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PIP (Personal Independence Payment) is a benefit for those with long-term physical or mental health conditions or disabilities who have difficulty with everyday tasks or getting around, and the eligibility is based on the level of help needed with specific activities. It is thought that arounf 3.6m people in the UK recieve the benefit. 

Elegibility for this welfare benefit is based on a point system, where your ability doing things like washing, moving around you home and other tasks is ranked. 

In the Spring Statement, the Chancellor announced that from November 2026, elegibility for PIP will be tightened. According to Money Saving Expert: 'To get the main component of PIP, which is for extra daily living costs, you currently need between eight and 12 points in total (alongside meeting the other criteria). But when the changes come in, you'll also need a minimum of four points on a single activity (for example washing, dressing or shopping).' 

The Resolution Foundation, a think tank dedicated to improving the standard of living of people in the UK, estimates that the measures could lead to 800,000 and 1.2 million people losing support of between £4,200 and £6,300 per year by the end of the decade.

It is important to note that changes to PIP are only affecting the 'daily living payments', there will be no change to 'mobility' payments. 

Now on to Universal Credit. 

More than 3m people of the 7.5m recipients of Universal Credit in the UK are not required to work due to a long term health condition. Under current Universal Credit measures, people with disabilities or a limited capacity to work due to long term condition recieve the basic rate of £393.45 as well as a top up of £416.19.

The measures set out in the Spring Statement are set to affect this top up, health related, payment and will see any new claimants from April 2026 recieve half – the payment will drop from from £97 a week in 2024/25 to £50 a week in 2026/27, and then frozen at this level until 2029/30.

For current claimants, the health element will be frozen at the current rate of £97 a week until 2029/30.

These changes mean that 2.25 million families who currently receive the health element of Universal Credit will lose £500 a year on average by 2029/30. 

You can find out more about PIP here, and Universal Credit measures here.

This article is current at time of publication: 28th March 2025.