The Government’s changes to merge a number of different benefits into one ‘Universal Credit’ were rolled out for many existing claimants in Bromley on 25th July.
In other parts of the country where universal credit has already been rolled out, there have been problems, causing hardship for people as a result of the change- in particular the deliberate five week delay (which in many cases takes longer) before getting the first payment can cause people to need to rely on food banks or go into debt.
While some aspects of the rollout have been improved, we still have serious concerns that the changes will cause problems for some of our most vulnerable residents.
If you have moved onto Universal Credit and have any questions or problems, please come along to our UC help surgery on Tuesday 4th September, from 6:30pm at Melvin Hall, Melvin Road, Penge, SE20 8EU.
If you can’t make this session we will be looking to organise more in the future, if you have any problems or need help more urgently- please contact us (Kathy.Bance@bromley.gov.uk, Kevin.Books@bromley.gov.uk or Simon.Jeal@bromley.gov.uk) and we can arrange a 1-1 appointment to provide support.
