ESA Support & volunteering & 12 weeks

First of all to say I have been put in the ESA Support group without an ATOS medical - so wanted to say huge thanks for the info on this site and in the downloadable booklets. Helped enormously.

A couple of thoughts though:

I understood that if I did feel up to doing the odd hour of volunteering then I should tell the JobCentre Plus. I'm trying to do an hour a week just down the road at Oxfam. Very, very difficult as my problem is severe anxiety and agoraphobia but have managed to get there two or three times. I phoned JobCentre and they seemed a little surprised (in a pleasant way) that I had made the effort to tell them. Do most people on ESA not bother them with this information?

Also, I see that if I did manage somehow to get a bit better and take a job and it doesn't work out within 12 weeks then I can go straight back into ESA Support at same level. This used to be two years. 12 weeks seems ridiculously short time to know if an illness or disability is going to scupper your ability to do a job over the long term. Anyone else feel this is likely to be holding people back?

PDA wrote: First of all to say I have been put in the ESA Support group without an ATOS medical - so wanted to say huge thanks for the info on this site and in the downloadable booklets. Helped enormously.

A couple of thoughts though:

I understood that if I did feel up to doing the odd hour of volunteering then I should tell the JobCentre Plus. I'm trying to do an hour a week just down the road at Oxfam. Very, very difficult as my problem is severe anxiety and agoraphobia but have managed to get there two or three times. I phoned JobCentre and they seemed a little surprised (in a pleasant way) that I had made the effort to tell them. Do most people on ESA not bother them with this information?

Also, I see that if I did manage somehow to get a bit better and take a job and it doesn't work out within 12 weeks then I can go straight back into ESA Support at same level. This used to be two years. 12 weeks seems ridiculously short time to know if an illness or disability is going to scupper your ability to do a job over the long term. Anyone else feel this is likely to be holding people back?

Hi PDA,

From a "Mods viewpoint" I can only refer you back to my advice given in the post/topic below :

www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/forum?view=top...=10&id=101371#121676

See also a recent query Re : Permitted Work and The SG : Here.

I think that some ESA recipients do not necessarily inform the DWP before they carry out Permitted Work, as they may read the rules, and assume that they can simply carry out the work.

Some ESA claimants may continue to carry out Permitted Work, as they have previously been doing so prior to being transferred to ESA from IB.

The important issue is, that only The DWP can decide that any work that you may intend to do is to be classed as "Permitted Work".

Of course, other members who have personal experience of this issue may wish to make comment.

bro58