The agonising wait disabled individuals face underneath Access to Work scheme | EUROtoday

Disabled individuals are enduring common waits exceeding 100 days for essential assist purposes designed to assist them safe or preserve employment, a brand new report reveals.

A number one incapacity equality charity has condemned the findings from the National Audit Office (NAO), describing the general public spending watchdog’s report as “laying bare the brutal reality for disabled people trying to get into and stay in work.”

The NAO report highlights important “delays and backlogs” inside the Access to Work scheme, which has been operational throughout England, Scotland, and Wales since 1994.

This very important programme permits candidates with bodily or psychological well being situations or disabilities to use for grants masking sensible office assist, psychological well being administration, or communication help for job interviews.

Demand for the scheme has “increased significantly” in recent times, in response to the NAO. The complete variety of purposes has greater than doubled, hovering from 76,100 in 2018/19 to an anticipated 157,000 in 2024/25.

While the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), chargeable for funding and administering the scheme, states it lacks a definitive trigger for this surge, it “believes the growth in demand is likely to have been driven by a rise in the identification of mental health conditions and neurodiversity across society.”

DWP information helps this, exhibiting that the variety of individuals making use of for assist as a consequence of psychological well being or studying situations rose sharply from 11,200 (30 per cent of all clients receiving funds) in 2018/19 to 37,900 (51 per cent) in 2024/25.

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The division additionally famous a rise in candidates with situations categorised as “other,” which it suggests contains neurodivergent people.

The common ready time for an utility to be processed reached 109 working days in November 2025, up from 66 working days in 2024/25 and 28 working days in 2021/22, and effectively above the division’s 25-day goal.

The NAO mentioned delays had “a negative impact on individuals and employers”.

The report acknowledged: “Four of the organisations we consulted said that application delays and late payments have affected employees’ job security, and one noted that in some cases delays have resulted in people having job offers withdrawn.

“Late payments can also have an impact on employers. Three of the organisations we consulted commented that payment delays were leading to cashflow problems, noting that delays were particularly damaging for small businesses.”

The NAO mentioned the DWP has had a “growing number of complaints” from clients, principally regarding the time taken to course of purposes.

The report famous the division had elevated the variety of employees engaged on the scheme in an try to assist course of the rising variety of circumstances and sort out the backlog, and this led to a rise in spending on employees administering the scheme from £12.6 million in 2021/22 to £24.4 million in 2024/25.

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The NAO mentioned the division “does not expect the backlog to fall significantly in the short term” and is “waiting for the outcome of the Government’s consultation on the future of the scheme before committing to plans for further improvements”.

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, mentioned: “The Access to Work scheme plays a valuable role in helping people with disabilities or long-term health conditions secure and sustain employment, and demand for the scheme has grown significantly.

“Maximising the value for money of the scheme will require government to improve how it administers the current system, to get on top of the backlogs and to properly assess the scheme’s impact.”

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, chairman of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, mentioned whereas the scheme “provides significant value for people with disabilities or physical or mental health conditions to secure or stay in work”, surges in demand have led to “significant backlogs and delays in processing applications and payments, affecting both employees’ job security and employers’ cash-flow”.

He added: “As DWP looks to secure the greatest value from the scheme, it must address identified data gaps, align guidance with the Government’s objectives to support case workers and carry out work to ensure productivity targets can be met.”

James Taylor, director of technique at incapacity equality charity Scope, mentioned: “This report lays bare the brutal reality for disabled people trying to get into and stay in work.

“Disabled people face constant barriers, rejection and frustration, and Scope’s employment services have supported customers who’ve had to leave jobs altogether because Access to Work support didn’t arrive in time.

“Access to Work can be a lifeline that allows disabled people not just to work, but to thrive.

“But the Government must urgently get a grip on the backlogs and properly understand the scheme’s impact on disabled people, employers and the wider economy.”

The DWP has been contacted for remark.