Restructuring the Welfare System: DWP targets £1.9 Billion in savings by 2030/31

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) under the Starmer Labour administration has outlined an extensive package of operational welfare measures engineered to dismantle the inherited Work Capability Assessment (WCA) backlog

Scheduled for implementation beginning in April 2026, the strategy combines administrative realignments with modified assessment structures to cut projected UK welfare system expenditure by £1.9 billion by the end of the 2030/31 fiscal year.

Welfare system operational overhaul of health and disability assessments

A central pillar of the reform package addresses the shift toward virtual evaluations introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior assessment frameworks contracted under the previous government required up to 80% of checks to be conducted virtually, creating severe backlogs and reducing direct evaluator access.

The updated DWP policy reinstates a strong emphasis on face-to-face health reviews, freeing up healthcare provider capacity to process overdue assessments:

Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

In-person evaluations will expand from 6% of all assessments in 2024 (57,000 cases) to 30%.

Work Capability Assessment (WCA)

Face-to-face evaluations will rise from 12% of all assessments in 2024 (74,000 cases) to 30%.

To generate necessary operational capacity for these in-person checks, the DWP is lengthening the intervals between routine PIP award reassessments for claimants aged 25 and older:

1. Initial Claim Reviews:

   • The minimum timeframe before an initial award review will extend from as short as nine months to three years.

2. Subsequent Claim Reviews:

   • Claimants whose qualifying health conditions remain unchanged at their first review will see their next review window extended to five years.

Universal credit realignment and employment integration

Alongside assessment modifications, the government is adjusting Universal Credit structures starting April 2026 to narrow the benefit income disparity between unemployed individuals and those classified under long-term sickness allocations.

The savings strategy operates in tandem with broader labour market interventions under the “Get Britain Working” agenda. These initiatives include:

• The Connect to Work Program:

  • A targeted employment initiative designed to support 300,000 sick or disabled individuals into active workforce roles over the course of the current parliament.

• Staff redeployment:

  • Moving 1,000 specialised work coaches into frontline assistance roles to facilitate return-to-work pathways for claimants capable of partial or supported employment.

Safeguards and statutory context

The department confirmed that statutory accommodations remain intact for vulnerable claimants.

Individuals who cannot travel or attend in-person appointments due to severe physical or mental health conditions will remain eligible for home visits or alternative assessment channels.

Additionally, claimants whose medical conditions deteriorate or improve retain the right to report a change of circumstances and trigger an immediate award review.

These operational adjustments are distinct from the broader Timms Review, an ongoing independent inquiry examining the systemic role of PIP, its core assessment criteria, and wider measures to promote independent living and financial security for disabled citizens.