Stop the stigma. Fix the system
Most of us will need the benefits system at some point. So, it should treat us all with dignity and respect. Join our campaign to make sure our social security system is there for all of us when we need it.
Will you add your name to our letter to Pat McFadden?
We’re sending the Minister for Work and Pensions a simple message – our social security system must treat everyone with dignity and respect. Our voices are so much more powerful together.
Like our NHS, our social security system was set up to be there for all of us. But right now, the system is failing the people it’s there to protect. That’s why we’ve launched a new campaign to stop the stigma and fix the system.
The process of accessing support is exhausting and scary. People who need support are treated with suspicion and even hostility. Every day, we hear from people who are left feeling ashamed, undeserving and stuck.
This has a devastating impact for our health and wellbeing - over half of people claiming support say the process made their mental health worse. And this just makes it harder to live independently or take the next step in our careers.
To fix the system, we must stop the stigma.
We’re calling for a benefits system that treats everyone with dignity and respect
We agree with the government that our benefits system needs to change. We need a system that is respectful, not condescending. Reassuring, not intimidating.
A social security system that treats everyone with dignity and respect is a system that works. That’s why, based on our research and insights from our co-production partners, we’re telling the government to make three critical changes:
- Transform access to disability benefits - simplify the process of applying for PIP and training assessors so they understand the realities of disability and illness.
- Supportive conversations, not interrogations - make sure frontline staff have the time and tools to build trust with the people they support.
- Jobcentres that lead with trust, not suspicion - give people time and support to prepare for the next step in their career, instead of threatening sanctions that just don’t work.
We've written a policy report detailing these recommendations in full.
Campaign with us
Most of us agree that claiming benefits should not be shameful, but we need to make sure decision-makers know we feel that way.
Whether you’ve experienced financial hardship yourself, you know someone who has, or you just believe in our vision of a social security system that’s there for all of us when we need it, we’re all in this together. Working to create a compassionate system that treats everyone with dignity and respect. A system that we or any of our loved ones are likely to one day need to rely on and that we can all be proud of.
We’ll get there by sharing stories, challenging the stigma of needing help and telling our MPs what needs to change.
You can get involved now by adding your name to our open letter to Pat McFadden, the Minister for Work and Pensions, telling him why it is so important that we can all rely on a social security system that treats us with dignity and respect.