Parliamentary recess is always a great opportunity to catch up with visits and meetings, and this week has been no exception.  This week has kicked off with a trip to the Citizens Advice in Southampton, to catch up on the issues and concerns they and I work on.

It can be no surprise that there is an enormous overlap, and the problems my constituents come to see me about are broadly similar to the issues raised with Citizens Advice.  So it was not a surprise to hear from the dedicated staff and volunteers there, that potential changes to the benefits system have been causing anxiety amongst their service users.

The Government's consultation on changes to Personal Independence Payment is still open for another month and can be found on gov.uk. I have been encouraging local residents to fill in the formal consultation so that their voices can be heard as part of the process.  The lived experiences of disabled people across the City is really valuable information for the Government, and can be a real eye opener with regard to the determination many disabled people have to find and stay in work.

There is undoubtedly a real problem with the Access to Work scheme, which is working many weeks in arrears, leaving disabled people effectively subsidising the scheme whilst they wait for payment. When that involves out of pocket costs it can get very expensive very quickly, and I will be raising with Ministers the problem that causes for some claimants.

We all recognise that being in work is better for people financially, physically and mentally, and on top of that the outcomes for children will also be better.  So I support the Government's drive to get as many people into work as possible, but that has to include making appropriate adjustments and making sure the schemes put in place actually do what they are meant to do.

I can well recall from my time as a DWP Minister visiting the Work Programme in Southampton, and not just meeting the officials delivering the programme, but also the participants being given structured support to help them find routes into work.  It is not easy, and particularly for people with fluctuating conditions the challenge can be enormous.  I absolutely welcome the support expressed for making sure those with long term and degenerative conditions are spared repeat assessments for PIP, but the DWP needs to find a methodology that also addresses fluctuating conditions.  I recently met an amazing young woman with MS, and as she put it, she is desperate to work but one bad day with her MS can set her back weeks, leaving her bed ridden. 

We also still need to be better at understanding mental health conditions.  I heard a colleague say in the Chamber last week that whilst not all of us will suffer with our mental health, we all need to look after our mental well-being.  There is still far too much stigma in even talking about mental health, and I know that will be the big challenge when it comes to working out how to adapt PIP as part of the journey of supporting people into work.