Oh no...
My local authority "let me go" following a huge misunderstanding. (Apparently it's not a job for life, regardless of how crap you are at it, who knew?!) Although I did start to recognise the signs of a visit from the Depression fairy right around the time my doctor gave me anti-depressants and a counseling appointment. OK, I am a bit slow sometimes, and the inability to get off the train in the mornings and spending all day sobbing uncontrollably should have been pointers as well, it was the joys of Incapacity Benefit that made it worse....

Oh Yes...

Now, Incap Ben is dealt with by the Dept of Work and Pensions in the UK, and as a claimant you meet face to face with them at you local JobCentre Plus. My local one has green and blue livery, and grey carpets, and the usual smells of alcohol, desparation and bodily waste. There's a person in a suit in the foyery bit. I don't actually know if that person works there, they have an ID badge or something, but they don't ever seem to know where anything, or anyone is, so they could just be someone who's a bit odd who turns up 'cos they like people.

Now after the Dr's appointment, I called the Benefits Helpline, they happily told me that I would be better off claiming Income Support, because I would get more money. So I'd waited for the forms to come in the post, I'd filled them in, made an appointment, and showed up at this particular Dante's circle in good time. Simple, I thought.

I asked the suit at the door where I needed to be, and took my seat on the stained upholstery, and waited. Waited some more, and then a bit more after that. When I was finally called, I took a seat at the desk and I explained my situation to a dull-eyed female employee. She sat impassive as I showed her the forms that I had completed, and my supporting documents.
Her forehead wrinkled a bit "OK, OK..Sparkie, why have you filled forms in for a benefit that you're not entitled to?"

"Erm, it's Ms Sparkie to you actually, and because your colleagues told me to" I replied

"Well that was stupid. Your GP has signed you off, you should be getting Incapacity, you can't claim Income Support because your kids are too old."
"But they're still in full-time education"
"Doesn't matter, they're over 16"
"Ok, could I have the correct forms then please? I'll fill them in now"
she shrugged disaffectedly and threw a "War and Peace" sized lump of paper onto the desk in front of me, and pointed over to some sticky desks at the side of the room.

So off I trotted, and filled exactly the same information onto the new forms, in the same order, in the same boxes, because it was the same form, just blue, rather than beige. handed it back to Oscar the Grouch's sister, got a receipt, and thought no more of it.

Eight-odd weeks later, after numerous phone calls from my friends and family members on my behalf, a member of staff admitted that they probably had been getting my sicknotes in the post, and had also been getting the phonecalls on my behalf. They just weren't going to "root all through all that post, it'd take all day, and we don't have the time" Meantime, my rent and bills were going unpaid, but my Mum had been buying food and looking after me a bit, so it was only going to be short term. One afternoon she said to me. "You know your brother used to work for Housing Benefits? Well, I spoke to him about you, and he said that you have to write to your MP, or they'll keep ignoring you"

So I found him via www.writetothem.com/
sent an email, and you know what?

It only worked! Really! My genius of an MP wrote to the Head Honcho at their office, and with much bowing and scraping (to him, not to me, mind)They agreed to sending the arrears via a CHAPS (ie same day) payment of all the money outstanding, it had already hit my account when I got his reply (email and hard copy)containing the arch-grovel from the manager.

So, write to your MP! I wonder if they appreciate the work?
(Beer Elf Thought this was like a campfire, anyhow, on, Tue 7 Apr 2009, 14:41, 2 replies)

Your MP kicks arse

(Stu Moo winner of five nobble piece prizes, Tue 7 Apr 2009, 20:54, closed)

Forms
I suspect that someone somewhere has figured out that the more unnecessarily complicated the application process, the fewer the applicants - unemployment goes down, result.

Excellent result though - a shame more people don't do it.
(Photon wasting your time since, Wed 8 Apr 2009, 0:37, closed)