PIP Home Visit Replaced With Assessment Centre

My husband who has paranoid schizophrenia had a home assessment booked. He was not well so following good advice from here I contacted Atos customer service line. I was told I could cancel the appointment and a paper based assessment would be done.

I gave over the details of his new CPN for them to contact for more information and said I could get more information from the psychiatrist (even though I submitted some)

Today - I have been told they still need to see him and it will be at an assessment centre.

Why the assessment centre even though he's not mobile and he's hardly had contact with the outside world in eight years.

They will not visit because he had a psychotic episode!! He also had had a night terror and tried to throttle me in his sleep - which he's done for 24 years. Obviously they think it's much safer to increase his stress levels by magically getting him to an assessment centre.

The customer service man told me that they can see that the assessor has made no effort to contact his CPN (and frankly I doubt she read the 54 pages of evidence).

Want to cry.

Now they have to contact me in the next two days.

BIS

This is a difficult one. ATOS have a duty of care to their staff, so I think it unlikely that you will be able to arrange a new home visit which leaves you only other option being a paper assessment.

I would start by contacting you MP

Contacting your MP

and then the DWP, it's important that you position his problems to them in case you have to cancel the appointment again.

Providing you are happy to do so, I would emphasise the risk to your husband and others at the assessment centre if he is required to attend.

Gordon

Thank you.

My MP was the late Jo Cox - and we haven't anyone until there is a bi election so I am trying the Secretary of State.

My husband's CPN is writing urgently and saying what this is doing to his health - as they don't seem to want to speak to her and will try to say they can assess him at home with her present.

My husband has been in hospital for the last 3 days for his physical difficulties which have been untreated because of his mental health so I'm not quite sure what they want from him.

BIS

A couple of things.

As Jo Cox was a Labour MP you could try contacting the Labour Party for support, they may be more effective than the Secretary of State.

If your husband is currently in hospital then make sure the DWP, ATOS and anybody you are trying to get help from, know this and the reasons why and keep them updated of any deterioration in his health.

Gordon