Since the Labour Government’s announcement of its intentions to support more disabled people back into work several months ago as part of its ‘Pathways to Work’ Green Paper, Access to Work should undoubtedly play a huge role in delivering that support.
Access to Work is a government-funded grant intended to support people with disabilities in finding and, crucially, staying in work. As a grant, it does not need to be repaid and is not means-tested (though depending on the type of support offered, a ‘contribution’ may be requested from the claimant). Depending on how the person’s health condition affects them, it can pay for a range of support such as :
- Travel to/from work
- Support workers
- Specialist equipment/software
- Adaptions to business premises
Though do note that the above list is not exhaustive.
For context, total expenditure on Access to Work in the year 2023-24 was around £255 million and currently supports around 60,000 individuals. Government forecasts estimate by 2029-30, costs will have risen to £712 million as more people apply for and receive awards under Access to Work (typically awarded on a three-year basis). It is an indisputable fact that more people are applying and receiving Access to Work. But therein lies a contradiction.
In the last few months, various media organisations have reported on ‘secret’ cuts to Access to Work claims. Sir Stephen Timms, minister for the DWP stated to the Disability News Service last month that he had signed off on a proposal from civil servants to apply Access to Work guidance more ‘scrupulously.’ When pressed, he then promised to look into the date on which he received that proposal, before later telling the DNS (via the DWP Press Office) that there had in fact been no change to Access to Work policy.
DWP figures published in October 2025 show that the number of people having Access to Work claims approved fell by 10 percent in the year to March 2025. Requests for aids and equipment fell by 16 percent. Support with travel to work costs fell by 14 percent. Mental health support fell by 7 percent. It has been discussed that the next set of figures for the last 6 months (which won’t be published for another 12 months) are widely expected to show steeper reductions in successful claims.
But at Society Matters, one thing we always strive to help our customers understand is the ‘people behind the process.’ Over the last few months, stories have emerged from news organisations like the BBC of the human cost of these cuts. One disabled entrepreneur who used his lived experience of disability to found a business supporting disabled people in the workplace and himself relied on his Access to Work grant to fund round the clock support workers has found his Access to Work package reduced by 80% with the end result leaving him funding his support himself, but openly admitting he can only do this for a few months. Similarly, a woman working at a hospitality venue in the North East which predominantly employs neurodivergent staff (and so relies on Access to Work funding to support them), found that after waiting 10 months for her reassessment to be done, her support had been cut leaving her employer to pick up the costs. The venue themselves said they had had to let members of staff go previously after problems with Access to Work drove up their costs unsustainably. In short, the system there to remove barriers for disabled people in the workplace is actually contributing to them.
The Government’s aim is to help 100,000 disabled people into work. This is a laudable aim; the disability employment rate has hovered around only 53% for several years now. But how on the one hand can the Government say they want to help disabled people into work while stripping them of the support that allows them to do so? If the Government want to truly support disabled people and tap into the under-utilised pool of talent that disabled people can bring into the workforce, then simply wishing it won’t make it so.
In an interview with the BBC, Sir Stephen Timms (mentioned above) summarised the ‘problem’ with Access to Work as being ‘the number of people wanting support.’ We would argue that attitude is the problem. If the Government want disabled people into work, then how can we blame them and suggest it’s a ‘problem’ for them to take advantage of the support they need, never mind are legally entitled to? Disabled people cannot afford for Access to Work to be the problem. It must be the solution.
⭐Society Matters are proud to say we now offer a half-day CPD-accredited course on Access to Work covering topics such as eligibility, what support Access to Work can provide, the application process and how to manage a claim day-to-day, all using real-life case studies and experience. You can find out more information about the course and sign up for the next session here.
