Research and analysis

Universal Credit Full Service Omnibus Survey: findings from four waves of tracking research with recent Universal Credit full service claimants

Updated 20 December 2024

DWP research report no. 1078

A report of research carried out by Ipsos MORI on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

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First published October 2024

ISBN 987-1-78659-731-1

Views expressed in this report are not necessarily those of the Department for Work and Pensions or any other government department.

Acknowledgements

The research team at Ipsos MORI would like to thank Antony Billinghurst at DWP for his advice during the design of this research. We would also like to express our thanks to the respondents who kindly gave up their time to take part in our surveys.

The Authors

This report was authored by researchers at the Ipsos MORI Social Research Institute:

Trinh Tu, Research Director
Natasha Jones, Research Executive

Glossary

Term	Description
Claimant Commitment	To claim Universal Credit claimants must agree to conditions set out in their Claimant Commitment. These conditions are based on the conditionality group the claimant falls under and determine their responsibilities to look for work. Failure to comply with the conditions agreed in the Claimant Commitment can lead to sanctions.
Conditionality group	Everyone who receives Universal Credit will be placed in a conditionality group based on their circumstances and work capability. The group that a claimant is placed in determines what is expected of them during their claim.
Intensive work search regime	Claimants in this group are either out-of-work or earning below the Administrative Earnings Threshold (£338 a month or £541 for couples). They are expected to take intensive action to find work and must attend regular Work-focused-Interviews with their Work Coach.
Light touch conditionality	Claimants in this group earn above the Administrative Earnings Threshold but less than the conditionality earnings threshold. They are expected to take actions to find more or better paying work and have less frequent contact with their Work Coach.
No conditionality group	Claimants in this group have no work-related requirements attached to their claim.
Universal Credit and Full Service	A means-tested benefit for people of working-age who are on a low income. It replaces 6 existing means-tested benefits: Income Support; Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance; Income-related Employment and Support Allowance; Housing Benefit; Child Tax Credit; and Working Tax Credit. —- Universal Credit full service is now available everywhere in Great Britain, and requires claimants to have an online Universal Credit account to manage their claim.

Executive Summary

Introduction

This report presents findings from 2 waves of a survey with a representative sample of new Universal Credit (UC) full service claimants^{[footnote 1]}. The surveys examine how well new claimants understand the UC claim process and their rights and responsibilities with a view to meeting their information needs.

There have been 4 waves of these surveys. This report contains findings for waves 3 and 4. The wave 3 survey interviewed 836 new claimants during February and March 2019. Wave 4 took place during 28 February and 15 March 2020 and interviewed 2,033 different UC claimants^{[footnote 2]}. Wave 4 findings are, therefore, based on claimants’ experiences prior to the covid-19 pandemic lockdown which came into effect on 23 March 2020.

Overall understanding of Universal Credit

Overall understanding of UC was consistently high among new claimants at both waves 3 and 4. At wave 4, 3-in-4 new claimants (76%) reported that they knew how to claim UC and 4-in-5 (81%) knew what would happen if they failed to comply with their Claimant Commitment.

New claimants recalled being given key information by staff when they first made their claim. Again, findings were consistently positive for both waves 3 and 4. Nearly 9-in-ten (87%) at wave 4 were made aware that they needed to have a bank or similar account and 71% recalled being told they needed to have an email address. Seven-in-ten (70%) were aware that UC was paid monthly in arrears and 4-in-5 (79%) were informed that the first payment could take up to 5 weeks.

Awareness of advance payments was also high with 3-in-4 new claimants (74%) reporting that they were told about it. 3-in-5 claimants (58%) reported that they had applied for an advance whilst waiting for their first UC payment. Findings were similar at both waves 3 and 4.

Attitudes towards the work incentive features of UC were more positive at wave 4: 47% of new claimants agreed that they would always be better-off working under UC (+6 percentage points compared to wave 3) though knowledge on how much people could earn and still claim UC remained low (38% vs. 37% at wave 3). Attitudes and knowledge on these aspects were more positive among younger claimants particularly those aged 16 to 34.

Work allowance and taper rate

Claimants who have responsibility for a child or have limited capability for work are eligible for a work allowance. This is the amount claimants can earn before their UC payment is affected. There are 2 set levels of work allowance, depending on the circumstances of the household. Currently those whose claim includes Housing Benefit can earn £192 and those without can earn £397 before their UC claim is affected. Once claimants earn more than their work allowance, their payments will be reduced at a steady rate (the taper rate). Currently, for every £1 earned over the work allowance, UC payments are reduced by 63p.

New claimants’ understanding of the taper rate and eligibility for the work allowance remained low, albeit with a modest increase in overall knowledge of the taper rate between waves 2 and 4^{[footnote 3]} (from 3 percent to 7 per cent). Just 2 percent of new claimants at wave 4 identified correctly the 2 groups eligible for the work allowance and 7 per cent identified the correct taper rate. Seven-in-ten claimants (69%) did not know whether they qualified for a work allowance - similar to wave 2 findings.

Conditionality and sanctions

Everyone who receives UC is placed in a conditionality group based on their circumstances and work capability. The group they are in determines what is expected of them during their claim. Claimants who are required to take steps to get work, or move closer to it, or to increase their hours/income if they are already working agree a Claimant Commitment with their Work Coach, setting out the steps they will take. Failure to action these responsibilities could result in a temporary reduction to their UC, though claimants may appeal against this decision.

Half of claimants (52%) at wave 4 were fully knowledgeable of the factors that could lead to UC payments being stopped or reduced. At least 7-in-ten were aware of the main factors that could result in sanctions such as failing to attend a compulsory meeting with a Jobcentre adviser, failing to fulfil the Claimant Commitment, and failing to take reasonable action to look for work. The exception was “failing to apply for a job when asked to by the Jobcentre Adviser” – fewer new claimants (59%) were aware that this could lead to UC being reduced or stopped. Findings were similar for waves 3 and 4.

The majority of new claimants (81%) believed they have a good understanding of the implications of failing to comply with their Claimant Commitment, but further questioning showed that many had poor understanding of the implications to their benefit payments. This pattern was apparent at both waves 3 and 4. At wave 4, just one in 6 claimants (16%) correctly identified that their benefits could be reduced on a temporary basis if they failed to comply with the requirements in their Claimant Commitment. Claimants were better informed about their right to appeal a sanction on their claim – 54% knew this, which was similar to wave 3 findings.

Male claimants were more knowledgeable about conditionality and sanctions than females and younger claimants more knowledgeable than older ones.

Childcare

Claimants who are eligible for UC may be able to claim back up to 85% of their ‘formal’ childcare costs, usually if they are doing some paid work or have a job offer. Currently the most parents can claim back each month is £646 for one child or £1,108 for 2 or more children.

Parents’ awareness of available childcare support remained low though there has been an increase in the proportion of parents who knew they could claim childcare costs for all their children regardless of age, albeit from a low base (7% at wave 4 compared to 3% at wave 3). There has been no corresponding increase in parents’ knowledge of how much of their total childcare costs they could claim (8% correctly identified that they could claim more than three-quarters of the costs at both waves 3 and 4).

One-in-5 parents were aware that Jobcentre advisors could provide support to cover the first childcare costs in advance of them moving in to work; findings were similar for waves 3 and 4.

The majority of parents were able to identify at least one acceptable evidence of payments required to claim formal childcare costs, but awareness of how often they must report childcare payments to the Jobcentre remained low and unchanged between wave 3 and 4 (16% knew they must report monthly).

The most common reasons given by parents for not claiming the childcare element of UC was because they were not sure they would be eligible (19%), that their childcare was covered by another government scheme (12%), that they weren’t aware of the UC offer, and because they were not eligible for it (6%).

Housing

Claimants who are eligible for UC can get help paying for their housing if they rent from a private landlord, housing association or local authority, or to cover interest payments on their mortgage and service charges. The housing payment is included as part of the monthly UC payment and claimants are responsible for paying rent to their landlord. Once they have started claiming the housing payment, claimants need to report any changes in circumstances to the Jobcentre.

Claimants must apply directly to their local authority if they want to make a claim for Council Tax reduction.

The majority of claimants (80%) who received help with housing costs through UC reported that they were made aware that they must pay rent to their landlord directly when they applied for UC. Claimants were less familiar with the requirement to apply to their local authority for Council Tax (55%). Findings were similar at waves 3 and 4. 3-in-4 new claimants who paid rent (73%) knew they needed to keep the Jobcentre informed about changes, and over half (55%) knew it was also their responsibility to tell the Jobcentre about their rent-free weeks. However, new claimants were much less clear about what would happen to their UC payments if they regularly missed their rent payments (28%). Findings were similar at waves 3 and 4.

Conclusions

New claimants’ understanding of how to claim UC have remained consistently high, evidenced by the high levels of recall of Jobcentre staff providing key information at the start of the claim.

Attitudes towards the work incentive features of UC improved between waves 3 and 4 though there is more that the Jobcentre can do to shift attitudes further such as ensuring claimants understand the work allowance and taper rate and how they affect them.

The majority of new claimants were able to identify at least some of the reasons that would result in their UC being reduced or stopped. However, they would benefit from more information on how a sanction would impact their UC payments and their right to appeal.

More needs to be done to ensure that parents are better informed about the childcare element of UC. Knowledge remained low across all parents including those using formal childcare.

Strategies to improve awareness and understanding of UC should prioritise older claimants (aged 45 plus) and former ESA claimants. These groups remained less informed than others.

1. Introduction

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) commissioned Ipsos MORI to conduct a tracking survey of recent Universal Credit (UC) claimants who made their claim using full service^{[footnote 4]}.

Universal Credit is paid to people on low incomes or out-of-work. It is paid monthly in arrears and is available everywhere in Great Britain. It replaces 6 benefits:

• Housing Benefit
• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Working Tax Credits
• Child Tax Credits.

Claimants must have an online Universal Credit account to manage their claim.

1.1. Research aims

The purpose of this tracking research is to measure how well new claimants understand the claim process and their rights and responsibilities, with a view to meeting their information needs.

The research focuses on the following aspects of UC:

• the initial claim process including knowing how to apply for an advance
• the work allowance and taper rate
• conditionality and sanctions
• use of formal childcare and applying for help with childcare costs
• knowledge of how to apply for housing costs as part of UC.

1.2. Method

There have been 4 waves of survey undertaken with a representative sample of new claimants in terms of gender, age, single/couple claim and conditionality group. The findings in this report are for the wave 3 and 4 surveys.

A new sample was drawn for each wave. The surveys used sequential mixed mode; starting with online and then telephone follow-up interviews focusing on claimants who were under-represented in the online survey. The number of completed interviews at each wave is shown in Table 1.

Wave 4 took place during 28 February and 15 March 2020^{[footnote 5]}. Wave 4 findings are, therefore, based on claimants’ experiences prior to the covid-19 pandemic lockdown which came into effect on 23 March 2020.

Table 1: Number of achieved interviews

Wave	Total interviews	Fieldwork dates
1	1,586	October to November 2017
2	1,445	May to June 2018
3	836[footnote 6]	February to March 2019
4	2,033	February to March 2020

1.3. Analysis

This report presents weighted findings. The demographic profile of claimants was slightly different between waves 3 and 4. Wave 4 surveyed more claimants who are: male, aged 35-44 years or in the intensive conditionality group (see Appendix A). This report only comments on changes or differences that are statistically significant.

2. Routes onto Universal Credit full service

The proportion of Universal Credit (UC) full service claimants who were claiming another benefit prior to UC have fallen steadily over the 4 waves of this study. More were delaying their claim for UC, most commonly because they thought they would get another job quickly or because they believed they wouldn’t qualify for UC.

2.1. Routes onto UC

Over half of new claimants (53%) had claimed another benefit prior to their current UC claim at wave 4. There has been a decline over time in the proportion of claimants who claimed another benefit prior to their current UC claim, from 71% at wave 1 to 66% at wave 2 and 65% at wave 3. The reduction at wave 4 is evident across different age groups, gender and among both couple and single claimants. Interestingly, claimants who had not claimed another benefit prior to their current UC claim reported similar levels of knowledge about UC as those applying from another benefit.

At wave 4, the most common benefits claimed by respondents prior to UC were Housing Benefit/Council Tax (22%), Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA; 19%) and tax credits (18%). One in ten (10%) had claimed Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and a similar proportion had claimed Income Support (8%).

2.2. Reasons for delaying UC claim

At wave 4, 3 in ten new claimants (30%) who were claiming another benefit had delayed making a claim for UC – higher than at wave 3 (23%). A third of claimants (36%) delayed their claim because they thought they would find another job quickly, and a further quarter (25%) thought they would not qualify for UC (Figure 2.1 on the following page). These reasons were more prevalent at wave 4 (findings were 20% and 14% respectively at wave 3).

There has been a decline in the number of claimants delaying their claim because they didn’t know how to claim UC, from 29% at wave 3 to 23% at wave 4. More female claimants than males cited this reason.

Table 2 questions 1 and 2: Reasons for delaying claim for UC

Question 1: Did you delay making your claim to Universal Credit when your circumstances changed?

Response	Percentage
Yes	30%
No	55%
Can’t remember	16%

Base: All 3 month claimants (W4 2,033)

Question 2: Why did you delay making your claim for Universal Credit?

Reason	Percentage
I thought I would get another job quickly	36%
I thought I wouldn’t qualify for UC	25%
I didn’t know what to do	23%
I have a medical condition that prevents me from applying/working	15%
I thought my old benefits would start again	8%
Process of applying looked complicated/time consuming	5%
I didn’t have all the paperwork needed in order to apply	3%
Lack of support/advice/wrong advice	3%

Base: All 3 month claimants who delayed making Universal Credit claim (310)

3. Overall understanding of Universal Credit

When people claim UC, they must accept their Claimant Commitment. This is a record of their responsibilities, setting out what a claimant has agreed to do to prepare for and look for work, or to increase their earnings if they are already working. The Claimant Commitment is regularly reviewed with the claimant by a Jobcentre Work Coach who explains the consequences of not meeting these responsibilities.

The majority of claimants understood what they needed to do to claim UC and knew what would happen if they failed to fulfil their Claimant Commitment. Views were more divided on whether they would always be better-off working under UC. This is linked to a lack of knowledge about how much they can earn and still claim.

3.1. Overall understanding of UC

New full service UC claimants were generally knowledgeable about how to make a claim for UC and understood what would happen to their benefit if they did not fulfil their Claimant Commitment (76% and 81% respectively). Claimants’ knowledge about these aspects increased between waves 1 and 2 but have been stable thereafter.

Table 3: Overall understanding of UC

Question: How strongly do you agree or disagree with these statements?

Statement	Strongly agree %	Agree %	Neither agree or disagree %	Disagree %	Strongly disagree %	Don’t know %
I understand what might happen to my benefit if I don’t do what’s in my Claimant Commitment	32%	49%	8%	4%	3%	5%

Wave	Agree %
W4	81%
W3	80%
W2	80%
W1	77%

Statement	Strongly agree %	Agree %	Neithef agree or disagree %	Disagree %	Strongly disagree %	Don’t know %
I understand what I need to do to claim Universal Credit	28%	48%	10%	4%	5%	4%

Wave	Agree %
W4	76%
W3	73%
W2	74%
W1	67%

Base: All 3 month claimants (W4 2,033) (W3 836) (W2 1,445) (W1 1,586). May not sum exactly with bar charts due to rounding.

As seen in previous waves of the Omnibus, former ESA claimants and claimants aged 45 plus were less informed about how to claim UC compared to claimants overall (though the majority of these groups understood what they needed to do). There has been a noticeable increase in the proportion of claimants aged 35 to 44 reporting they understood what they needed to do to claim UC (76% vs. 67% at wave 3).

Claimants’ understanding of the Claimant Commitment remained high across all claimant groups albeit slightly lower among older claimants and those formerly in receipt of ESA or Housing Benefit.

Tables 4 A and B: Overall understanding of UC by age and prior benefits at wave 4

A: I understand what I need to do to claim Universal Credit

Age	Agree %	Disagree %
16 to 24	82%	7%
25 to 34	81%	8%
35 to 44	76%	11%
45+	69%	11%
All ages	76%	10%

Base: All (2,033), 16 to 24 (353), 25 to 34 (525), 35 to 44 (486), 45+ (669)

Benefits claimed before UC	Agree %	Disagree %
Tax Credits	76%	10%
ESA	64%	13%
JSA	80%	8%
HB	79%	11%
IS	72%	12%
None	78%	9%
All benefits	76%	10%

Base: All (2,033), Tax Credits (362), ESA (144), JSA (367), HB (107), IS (80), None (973)

B: I understand what might happen to my benefit if I don’t do what’s in my Claimant Commitment

Age	Agree %	Disagree %
16 to 24	87%	6%
25 to 34	84%	7%
35 to 44	76%	8%
45+	78%	9%
All ages	81%	8%

Base: All (2,033), 16 to 24 (353), 25 to 34 (525), 35 to 44 (486), 45+ (669)

Benefits claimed before UC	Agree %	Disagree %
Tax Credits	79%	8%
ESA	75%	9%
JSA	82%	8%
HB	72%	7%
IS	88%	7%
None	82%	7%
All benefits	81%	8%

Base: All (2,033), Tax Credits (362), ESA (144), JSA (367), HB (107), IS (80), None (973)

3.2. UC payments and deductions

Around two-thirds of new claimants also reported that it was clear from their UC account how their payment was calculated and what deductions were being made. These figures remained stable between waves 3 and 4^{[footnote 7]}. Younger claimants were slightly clearer about both their payments and deductions compared to claimants aged 45 plus, though noticeably more claimants in this oldest age group found the presentation of payments and deduction clear at wave 4 compared to wave 3.

Tables 5 A and B: Clarity of UC payments and deductions by age and prior benefits at wave 4

A: My Universal Credit account makes it clear how my payment is calculated

Age	Agree %	Disagree %
16 to 24	68%	16%
25 to 34	70%	16%
35 to 44	65%	19%
45+	60%	20%
All ages	65%	18%

Base: All (2,033), 16 to 24 (353), 25 to 34 (525), 35 to 44 (486), 45+ (669)

Benefits claimed before UC	Agree %	Disagree %
Tax Credits	68%	18%
ESA	66%	17%
JSA	64%	17%
HB	67%	14%
IS	67%	20%
None	64%	19%
All benefits	65%	18%

Base: All (2,033), Tax Credits (362), ESA (144), JSA (367), HB (107), IS (80), None (973)

B: My Universal Credit account makes it clear what deductions are being made

Age	Agree %	Disagree %
16 to 24	69%	12%
25 to 34	71%	13%
35 to 44	65%	16%
45+	63%	17%
All ages	67%	15%

Base: All (2,033), 16 to 24 (353), 25 to 34 (525), 35 to 44 (486), 45+ (669)

Benefits claimed before UC	Agree %	Disagree %
Tax Credits	69%	16%
ESA	65%	14%
JSA	65%	13%
HB	66%	12%
IS	75%	15%
None	66%	15%
All benefits	67%	15%

Base: All (2,033), Tax Credits (362), ESA (144), JSA (367), HB (107), IS (80), None (973)

3.3. Attitudes towards, and knowledge of, the work incentives

Attitudes towards the work incentive features of UC were more positive at wave 4 compared to previous waves: 47% agreed that they are always better-off working compared with 41% in wave 3. However, new claimants’ knowledge about how much they could earn and still claim UC remained patchy (38%) and unchanged between waves 3 and 4.

Table 6: Attitudes towards work incentive and knowledge of earnings rule

Question: How strongly do you agree or disagree with these statements?

Statement	Strongly agree %	Agree %	Neither agree or disagree %	Disagree %	Strongly disagree %	Don’t know %
Under UC, I am always better off working despite the hours I work	20%	27%	19%	11%	10%	13%

Wave	Agree %
W4	47%
W3	41%
W2	44%
W1	37%

Statement	Strongly agree %	Agree %	Neithef agree or disagree %	Disagree %	Strongly disagree %	Don’t know %
I know how much I can earn and still claim UC	12%	26%	15%	18%	13%	16%

Wave	Agree %
W4	38%
W3	37%
W2	35%
W1	32%

Base: All 3 month claimants (W4 2,033) (W3 836) (W2 1,445) (W1 1,586). Do not sum exactly with bar charts due to rounding.

Views differed by age, with younger claimants more informed and positive about the work incentive features of UC than their older counterparts. However, there has been a positive shift in views among claimants aged 45 plus: 41% believed that under UC they are always better-off working compared to 31% at wave 3.

Former ESA claimants remained the least informed about how much they could earn and were most sceptical that they would be always be better-off working under UC. Views expressed by former ESA claimants did not change between waves 3 and 4.

Tables 7 A and B: Attitudes towards work incentive and knowledge of earnings rule at wave 4

A: Under Universal Credit I am always better off despite the hours I work

Age	Agree %	Disagree %
16 to 24	50%	17%
25 to 34	52%	22%
35 to 44	44%	23%
45+	41%	21%
All ages	47%	21%

Base: All (2,033), 16 to 24 (353), 25 to 34 (525), 35 to 44 (486), 45+ (669)

Benefits claimed before UC	Agree %	Disagree %
Tax Credits	41%	26%
ESA	25%	27%
JSA	52%	20%
HB	53%	18%
IS	36%	25%
None	50%	18%
All benefits	47%	21%

Base: All (2,033), Tax Credits (362), ESA (144), JSA (367), HB (107), IS (80), None (973)

B: I know how much I can earn and still claim Universal Credit

Age	Agree %	Disagree %
16 to 24	47%	27%
25 to 34	40%	31%
35 to 44	37%	31%
45+	31%	32%
All ages	38%	31%

Base: All (2,033), 16 to 24 (353), 25 to 34 (525), 35 to 44 (486), 45+ (669)

Benefits claimed before UC	Agree %	Disagree %
Tax Credits	39%	29%
ESA	26%	34%
JSA	38%	30%
HB	45%	23%
IS	48%	23%
None	38%	32%
All benefits	38%	31%

Base: All (2,033), Tax Credits (362), ESA (144), JSA (367), HB (107), IS (80), None (973)

3.3. Understanding of the initial claim process

The majority of claimants were aware of at least some of the key features of UC when they first made their claim for it. Levels of awareness of different features have remained stable between waves 3 and 4, as has the proportion who were knowledgeable on at least 5 to 6 features (63%).

There continues to be a small but significant group of claimants with low levels of awareness: 12% of claimants were aware of 2 or fewer aspects and an additional 21% were aware of 3-4 of them (both unchanged compared to wave 3).

Table 8: Understanding of the initial claim process

When you first made your claim for Universal Credit, were you made aware that…?	W4 %	W3 %	W2 %	W1 %
You need a bank account or similar account to receive payments	87%	87%	86%	82%
It takes up to 5 weeks to receive your first payment	79%	80%	82%	76%
You can apply for an advance if the delay in the first payment will cause hardship	74%	74%	75%	60%
Any advance is a loan and will be paid back through your UC payment	74%	72%	73%	58%
You need an email address to claim	71%	72%	69%	62%
UC is paid monthly in arrears	72%	70%	70%	67%
None of these	4%	4%	4%	7%

Base: All 3 month claimants (W4 2,033) (W3 836) (W2 1,445) (W1 1,586)

Male claimants continued to be more knowledgeable than females (68% were aware of 5 to 6 features vs. 59% females), but there was no significant difference in knowledge by age. The other noticeable difference is that former tax credit claimants were less aware than average that UC is paid monthly in arrears and that an email address is required to claim for UC.

Table 9: Understanding of the initial claim process by gender and prior benefits at wave 4

Wave 4: Gender

When you first made your claim for Universal Credit, were you made aware that…?	Male	Female
You need a bank account	90%	85%
It takes up to 5 weeks to receive your first payment	80%	77%
You can apply for an advance	77%	72%
Any advance is a loan	77%	72%
UC is paid monthly in arrears	78%	67%
You need an email address	75%	67%
None of these	4%	4%

Wave 4: Benefits claimed before Universal Credit

Things to be aware of	Tax Credits	ESA	JSA	HB	IS	None
You need a bank account	86%	87%	88%	84%	88%	87%
It takes up to 5 weeks to receive your first payment	80%	76%	79%	74%	73%	79%
You can apply for an advance	74%	72%	76%	60%	79%	75%
Any advance is a loan	75%	76%	78%	60%	76%	74%
UC is paid monthly in arrears	67%	69%	77%	75%	64%	74%
You need an email address	66%	70%	75%	73%	69%	72%
None of these	4%	3%	3%	3%	2%	4%

Base: Overall 2,033, Male (1,085), Female (948), Tax Credits (362), ESA (144), JSA (367), HB (107), IS (80), None (973)

3.4. Awareness of, and application for, advance payments

Three-quarters of new claimants (74%) were aware they could apply for an advance payment and 58% reported that they had applied for one whilst waiting for their first UC payment (Table 10). These figures were similar at waves 3 and 4. The average advance payment reported at wave 4 was £392 – slightly less than at wave 3 (£404).

Table 10: Amount of advance payment claimants received

Question: Approximately how much advance payment did you get?

Amount	Percentage
Nothing	1%
Up to £99	1%
£100 to £199	6%
£200 to £299	20%
£300 to £399	22%
£400 to £499	6%
Over £500	37%
Can’t remember	6%

Awareness of, and application for, advance payments were lowest among former Housing Benefit claimants though the amount received by successful applicants was higher than average. The application level was similarly low among those that had not claimed another benefit prior to UC though the majority of this group were aware of advance payments. These patterns were observed at both waves 3 and 4.

Table 11. Application for advance payments by prior benefits at wave 4^{[footnote 8]}

Benefits claimed before Universal Credit	% Aware of advance	% Applied for advance[footnote 9]	Average advance payment received[footnote 10]
Overall	74%	58%	£392
Former Tax Credits claimants	75%	67%	£471
Former JSA claimants	78%	66%	£343
Former ESA claimant	76%	60%	£419
Former Income Support claimants	76%	77%	£388
Former Housing Benefit claimant	60%	44%	£444
No prior claim	74%	50%	£366

New claimants gave similar reasons at waves 3 and 4 for why they did not apply for an advance. The most common were because they had sufficient funds, because they did not want to apply for one, and because they were worried that they would not be able to pay it back. The prevalence of the reasons given were also similar at both waves.

Table 12: Reasons for not applying for an advance payment

Question 1: Did you apply for an advance whilst waiting for your first UC payment?

Response	Percentage
Yes	58%
No	40%
Can’t remember	2%

Base: All claimants aware of the option to request an advance payment (W4 1,509)

Question 2: Why did you not apply for an advance?

Reason	Percentage
I had money/could get by	38%
Did not want to	32%
I was worried I wouldn’t be able to pay it back	28%
Did not know how to	5%
Found out about it too late	5%
Process of applying looked complicated/time consuming	3%
Was told I would not get it	2%
I had help from family/friends	0%
Other	8%

Base: All 3 month claimants who were aware of advance payment but did not apply (W4 586)

4. Work allowance and taper rate

Claimants who have responsibility for a child or have limited capability for work are eligible for a work allowance. This is the amount claimants can earn before their UC payment is affected. Once claimants earn more than their work allowance, their payments will be reduced at a steady rate (the taper rate). Currently, for every £1 earned over the work allowance, UC payments are reduced by 63p. Knowledge about the work allowance and taper rate remained low, even amongst claimants who thought they qualified for it.

4.1. Knowledge about the work allowance and taper rate

New claimants’ understanding of the taper rate and eligibility for the work allowance remained low, albeit with a modest increase in overall knowledge of the taper rate between waves 2 and 4 (Table 13)^{[footnote 11]}. Just 2 percent of new claimants identified correctly the 2 groups eligible for the work allowance and 7 per cent identified the correct taper rate.

Male claimants were more likely than females to incorrectly identify the groups eligible for the work allowance (and less likely to say don’t know). The overall message remains similar to waves 1 and 2: there is considerable scope for raising claimants’ awareness and understanding of both the work allowance and taper rate.

Table 13: Understanding of the work allowance

Question 1: Which of these groups are eligible for Work Allowance?

Group	Wave 1	Wave 2	Wave 4
Working less than 16 hours	29%	32%	33%
Anyone with an illness or disability that limits the work I can do (correct answer)	24%	23%	26%
Anyone with responsibility for a child (correct answer)	24%	25%	25%
Anyone earning the minimum wage	17%	17%	18%
None of the above	3%	3%	3%
Don’t know	56%	54%	53%

Question 2: For every £1 you earn above the Work Allowance, how much better off would you be?

Response	Wave 1	Wave 2	Wave 4
Yes: 57p better off	3%	3%	2%
Yes: 47 better off	1%	1%	1%
Yes: 37p better off (correct answer)	5%	3%	7%
Yes: 27p better off	1%	1%	2%
Yes: some other amount	3%	2%	5%
Don’t know	87%	89%	83%

Base: All claimants (W4 2,033) (W2 1,445) (W1 1,586). There is no trend data for Wave 3 because these questions were asked of 6 month claimants only.

One in 7 (13%) new claimants reported that they or their partner qualified for a work allowance; the figure was higher among claimants who were working whilst claiming (24%). However, as in wave 2 the majority of new claimants (69%) were unaware of their own eligibility for the work allowance.

Among those who thought they and/or their partner qualified for a work allowance, knowledge of how much they could earn before their UC was affected was low: just 13% cited the correct amounts (£192 or £397). This is fewer than at wave 2 when 28% cited the correct amounts.

Table 14: Understanding of the taper rate

Question 1: Do/did you or your partner qualify for a Work Allowance?

Response	Percentage
Yes	13%
No	18%
Don’t know	69%

Question 2: How much can you earn before your claim is affected?

Response	Percentage
£111 or thereabout	6%
£192 or thereabout (correct answer)	24%
£222 or thereabout	3%
£397 or thereabout (correct answer)	12%
Some other amount	9%
Know the amount but don’t have it to hand	6%
Don’t know	39%

Base: All 6 month claimants (W3 930). All 6 month claimants who qualify for a Work Allowance (W3 161).

There is no trend data because these questions were asked of 3 month claimants only at Waves 1 and 2. Knowledge is slightly better among 6 month claimants compared to 3 month claimants at Wave 2.

5. Conditionality and sanctions

Everyone who receives UC is placed in a conditionality group based on their circumstances and work capability. The group they are in determines what is expected of them during their claim. Claimants who are required to take steps to get work, or move closer to it, or to increase their hours/income if they are already working, will agree a Claimant Commitment with their Work Coach setting out the steps they will take. Failure to action these responsibilities could result in a temporary reduction to their UC, though claimants may appeal against this decision.

Half of claimants (52%) were fully informed about the factors that could lead to UC payments being stopped or reduced, but just 14% were aware of the implications for their benefit payments. However, over half (54%) knew that they could appeal against their benefits being stopped or reduced under any circumstance. Findings are similar to wave one.

5.1. Conditionality and sanctions

Half (52%) of new claimants at wave 4 identified correctly all the common reasons that would cause UC payments to be stopped or reduced. A fifth (19%) correctly identified 3 to 4 reasons and 14% managed to identify 1 to 2 reasons. These findings were similar to wave 3.

Former ESA and Housing Benefit claimants - new to conditionality - were less knowledgeable than other groups.

Table 15: Understanding of the factors that could result in sanctions

Question: To your knowledge, which of these may lead to UC being reduced or stopped?

Reason	W4 %	W3 %	W2 %	W1 %
Not attending a compulsary meeting with a Jobcentre adviser	76%	79%	74%	75%
Not doing something that’s set out in the Claimant Commitment	74%	77%	74%	73%
Not taking all reasonable action to look for work	70%	72%	67%	68%
Not doing a particular action/activity that you were told to do	69%	73%	70%	67%
Failing to apply for a job asked by the Jobcentre adviser	59%	62%	58%	58%
Don’t know	15%	12%	16%	16%

5.2. Impact on UC payments and the right to appeal

At wave 4, one in 6 claimants (16%) correctly identified that their benefits could be reduced on a temporary basis if they failed to comply with the requirements in their Claimant Commitment (Table 16). The remaining majority gave an incorrect response or reported that they did not know. Findings were similar to earlier waves.

Twice as many male claimants as females identified the correct response at wave 4 (21% vs. 11%), and younger claimants were slightly more knowledgeable than overall (19% vs. 16% overall). Former JSA claimants were more knowledgeable than former tax credit claimants (22% vs. 11%); knowledge among tax credit claimants declined between waves 3 and 4 (from 18% to 11%).

Table 16: Understanding of the impact on UC payments

Question: What, if anything, would happen if you/your partner did not meet the requirements in your Claimant Commitment?

Outcome	Wave 3	Wave 4
Benefit could be stopped on a temporary basis	35%	30%
Benefit could be stopped on a permanent basis	19%	22%
Benefit could be reduced on a temporary basis (correct answer)	16%	16%
Benefit could be reduced on a permanent basis	2%	4%
Other	1%	4%
Don’t know what would happen	25%	24%

Base: All 3 months claimants (W4 2,033) W3 836)

Claimants were more knowledgeable about their right to appeal a sanction on their claim than about the impact of sanctions on their UC payment. At wave 4, over half (54%) correctly identified that claimants could appeal whatever the circumstance. This figure has remained unchanged over the 4 waves.

Table 17: Awareness of the right to appeal

Question: To your knowledge is this statement true or false? “People who have their UC stopped or reduced may appeal against this decision whatever the circumstances.”

Response	Wave 3	Wave 4
True	53%	54%
False	4%	5%
Don’t know	42%	41%

Male claimants were more knowledgeable than females about the impact of sanctions on UC payments and the right to appeal (Table 18) most likely because more male claimants had prior experience of claiming JSA.

There is less difference by age; those aged 45 plus were less aware about the right to appeal compared to younger claimants. Claimants subjected to the intensive work search regime (comprising of more men than women) were better informed on the impact of sanction on UC payments than claimants with light touch or no conditionality.

Overall knowledge about sanctions remained low and unchanged overtime, with only one in ten (10%) claimants aware of both the impact on their benefits and their rights to appeal under any circumstance.

Table 18: Understanding of the impact on UC payments by conditionality group, gender and age

Wave 4: % Aware of claimant aware of statement	Overall	Male	Female	16 to 24 year olds	24 to 35 year olds	35 to 44 year olds	45+ year olds	Conditionality group: Intensive work search	Conditionality group: Light touch	Conditionality group: None
Base number	2,033	1,085	948	353	525	486	669	1,370	364	299
Benefits reduced on a temporary basis	16%	21%	11%	19%	14%	15%	17%	19%	14%	9%
People who have their UC stopped/reduced may appeal whatever the circumstance	54%	59%	49%	53%	57%	57%	48%	54%	53%	54%

6. Childcare

Parents who are eligible for UC may be able to claim back up to 85% of their formal childcare costs, usually if they are doing some paid work or have a job offer. Currently the most parents can claim back each month is £646 for one child or £1,108 for 2 or more children.

Awareness of support for childcare costs available as part of UC remained low, including amongst parents who used formal childcare. There has been a slight increase in the proportion of parents who knew they could claim childcare costs for all their children regardless of age.

6.1. Use of childcare

Less than half of parents (44%) reported that they used childcare at wave 4; this figure has remained fairly stable across the 4 waves. The most common childcare providers were family and friends whilst the most common formal childcare were nurseries. One in ten (9%) used an after school, breakfast or holiday club and small minorities used a registered childminder and nanny (Table 19).

Use of childcare was higher among claimants doing some paid work compared to those not doing any (52% vs. 33%). In particular, in-work claimants made greater use of family and friends (31% vs. 18%) and nursery (17% vs. 11%) compared to claimants who were not working.

Online transfers continued to be the most common method of payment for parents, followed by cash and cheque.

Table 19: Childcare arrangements and payment for formal childcare

Question 1: Which, if any, of the following childcare do you use?

Childcare	Wave 1	Wave 2	Wave 3	Wave 4
Nanny	1%	0%	1%	1%
Family and friends	26%	27%	25%	25%
Nursery	14%	18%	19%	14%
After school/breakfast/holiday club	11%	9%	9%	9%
Registered child minder	4%	2%	4%	3%
None of these	54%	51%	52%	56%

Base: All 3 month claimants with children under the age of 20 (W4 730) (W3 400) (W2 615) W1 704)

Question 2: How do you pay for your childcare?

Payment	Wave 1	Wave 2	Wave 3	Wave 4
Online bank transfer	18%	40%	37%	38%
I don’t pay for it/someone else pays for it for me	25%	23%	24%	26%
Cash or cheque	39%	19%	22%	25%
Direct debit	12%	17%	9%	10%
Debit or credit card	8%	3%	7%	9%
Refused	4%	5%	7%	5%

Base: All 3 month claimants who use formal childcare (Nursary, registered child minder, nanny, after school/breakfast/holiday club) (W4 166) (W3 110) (W2 163) (W1 187)

6.2. Knowledge of the childcare element of UC

Parents’ awareness of the childcare support available under UC remained low: over 8 in ten did not know how many children or how much of their childcare costs they could claim for.

Positively, there has been an increase in the proportion of parents who knew they could claim childcare costs for all their children regardless of age, albeit from a low base (7% at wave 4 compared to 3% at wave 3). This change was mainly observed among single parents. There has been no corresponding increase in parents’ knowledge of how much of their total childcare costs they could claim (just 9% correctly identified that they could claim more than three-quarters of the costs at both waves 3 and 4). Across both features, female claimants were more knowledgeable than males.

Table 20: Knowledge of the childcare element of UC at wave 4

Question 1: Do you know how many children you can claim the same amount for in formal childcare?

Response	Percentage
Yes, up to 3 children	6%
Yes, all children using formal childcare regardless of age (correct answer)	7%
Yes, all in pre-school	3%
Yes, first child	4%
Yes, something else	1%
No, don’t know	80%

Base: All who use childcare or have children aged 0 to 16 and do not use childcare (679).

Question 2: Do you know what proportion of your total childcare costs you can claim?

Proportion	Percentage
More than 75% (correct answer)	9%
Around 75%	8%
Around 65%	2%
Around 50%	3%
Don’t know	79%

Base: All who use childcare or have children aged 0 to 16 and do not use childcare (679).

Jobcentre advisers can provide support to cover the first childcare costs in advance for claimants who are moving into work. Knowledge of this provision was low amongst parents at both waves 3 and 4; 20% were aware at wave 4. Knowledge among female parents improved from 14% to 20% between waves 3 and 4 to match the level of male parents (19% at wave 4). Parents claiming childcare payments under UC have to provide evidence of payments to the Jobcentre, and the majority were able to identify correctly at least one acceptable evidence of payments (Table 21). However, 16% falsely thought that no evidence was required – similar to what was reported in wave 3 (18%).

Table 21: Knowledge of the evidence required to claim childcare costs

Question: In order to claim childcare costs, which, if any, of these evidence of payment do you need to provide?

Evidence	W4 %	W3 %
Letterheaded invoice from the childcare provider	40%	42%
A written contract with the childcare provider	37%	35%
A letter from the childcare provider	26%	33%
Proof of any change in payments (e.g. during holidays) from the childcare provider	25%	30%
Bank or credit card statement	24%	27%
No evidence of payment required	16%	18%

Base: All W4 (679) and W3 (362) who use childcare or have children aged 0 to 16 and don’t use childcare.

Awareness among parents of how often they would be expected to report childcare payments to the Jobcentre remained low and unchanged between waves 3 and 4. Just one in 7 (16%) correctly identified that they must report monthly. Seven per cent cited other frequencies, and 77% did not know. Awareness of this requirement among female parents increased slightly between waves 3 and 4 (from 13% to 19%) and female parents remained more knowledgeable than males (19% vs. 8%).

6.3. Claiming childcare costs

A third (33%) of parents had claimed costs for formal childcare with their UC – a similar level to wave 3^{[footnote 12]}. Parents gave a range of reasons for not claiming, the most common was because they were uncertain that they would be eligible for it. There has been a noticeable increase in the proportion of female parents reporting that they do not know why they did not claim (from 14% at wave 3 to 40% at wave 4).

Table 22: Reasons for not claiming childcare element of UC at wave 4

Question 1: Do you claim costs for childcare with your UC?

Response	Percentage
Yes	33%
No	67%

Question 2: Why did you not claim costs for childcare with your UC?

Reason	Percentage
I wasn’t sure I was eligible	19%
My childcare is covered by other government offers	12%
I think I’m eligible but I wasn’t aware of the UC offer	11%
I’m not eligible	6%
Don’t know	38%

Base: All who use formal childcare (166). All who did not claim childcare costs on UC (119).

7. Housing

Claimants who are eligible for UC can get help paying for their housing. Housing payment is included as part of the monthly UC payment and claimants are responsible for paying rent to their landlord. Once they have started claiming housing payment, claimants need to report any changes in circumstances to the Jobcentre. Claimants must apply directly to their local authority if they want to make a claim for Council Tax reduction.

New claimants were well informed on the requirement to pay rent directly to their landlord but were less familiar with the requirement to apply to their local authority for Council Tax. Claimants who paid rent knew they needed to keep the Jobcentre informed about changes, but were much less clear about what would happen to their UC payments if they regularly missed their rent payments.

7.1. Help with housing costs

Six in ten (61%) claimants who paid rent or part-rent^{[footnote 13]} received help with their housing costs; fewer than in wave 3 (70% received help towards housing costs). This decrease has been reported across all groups of claimants. However, the characteristics of those more likely to receive help with their housing costs is unchanged: claimants aged 45 plus, single claimants with children, and former tax credits claimants (77%, 72% and 76% respectively).

Table 23: Types of accommodation occupied by claimants at wave 4

Question: Which of these best describes your current accommodation?

Accommodation	Percentage
Rented privately	29%
Rented from a council/LA or housing association	27%
Living with friends/relatives and paying some rent	19%
Being bought on a mortgage/bank loan	6%
Temporary accommodation	5%
Owned outright	4%
Shared ownership	1%
Other	10%

Base: All 3 month claimants (W4 2,033).

The proportion renting from a private landlord were similar at waves 3 and 4 and was more common among claimants aged 35 plus, couples and in-work claimants. There had been some change in other types of accommodation occupied by claimants. Specifically, there were fewer claimants renting from the council, local authority or housing association compared to wave 3 (27% vs. 35% at wave 3), most notably among single parents, and claimants aged 25 to 34 and 45 plus. More single parents and claimants aged 25-34 were renting from friends and relatives resulting in an overall increase in this tenure at wave 4 (19% vs. 14% at wave 3).

7.2. The rules for housing costs and Council Tax

The majority (80%) of claimants who received help with housing costs through UC reported that they were made aware that they must pay rent to their landlord directly when they applied for UC. However, significantly fewer (55%) recalled being told that they had to apply to their local authority for Council Tax. Findings were similar to wave 3.

In-work claimants were better informed than those not working, though both groups had good levels of awareness: 84% of in-work claimants knew they must pay rent to their landlord directly compared with 78% of claimants who were not working. Former ESA claimants were significantly less informed; levels of awareness among former ESA claimants declined from 87% to 63% between waves 3 and 4. In contrast, former tax credit claimants were more knowledgeable about this responsibility at wave 4 (86% vs. 78% at wave 3).

Figure 24: Understanding of the rules for housing costs and Council Tax

Question: When you first made your claim for UC, were you aware that…

….you would be responsible for paying your rent to your landlord directly?

Response	Wave 3 %	Wave 4 %
Yes	79%	80%
No	13%	10%
Can’t remember	8%	10%

….if you needed help with your Council Tax, you need to apply to your local authority/council?

Response	Wave 3 %	Wave 4 %
Yes	55%	55%
No	36%	31%
Can’t remember	9%	14%

Base: All 3 month claimants who received help with housing cost through UC (W4 925) (W3 477).

Claimants generally knew to tell the Jobcentre about changes to their rent, but they were less aware of the impact on them if they regularly missed their rent payments. Three-in-4 (73%) understood their obligation to inform the Jobcentre of changes to their rent, and over half (55%) knew it was also their responsibility to tell the Jobcentre about their rent-free weeks. However, claimants’ understanding of what would happen if they regularly missed their rent payments remained low: just 28% knew that their UC payment could be reduced by up to 20%. These findings were similar to wave 3 and have not changed substantially across the 4 waves.

Overall, 23% of claimants correctly identified all 3 statements in Table 25 – similar to wave 3 (21%). Another 33% correctly identified two; and 21% correctly identified one only.

Table 25: Understanding of responsibilities

Question: To the best of your knowledge, are these statements true or false?

Statement	True %	False %	Don’t know %
It is my responsibility to tell JCP of changes to my rent	73%	2%	25%
It is my responsibility to tell JCP of any rent free weeks I may have	55%	3%	42%
My UC payment can be reduced by up to 20% if I regularly miss some or all of my rent payments	28%	8%	64%

Statement	W3: true %	W2: true %	W1: true %
It is my responsibility to tell JCP of changes to my rent	72%	76%	73%
It is my responsibility to tell JCP of any rent free weeks I may have	53%	60%	56%
My UC payment can be reduced by up to 20% if I regularly miss some or all of my rent payments	25%	25%	24%

Base: All 3 month claimants living in rented or part rented accommodation (W4 1,523) (W3 679) ( W2 1,157) (W1 1,274).

Conclusions

New claimants’ understanding of how to claim UC has remained consistently high; at wave 4 3-in-4 new claimants reported that they knew how to claim UC. Furthermore, the majority of new claimants continue to recall being given key information about UC by staff when they first made their claim.

Attitudes towards the work incentive features of UC improved between waves 3 and 4 though there was still a sizeable group of new claimants who were unconvinced that they would be better-off working on UC. There is more that the Jobcentre can do to shift attitudes further, such as ensuring claimants have a better understanding of how much they could earn and still claim UC, who would be eligible for a work allowance, how much better-off claimants would be working, and the number of hours they could work and still claim. Claimants remained poorly informed about these aspects and this applied equally to those who were working whilst claiming.

The majority of new claimants were able to identify at least some of the reasons that would result in their UC being reduced or stopped. They were least aware that failing to apply for a job asked by the Jobcentre Adviser could result in a sanction. New claimants would also benefit from more information on how a sanction would impact their UC payments and their right to appeal a sanction on their claim.

Finally, more needs to be done to ensure that parents are better informed about the childcare element of UC. There has been a slight an increase in the proportion of parents who knew they could claim childcare costs for all their children but overall levels of knowledge about the UC childcare offer remained low.

Strategies to improve awareness and understanding of UC should bear in mind that former JSA claimants are generally well informed on many of the aspects covered. The groups most in need of further information are older claimants (aged 45 plus) and former ESA claimants.

Appendix A: Claimant profile

Profile	W3: Weighted (Number)	W3: Weighted (%)	W3: Unweighted (Number)	W3: Unweighted (%)	W4: Weighted (Number)	W4: Weighted (%)	W4: Unweighted (Number)	W4: Unweighted (%)
Male	350	42%	318	38%	990	49%	1,085	53%
Female	486	58%	518	62%	1,043	51%	948	47%
Age: 16 to 24	149	18%	151	18%	300	15%	353	17%
Age: 25 to 34	258	31%	244	29%	624	31%	525	26%
Age: 35-44	179	21%	191	23%	486	24%	486	24%
Age: 45+	251	30%	250	30%	623	31%	669	33%
Conditionality: Intensive	438	52%	484	58%	1,228	60%	1,370	67%
Conditionality:Light touch	150	18%	143	17%	358	18%	364	18%
Conditionality: None	248	30%	209	25%	447	22%	299	15%
Couple	108	13%	124	15%	304	15%	259	13%
Single	728	87%	712	85%	1729	85%	1774	87%
Total	836	100%	836	100%	2,033	100%	2,033	100%

Profile	W3: Weighted (Number)	W3: Weighted (%)	W3: Unweighted (Number)	W3: Unweighted (%)	W4: Weighted (Number)	W4: Weighted (%)	W4: Unweighted (Number)	W4: Unweighted (%)
Male	680	43%	605	38%	661	46%	672	47%
Female	906	57%	981	62%	784	54%	773	53%
Age: 16 to 24	286	18%	253	16%	257	18%	240	17%
Age: 25 to 34	463	29%	452	29%	434	30%	406	28%
Age: 35-44	342	22%	324	20%	310	22%	267	18%
Age: 45+	495	31%	557	35%	444	31%	532	37%
Conditionality: Intensive	1,028	65%	1,021	64%	870	60%	909	63%
Conditionality:Light touch	255	16%	262	17%	239	17%	173	12%
Conditionality: None	303	19%	303	19%	336	23%	166	11%
Couple	234	15%	227	14%	236	15%	203	14%
Single	1,352	85%	1359	86%	1,209	85%	1,242	86%
Total	1,586	100%	1,586	100%	1,445	100%	1,445	100%

1. New claimants are those who had completed their Claimant Commitment approximately 3 months prior to the survey fieldwork. ↩

2. The sample size was smaller at wave 3, as some of the interviews were used to include a subsample of 6-month claimants. At wave 4, the 6-month claimants were excluded and more interviews were carried out with 3-month claimants. ↩

3. New claimants were not asked these questions at wave 3. ↩

4. These are new claimants who had completed their Claimant Commitment approximately 3 months prior to the survey fieldwork. ↩

5. The sample size was smaller at wave 3, as some of the interviews were used to include a subsample of 6-month claimants. At wave 4, the 6-month claimants were excluded and more interviews were carried out with 3-month claimants ↩

6. The sample size was smaller at wave 3, as some of the interviews were used to include a subsample of 6-month claimants. At wave 4, the 6-month claimants were excluded and more interviews were carried out with 3-month claimants. ↩

7. These questions were not included in waves 1 and 2. ↩

8. Data for Housing Benefit not shown due to small base size. ↩

9. As a proportion of those who were aware of advance payments. ↩

10. Average was calculated using the mid-point for each band, and £550 for the top band. ↩

11. New claimants were not asked these questions at wave 3. ↩

12. The sample sizes for parents who had claimed/not claimed childcare costs are too small to support detailed subgroup analysis. ↩

13. From a council, local authority or Housing Association; from a private landlord; those living with friends/family and paying some rent; or those on a shared ownership scheme. ↩