With an estimated £2bn of unclaimed benefits in Wales, Welsh Government are doing all they can to make sure people get the financial support they’re entitled to and maximise their household incomes.
The Welsh Benefits Charter was launched in 2024 as part of an agreement between Welsh Government and all 22 local authorities to work together to improve the Welsh Benefits System.
The vision; a person-centred, compassionate, and consistent approach to the design and delivery of Welsh benefits, which enables people to only tell their story once to receive all the financial support to which they are entitled, regardless of where they live in Wales.
We’re part of the Streamlining Welsh Benefits Steering Group, who have a phase one route map focused on simplifying how claims for Council Tax Reduction, Free School Meals and the School Essentials Grant are made by people across Wales.
We have led on designing and testing a simpler way for people to claim these benefits, demonstrating what a simplified claimant experience could look like.
What we have done
Through desk research, and interviews with Welsh government subject matter experts and staff across five councils, we developed a deep understanding of the current landscape and challenges faced by both claimants and administrators.
Claimants can struggle with benefit awareness, stigma, understanding eligibility, navigating application processes, managing multiple applications, providing complex information, and updating changed circumstances.
The most streamlined user experience would be to receive entitlements without doing anything and we established design principles to get as close to this as possible, while also reducing the burden on councils.
These guided the development of a prototype designed to require minimal effort from users (maximising the data already available from Central Government), while working with councils’ existing systems and regulatory requirements.
Testing with claimants and proxy users was positive:
“I think it's really user friendly. It’s clear and I think it’s great to have it all in one application. That just cuts out so much confusion, especially if someone doesn't understand what they're entitled to.”
“It was straightforward for somebody that's not claimed before. And not having to gather any information yourself because it’s already there because the claim was set up ready based on the Universal Credit claim.”
The prototype demonstrates significant potential to streamline access to benefits while remaining adaptable to local council needs. Rather than presenting a final solution, it serves as a concept, a tangible conversation starter on what a more consistent approach could be across Wales.
What next?
We will be working in collaboration with Welsh Government and local authorities to refine this concept into a real-world example.
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