NIHR welfare benefits jobcentre letter

Description:

Liaison with Jobcentre Plus: Payment for public involvement for those in receipt of welfare benefits

Jobcentre Plus will accept an explanation of service user involvement where this is provided on an organisation’s headed paper and is signed by a staff member. This is an example of a letter from the organisation that will be paying you that is addressed to Jobcentre Plus staff when you are obtaining permission for paid involvement or notifying payments received for involvement in your Universal Credit journal. The letter may be enclosed with a Permitted Work (PW1) form, if you are required to notify paid involvement prior to starting. This letter includes a description of the NIHR (or the organisation that you will be involved with) and the purpose of involvement. It explains the context in which payment is offered and how public involvement in research is different from paid employment (especially important to those receiving benefits for limited capacity for work). The letter also explains that you can withdraw from public involvement activities at any time (important to those participating in a ‘work programme’ or actively seeking work). The letter also refers to sections of the Department for Work and Pensions staff guidance that addresses the regulations covering payment for ‘service user involvement’.