 22nd April, 2026.
2 x Full-Day Workshop: (9:40 - 4:30)
Workshop Fee: £545. (No VAT)
Book 3 places and receive a 4th place FREE.
This Workshop is intended to provide customer service advisers with an understanding of the UK welfare system and equip them with the knowledge to provide basic advice to people claiming HB and CTR/CTS administered by Councils, as well as an awareness of wider entitlements including benefits paid by the Department for Work and Pensions.
Day One will begin with an introduction to the UK Social Security system, showing where Council-administered HB and CTS/CTR fit in. We will look at the different benefits available to pensioners and working age people, including “mixed age couples” where only one partner has reached pension age. Rules common to multiple benefits will be covered: Capital limits, eligibility of full-time students, and the effect of immigration status on benefit entitlement. Delegates will learn about the progress of Welfare Reform, especially the completion of the Universal Credit managed migration programme, and the reforms of pensioner benefits that are in the pipeline. This part of the Workshop includes the key facts about the household Benefit Cap.
Day One proceeds to look at Housing Benefit in greater depth, starting with the remaining working age HB cases following the migration of most claimants to Universal Credit. HB still funds supported housing and temporary accommodation for homeless people. We will look at how these types of accommodation are identified and summarise the rules governing the calculation of both HB entitlement and central government “subsidy” (reimbursement by central government of HB payments made by the Council). We cover the main principles of calculating HB: Maximum HB (including bedroom tax and LHA rates), income and applicable amount. Delegates will also learn about frequent issues that affect HB claims: Temporary absence from home, overpayments, changes of circumstance, reviews and supporting evidence, appeals, etc.
Day Two begins with the Council Tax Reduction scheme (also known as Council Tax Support). For pensioners, there is a national scheme which applies in the same way everywhere, and largely mirrors the calculation of HB for pensioners, but local authorities in England and the devolved Scottish and Welsh governments devise their own local schemes. We will look at some of the most popular working age scheme features … and some of the controversial features that have attracted legal challenges.
Next we look at discretionary and fringe entitlements: Discretionary Housing Paymentswhich top-up HB and UC where the claimant still needs further assistance to pay his/her rent; and the Household Support Fund providing extra help to people struggling with rising living costs. These two discretionary schemes are to be gradually merged into a single Crisis Resilience Fund beginning in April 2026. Delegates will hear the latest news about how these changes will be rolled out, including in the remaining areas of England where there is two-tier local government.
The remainder of Day Two is devoted to providing delegates with a brief overview of the key points about the most widely claimed benefits other than HB and CTR/CTS: The means tested benefits Universal Credit and Pension Credit, as well as the most common contribution-based and non-means-tested benefits including “new style” Employment and Support Allowance and Personal Independence Payment.
Topics Covered:
Programme: Day One
The UK Social Security System
· Contribution-based, means tested and others
· Working age, pensioners and mixed age couples
· Welfare reform, including the Benefit Cap and the Two-child Limit
Housing Benefit
· Supported accommodation
· Temporary accommodation
· HB key issues
o Main calculation principles
o Absence from home
o Overpayments
o Claims and evidence
o Appeals
Programme: Day Two
Council Tax Reduction / Support
· The three local working age schemes
· The National scheme for pensioners
Discretionary Local Assistance
· DHPs
· Household Support Fund
· Introduction of the Crisis Resilience Fund
· Local policies
Other Important Benefits: Overview Of Main Principles
· Universal Credit: Entitlement, conditionality, migration
· Pension Credit
· New-style ESA
· PIP
Note: The programme is indicative and is subject to change to reflect any recent rule reflect changes and the needs of specific groups or organisations. Further one-day Training Workshops are also available which can cover specific or more complex issues in more depth – e.g. Claims From The Self-employed, Submitting Appeals, Commerciality & Contrivance, Overpayments, Claims From Persons Arriving From Overseas, etc.
Presented by Peter Barker. A hugely experienced trainer, appeals presenter, and submission writer.
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We also offer a 2-Day Workshop which focuses specifically on HB & CTS / CTR - "An Introduction To HB & Council Tax Support / Reduction". This takes out 'other Welfare Benefits' to allow more time to be spent on just Housing Benefit issues in more depth. See other web page for details.
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It is only possible to very briefly cover Universal Credit on this 2-Day Workshop. We also offer a one-day stand-alone ‘Introduction to Universal Credit’ Workshop:- Who qualifies, how it’s calculated (including the rules about earnings from employment or self-employment), work seeking conditionality and managing an online claim. This is a stand-alone day which can be booked by anyone working in benefits as an in-house Workshop just for their own organisation, but it also works as an optional third day following on from the programme described above. See our web site for full details.
Next “Introduction To Universal Credit” Online Workshop is on Thursday, 30th April, 2026.
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In-House Workshop Required - On-Site or Online
We are always pleased to arrange most of our Workshops, such as this one, for staff from an individual organisation. Please email us with your requirements for details.