Universal credit supports over 6 million people, providing critical financial support and tailored Work Coach services that meet the needs of individual customers. It removes the “cliff edge” for those working up to 16 hours, allowing customers to increase their earnings, while supported by a generous taper rate. This ensures that it pays to work and gives customers increased financial security as they move into work.
In April 2022 we estimated that there were 2.6 million households on legacy benefits in scope to “Move to Universal Credit”. Since July 2022, we have smoothly migrated over 275,000 households from legacy benefits, predominantly tax credit households, to universal credit. By the end of March 2024, we had issued migration notices to over 540,000 households—exceeding our ambition to send 500,000 migration notices by that point.
On 19 April, the Prime Minister announced that we would build on this strong delivery and accelerate the movement of the remaining employment and support allowance and ESA with housing benefit customers to universal credit. Our exact delivery approach and timelines will be informed by detailed planning and ongoing engagement with stakeholders. Backed by additional funding from the Treasury, we expect plans to be agreed by summer 2024. Our current planning assumption is that we would begin notifying this group in September 2024, with the aim of notifying everyone to make the move by December 2025.
Department for Work and Pensions officials have already written to all chief executives of local authorities and members of the well-established universal credit stakeholder network comprising over 200 representatives across the charity, welfare rights and social rented sector landlord community. We also wrote to officials in the devolved administrations and to Citizens Advice given its important role as a delivery partner for Help to Claim.
We estimate that around half of ESA customers will receive over £100 a month more on universal credit, as well as benefiting from the improved work incentives and better labour market support it provides.
The Government have given a commitment that, at the point of transition, no eligible customers who are invited to “Move to Universal Credit” and whose circumstances remain the same will have a lower entitlement to universal credit than they had to legacy benefits. Where necessary, eligible customers will be awarded transitional protection.
Accelerating the “Move to Universal Credit” allows us to build on the strong progress to date, utilising the expertise and knowledge of key programme and operational staff, to transition these households.
The Department has also developed and tested a new “enhanced support” journey for income support and ESA customers who require additional assistance. This process is now in place for these customer groups and involves outbound telephony, system checks and home visits, tailored to individual needs.
The Department has full confidence in its ability to successfully move the final group of legacy benefit customers to the simpler, more effective support system that is universal credit.
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