New tool helps patients access vital benefits

The UK’s leading kidney patients support charity Kidney Care UK has developed their PIP Helper, an online tool to support people to apply for Personal Independence Payment benefit, often described as a ‘gruelling and daunting process’.

The charity, which provides practical and emotional support to people affected by kidney disease, is one of many charities across the country to be part funded by British Gas Energy Trust.

They have used some of that funding to develop the PIP Helper tool, supporting people with the application process for Personal Independence Payments. Using a mixture of written guidance, helpful videos and other resources, it enables applicants to complete all the necessary forms and takes people through the process step-by-step.

Phoebe Gray, Marketing and Communications Officer at Kidney Care UK, led the coordination and development of the PIP Helper. She says the tool was launched after they received feedback from people with kidney disease who were struggling with their applications.

She said:

“Applying for Personal Independence Payment is a gruelling and daunting process. The paper form that most people are required to complete takes a lot of time and effort to finish. This can be particularly challenging for those with symptoms such as brain fog or anaemia, which many kidney patients have.

“Additionally, due to the nature of chronic illnesses, such as chronic kidney disease, people often become used to making adaptations to their day-to-day lives and so may discount these as examples of them struggling to cope.

“We set up the PIP Helper after hearing from kidney patients who struggled to apply and who had not been awarded PIP despite appearing to be eligible. While we already offer one-to-one support in applying for PIP via our Patient Support and Advocacy team, as well as our Money and Energy Advisors, we recognised that the scale of people needing support could not be met via one-to-one help alone, particularly for anyone who would prefer to apply by themselves, but just needed guidance to do so.”

In the first six months since its launch, almost 2,000 people have used the tool, with positive feedback from users. In addition to developing the PIP Helper tool, the charity has also used funding from the British Gas Energy Trust to support their Money and Energy Advice team. In the first year of this service, 238 patients received support and the team were able to secure more than £169,000 in financial gains for patients.

Laurie Cuthbert, Director of Fundraising, Marketing and Communications at Kidney Care UK, added:

“Benefits and how to make the most of limited income is one of the most frequently raised issues that our Patient Support Services team handle every week. These issues and requests for support have continued to grow over the last two years during the cost-of-living crisis. When you have kidney failure, and particularly if you are on dialysis, this can have a significant impact on your ability to work full time, in fact only 26% of people on dialysis are able to work full time.

“As a charity we provide a range of services including advice and information, patient support and advocacy, free telephone counselling and financial support through our patient grants. We believe that everyone with kidney disease should be able to live their lives to the full and the PIP Helper tool is another way that we can support those with kidney disease to access all the support they are eligible for and ensure they do not feel like they need to face kidney failure alone.”

To find money and energy advice local to you, please click here.