Influencing disability benefits, Warm Home Discounts policy; creating impact with South Cambs DC, SNG and others

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Policy in Practice analysis drives change on disability benefits reform
Our analysis underpinned a press release from the Mayor of London warning that over 230,000 Londoners could be affected by proposed changes to Personal Independence Payment.

We’re proud our work is helping shape smarter, more compassionate policy. Taking a constructive tone, we joined a roundtable with Dame Meg Hillier MP to talk about how to better support economically inactive people into work. Thank you to Re:State for the invitation.

See Deven's recommendations

Earlier, Deven joined Times Radio’s Neil Breakwell to call for a pause to the reforms to fully assess their impact, especially on already stretched local authority social care budgets.

Listen to the Times Radio interview
Join our webinar on disability benefit reforms

Policy in Practice welcomes Warm Home Discount expansion

The government has announced an expansion of the Warm Home Discount scheme, aimed at helping more low income households with rising energy costs. Policy in Practice welcomes the changes, particularly the retention of automated eligibility and the removal of year by year threshold adjustments.

“These decisions improve certainty and ensure better access for those who need it most,” said Deven Ghelani, Founder of Policy in Practice. “Automating support is critical as it avoids the inequality we see when millions of eligible families miss out.”

Our recent report, The Art of the Possible, found that eight million households are missing out on £3 billion worth of energy, water and broadband social tariffs. We called for an integrated system where most eligible people are automatically enrolled in social tariffs.

Read our full recommendations

See how we can help you identify eligible residents

Policy in Practice and Pocket Power team up to help social housing residents boost their financial resilience

Policy in Practice and Pocket Power have joined forces to make it easier for social housing residents to access vital financial support. The new partnership streamlines referrals between the two services, helping residents claim unclaimed benefits, cut bills, and reduce stress, all with minimal effort.

Through a new software integration, housing advisors can now refer residents directly from the Better Off Calculator to Pocket Power’s money saving services, without needing residents to repeat their details. This results in quicker support, greater efficiency for housing teams, and better outcomes for residents.

“We’re giving housing providers a simple way to reduce arrears, increase efficiency, and improve resident satisfaction,” said Deven Ghelani, Founder of Policy in Practice. “With rising costs and a complex welfare system, this partnership makes it easier to deliver support that works.”

Helen Burgess, Managing Director at Pocket Power, added “By combining income maximisation and expenditure reduction, we’re giving people a clearer path to financial stability, while saving time for advisors and residents alike.”

What it means in practice:

£6,800 per year in unclaimed benefits identified per eligible resident
£250 average savings on household bills through Pocket Power
88% of residents feel less worried about money after support
Reduced arrears and improved rent collection for housing providers
Phone based support helps those without digital access

Real impact:

When Matthew was referred via the Better Off Calculator, Pocket Power had his information in advance. The process was fast and stress-free, and saved him £540 a year on broadband and energy bills.

“It was simple and quick,” Matthew said. “I appreciated not having to repeat all my information again.”

This partnership is especially valuable for frontline staff like Financial Inclusion Managers, Income Officers and Tenancy Support Services Managers, offering a practical tool to strengthen resident engagement, community wellbeing and tenancy sustainability.

Read more about the Policy in Practice and Pocket Power partnership here

🆕 New in LIFT: Support households on LCWRA but missing out on PIP

The Low Income Family Tracker (LIFT) can now identify households that receive the higher level of Limited Capability for Work Related Activity (LCWRA) but are not receiving Personal Independence Payment (PIP).

This group is likely to be affected by upcoming disability benefit reforms, especially as LCWRA rates are frozen in the years ahead. The new filter helps councils pinpoint and check in with households who may be eligible for additional disability support.

Contact your Client Services Manager for further information on using this filter for a campaign

🆕 New in Better Off Calculator: Mutual exchange assessments for housing comparison

We've worked with housing associations to enhance the Better Off Calculator so it can now support mutual exchange assessments. A new toggle allows advisors to switch between a standard benefits check and a mutual exchange journey, factoring in both current and future housing details to give a full picture of affordability.

For customers, a dedicated self-serve link makes it easy to assess potential exchanges. Advisors opening these cases will automatically see the mutual exchange version to ensure accurate support.

Contact us to add mutual exchange assessments to your Better Off Calculator

Innovating financial support: how Sovereign Network Group is tackling the cost of living crisis

Housing associations like Sovereign Network Group (SNG) have seen a sharp rise in demand for support as customers are often unaware of the benefits they may be entitled to. Billions of pounds in benefits go unclaimed each year due to stigma, lack of awareness or application complexity.

SNG partnered with Policy in Practice to address these challenges. By implementing the Better Off Calculator, SNG aimed to support in managing their finances, reduce arrears and debt, and streamline their approach to offering help.

Read the case study here

In June the Policy in Practice team was live at Housing 2025 at Manchester Central, where they connected with housing professionals to share how digital tools are improving the delivery of resident support.

At stand E61, next to the Knowledge Stage, attendees learned how the Better Off Calculator and Better Off Apply are helping organisations streamline benefit applications and improve outcomes.

The team shared how South Norfolk and Broadland District Councils use Better Off Apply to:

Merge benefit processes across two councils
Remove barriers that previously kept eligible residents from claiming support
Reduce unnecessary calls
Support over 270,000 residents with a simplified, digital application journey

By introducing a single streamlined route, the councils saved time for both residents and officers, ensuring more people could access the support they were entitled to.

Read the full case study