Help with Benefits

Islington Council's Welfare Rights and Financial Inclusion Unit helps users of Islington's social services to maximise their income by claiming all of the benefits they are entitled to.

We also assess the charges applied to people who use adult community care services or Supporting People services.

All charge payers are offered a benefits check and assistance with claims for additional social security. We can also assist them to set up bank accounts if they do not already have access to banking services. Access to the service is by referral by social services staff.

Ways We Can Help

We provide help and support in the following ways:

• direct income maximisation services for those who meet our referral criteria for a benefit check
• assistance with claims and reviews/appeals arising from those claims
• home visiting for housebound residents
• advice line for social services staff and voluntary sector workers
• provision of up-to-date benefits information and DWP leaflets to all social services offices with public access
• targeted outreach sessions
• take-up campaigns
• liaison with government departments and agencies to keep abreast of and influence policies that affect people on benefits or low incomes
• provision of a freephone telephone advice line for targeted client groups - currently pensioners and users of community care services
• targeting benefit claims that trigger higher government grants to the council under the Standard Spending Assessment formula
  

Referral Criteria

A full benefit check and help with claiming additional benefits are offered to:

• everyone who receives a chargeable community care service from Islington Social Services
• young people leaving Islington
• asylum seekers with potential entitlement to benefits
  

Where appropriate, we will also assist people who are housebound, have significant sensory impairment or are otherwise unable to make us of the voluntary sector advice agencies.

For more information contact the Information and Access Team or visit your local Community Care Centre. Find out more about these using the links on the right hand side of this page. You can also download the documents below.

If you want advice about making a new benefit claim or you have an enquiry about a benefit you already get, call the Information and Access Team on  

Tel: 020 7527 2299
Email: information.accessteam@islington.gov.uk
Minicom: 020 7527 6475

There are a number of websites run by government agencies that have lots of useful information about benefits and national advice lines to call. Click on the links in the Useful Websites section on the right hand menu.