Majority of disabled people would like to exercise more but fear the DWP would cut their benefits

Fear of losing benefits is stopping disabled people from being physically active, new research has found.

The report, released this week by Disability Rights UK (DRUK), finds that eight in 10 disability benefit claimants are caught in the “activity trap”: they want to be more active, but worry that doing so will jeopardise their financial support.

Physical activity helps many disabled people manage their conditions, said Laura Horton from DRUK. But perversely, the current system can discourage them from it.

“Disabled people should not fear taking part in physical activity, in a society where government and the NHS, regularly promote the importance of keeping active for maintaining our health and wellbeing,” she said.

“DWP should ensure that assessment processes don’t discriminate against disabled people who are trying to stay active.”

The study had a relatively small sample size of 207 participants, but its findings illustrate the fear many face around benefit cuts.

Read more:

• Timms Review recommends changes to ‘dehumanising’ PIP assessment process
• British public don’t back cuts to disability benefits – even Reform and Tory voters
• Labour is facing calls to means-test disability benefit PIP. Here’s why it would push up poverty

Some 72% of respondents said they would be more likely to be physically active if their benefits were unconditional and they did not risk losing them by being active.

It is not merely an imagined risk. More than one in four (28%) participants reported having had benefits denied, reduced or removed in circumstances they associated with their physical activity.

One participant lost her employment and support allowance (ESA) on reassessment. The only change in her circumstances was that she had tried to become more physically active to prepare for upcoming surgery.

“I’d had one hip replaced, the other one was still dislocating. I couldn’t walk,” she said. “And because I talked about getting my husband to put me on an exercise bike, I couldn’t lift my legs onto the bike, but I would get on the bike because I had to maintain enough fitness to get the surgery, and it was very painful. I cried every kilometre. But I did it every week and the woman decided that I was fit for work in that state.”

Another participant lost their disability living allowance (DLA) – a legacy benefit replaced by personal independence payment (PIP) for new claimants – after telling the job centre they were involved at a local wrestling school.

They received a letter thanking them for informing the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) of a change in circumstances and stating that their lifetime DLA award had been stopped.

“I rang the DWP and said ‘I haven’t told anybody about a change in circumstances… I’ve still got Cerebral Palsy. I’m still a part-time wheelchair user. Why is this happening?’” they said. “They’ve turned around and said, ‘You’re wrestling, so you obviously don’t have cerebral palsy. We’re going to take away your Disability Living Allowance.’”

And one disabled person said their DWP caseworker told them over the phone that ‘no one will believe that you cannot walk because you cycle and swim’. This was despite their use of an adapted bike to commute and the fact that they couldn’t walk without assistance.

A DWP spokesperson said that reforms would be announced soon.

“As the Timms Review’s interim report made clear, PIP is no longer fit for purpose,” they said. “The Milburn and Timms Reviews, due in the Autumn, will lay the foundation for sustainable reform, and we will not pre-empt their findings.”

The Timms review is examining how PIP – the main disability benefit in England and Wales – should operate.

Early findings from the review found that the PIP assessment process is “stressful and dehumanising”. Last month, the review pledged to reduce unnecessary reassessments for people with lifelong or degenerative conditions.

But the future of disability benefits remains contested.

Working-age disability benefit spending in England and Wales is expected to hit £27.8bn this year, 183% higher in real terms than when the benefit was introduced in 2019.

Last week, a Resolution Foundation report found that one in six working-age people receiving PIP reported no additional costs from their disability. The think tank argued that these claimants were not using the benefit as intended and called for their support to be cut.

This said, the Resolution Foundation also described an “profoundly problematic” “improvement trap” whereby recipients said they were afraid to leave the house, exercise or work in case it counted against them at a future reassessment.

As the Timms review approaches its conclusion, there are still plenty of unknowns about how the new disability system will operate.  

The findings of the new activity report have been discussed with Stephen Timms MP, the minister for social security and disability who is leading the review.

“No disabled person should have to choose between being active for their health, wellbeing and enjoyment, and protecting the vital financial support they rely on,” said Adam Blaze, chief executive of Activity Alliance.

“Government must now work with disabled people to create a fairer social security system that understands fluctuating conditions and enables active lives rather than discouraging them.”

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