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Samuel Thomas

@smlthms.bsky.social
128 followers 230 following 127 posts

Policy at Z2K, previously advice at Z2K & Shelter Scotland, views own

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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Highly reminiscent of the benefit cap: purely about political gesture, adding yet more barnacles and complexity to the system, and not even generating significant savings. Quite aside from the many other obvious issues…
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Reposted by Samuel Thomas
Iain Porter @iainkporter.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The first benefit cap stats have been published since the 2-child limit was scrapped. 165,000 families - containing over 370,000 children - are now hit by the benefit cap. That’s 50,000 more families than before. 1/4
Chart from the DWP showing the number of benefit capped households in Great Britain over time. It shows that 164,000 families receiving Universal Credit were affected by the benefit cap in May 2026, up from 115,000 families in February 2026. (These figures are slightly different from those quoted in this post because we have added the separate benefit cap statistics for Northern Ireland into the DWP’s statistics for Great Britain.)
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
ICYMI: The housing crisis is forcing families miles from their jobs, schools and support networks. Out-of-area temporary accommodation disrupts every aspect of daily life. Proud that @z2ktrust.bsky.social's TA residents group worked with @bigissue.com on this powerful piece.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
In a new @z2ktrust.bsky.social blog, I've had a look at what the Timms Review's emerging recommendations could mean for disabled people. There’s a lot to welcome in the proposals, but the Review's longer-term vision raises some much bigger questions. 🧵
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Some doubt already being cast on the government's claim that the Renters' Rights Act has stabilised rent increases. Is avoiding further action on rent affordability really a sustainable strategy? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Rent rises set to speed up in gloomy forecast for tenants
The cost of renting is expected to rise by 4% or 5% a year by December, says property website Zoopla.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Timms Review has published draft recommendations today - really welcome transparency. Will share longer form thoughts in the next few days but they're a mixed bag: great to see a lot of things we've all been calling for, but also some clear longer-term dangers. www.gov.uk/government/p...
gov.uk
The Timms Review: co-chair update, September 2026
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Significant announcement today on rent increase disputes under the Renters' Rights Act - moving this from the tribunal to Valuation Office Agency (who handled these cases in the past). Not totally clear yet what this will look like or when it will come in. www.gov.uk/government/n...
gov.uk
Stronger protections and greater confidence for renters
All landlords must sign up to new, simple ‘Register your rental property’ service as it rolls out across the country.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
The echo chamber that has developed around the 'consensus' that disability benefits need to be massively cut has become increasingly divorced from reality. The result: a parade of increasingly absurd proposals to cut billions from social security that won't survive contact with reality.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
This is a very welcome intervention from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority. Particularly welcome that support will be provided not just to children but to their parents. Other areas take note! www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Free buses for Greater Mancheser school children in temporary housing
The move is another new policy announced by Greater Manchester mayor Bev Craig.
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Z2K (Zacchaeus 2000 Trust) @z2ktrust.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Young disabled people deserve access to opportunity, not barriers. That's why we've joined with 41 other charities calling on the UK government to work with the sector to create pathways into meaningful employment, education, volunteering and training. Action for Children
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Really striking, and not nearly discussed enough - how much core non-disability spending on working-age benefits has shrunk over past 10-15 years.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Really not good enough. Govt reluctant to unfreeze LHA because of concerns it inflates rents - but then refusing to take sensible steps on the costs side to mitigate those risks. This is not what tackling homelessness looks like...
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Excellent summary of why freezing LHA yet again would be indefensible. At @z2ktrust.bsky.social, the reality for our clients is that the private rented sector is simply out of reach. Councils are spending nearly £3bn a year on temporary accommodation. We can't keep doing this.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Somewhat ambiguous comment here. Is there more we can do to support people into work? Yes – but spending on benefits and employment support can’t be an either/or. Try looking for a job without enough money to live on. www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
theguardian.com
Labour must stop just writing a cheque for benefit claimants, says McFadden
Exclusive: Work and pensions secretary signals possible reform to welfare as ministers await key reviews
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
I've written a blog on the Timms Review's interim report and what it tells us about the future of PIP reform. While public debate often focuses on costs, rising caseload and ‘sickfluencers’, the Review starts with a more fundamental question: is PIP achieving its purpose? 🧵
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
An underappreciated consequence of Mahmood's immigration agenda is the way it cuts across the government's wider employment goals. As with the proposed 'earned settlement' model, which risks deterring engagement with Jobcentre support, this plan is likely to create further disincentives to work.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Some good news today on welfare reform Auto-recording health & disability benefit assessments is an important move towards increasing accountability and trust Hopefully just a first step in overhauling the broken assessment system www.gov.uk/government/n...
gov.uk
Health assessments to be recorded as standard in major transparency drive
All face-to-face and telephone health assessments for disability and sickness benefits will be audio recorded as standard from today to improve transparency in the benefit system.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Really interesting new report from the OBR that suggests future forecast welfare spending could be lower than anticipated Finds previous OBR forecasts likely overestimated expected losses due to fraud & error - will be corrected in future forecasts obr.uk/wtr/welfare-...
obr.uk
Welfare trends report – June 2026 - Office for Budget Responsibility
Our Welfare trends report (WTR) examines the drivers of welfare spending. This report examines the drivers of recent trends in welfare fraud and error, with a particular focus on the pandemic and the ...
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
New benefit cap stats out today We don't talk enough about the benefit cap as a cost of renting issue Households are most likely to be capped in London & South East England - where rents are highest 1 in 5 capped households are single people - pushed over the cap purely by rent
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Very dodgy behaviour - and another sign of the limits of the Act on constraining rent increases - but worth emphasising (as the article points out) that you can still challenge a rent increase in this situation
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Frances Ryan @francesryan.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
So many people replying to today’s story with experiences like this. Benefit reassessments are a dark cloud hanging over someone’s head, many who - by definition of needing disability benefits - will already be struggling with anxiety, pain or fatigue before piles of admin and invasive interview.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Today @z2ktrust.bsky.social has published new research on PIP reassessments, covered by @francesryan.bsky.social in @theguardian.com, which sets out out why the system is failing disabled people and the public purse. 🧵
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Looking forward to speaking about @z2ktrust.bsky.social research on challenging unfair rent increases at this next month!
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
📢 Webinar: The Cost of Unnecessary PIP Reassessments Join us as we launch new Z2K research that reveals the scale and costs of unnecessary PIP reassessments, and sets out a plan for change. 🗓️ 16 June, 11am 🎤 With campaigner Roxie + Q&A 👉 Register: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
us02web.zoom.us
Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Prove It Again: The Cost of Unnecessary PIP Reassessments. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar.
As speculation mounts about disability benefits system reform, what would a better approach to personal independence payment (PIP) reassessments looks like? Z2K’s latest research makes a clear, eviden...
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
The wide-ranging focus of the Milburn Review’s interim report, with its focus on jobs, education and health and the upstream causes of youth inactivity, is welcome. But its analysis of social security is less convincing. (1/8) 🧵
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Great to write for Red Brick on renters’ rights and the changing landscape for challenging unfair rent increases. The Renters’ Rights Act brings important new tools, but it’s not enough to fix the PRS affordability crisis. redbrickblog.co.uk/2026/05/rent...
redbrickblog.co.uk
Renters can fight back against unfair rent hikes – and win - Red Brick
It is becoming increasingly difficult for policymakers to ignore the affordability crisis in the private rented sector. In recent weeks, the media was awash with speculation that the Government was co...
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Really useful intervention from @jrf-uk.bsky.social Also worth noting: cuts in one part of the system tend to surface elsewhere. Expect the UC-Health cut to put even more pressure on PIP
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Can see the case for this, but it needs careful handling. Currently fit notes act as an initial gateway for ill and disabled people to unlock benefits support and get protection from sanctions. Reform must make this support easier to access, not harder. www.gov.uk/government/n...
gov.uk
Broken fit note system to be overhauled
Patients, employers and GPs are set to benefit from an overhaul of the broken fit note system following the launch of several pilots by the Government today to reform the system for workers who fall i...
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
🧵New blog: The case for adding a condition‑based route to PIP There are growing calls to restrict PIP eligibility based on condition, including a recent report from the Tony Blair Institute. These proposals are dangerous and unworkable. But they do touch on one key truth. (1/6) 👇
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Chaminda Jayanetti @cjayanetti.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
I'm doing a story on cuts to the Universal Credit disability payments - I'm looking to speak to anyone who started claiming means-tested disability benefit (LCWRA, either in ESA or Universal Credit) for the first time when they were in their 50s or 60s My DMs are open, grateful for any reposts
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Good to see govt take on some @z2ktrust.bsky.social recommendations on the Code of Practice for new claimant bank data powers. Big concerns remain - close monitoring of impacts will be essential as this is rolled out - but encouraging that DWP has acted on feedback. www.gov.uk/government/c...
gov.uk
Government response to the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act DWP Codes of Practice consultation
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
While social security legislation was absent from the King’s Speech, the Conservatives’ ‘Alternative King’s Speech’ includes a ‘Welfare Reform Bill’. 🧵(1/5)
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
A really comprehensive and balanced analysis of the main critiques of rent control. For any rent policy intervention to work in practice, proactive enforcement is key given the limited uptake of the renter-led tribunal system (only c. 1,000 cases in two years).
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
I took part in a couple of workshops for this research on poverty‑related data gaps. Glad to see thoughtful, practical recommendations published today - well worth a look.
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Renters' Reform Coalition @rentersreformco.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Renters who challenge unfair rent increases are £1,140 a year better off on average. New research by @z2ktrust.bsky.social shows the tribunal system works but far too few people use it. With the Renters’ Rights Act now in force, this can change. Read the report 👇 z2k.org/rent-increas...
z2k.org
No More Back Doors: A Report on Renters Challenging Rent Increases
Read Z2K's analysis of how the tribunal system operates in practice, and how the Renters’ Rights Act could shape future reform in the private rented sector.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
🧵New Z2K research out today: renters who challenge rent increases are over £1,000 a year better off on average. As the Renters' Rights Act gives renters more power to fight rent hikes, we analysed 746 tribunal decisions to see how the rent‑challenge system really works. 👇(1/9)
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Looking forward to speaking at this today
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Re: suggestions that a rent freeze could lead to pre-emptive massive rent hikes - worth remembering that the Renters' Rights Act prohibits increases above market rates New Z2K research launching later this week will examine the Act's changes to rent regulation www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Rachel Reeves considering rent freeze to limit Iran war fallout
Exclusive: Sources say chancellor is examining exceptional measures to protect household budgets
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Joseph Elliott @jelliott94.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
It's a bit of a myth that rents are constantly increasing faster than earnings or overall inflation - on average, they're not. So what *is* the problem of unaffordability in the private rented sector? And what does this mean for how we go about fixing it? Our take 🧵⬇️
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Good to speak to @francesryan.bsky.social for this important piece on cuts to universal credit for disabled people coming into effect from April
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Eduin Latimer @eduinlatimer.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
New PIP (disability benefits) data is out and it will be welcome news to the government who have expressed a desire to slow the rise in PIP claims. The number of new PIP claims each month has fallen again and is now considerably below its peak although still well above pre-pandemic levels.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
🚨 Yesterday's PIP statistics show that waiting times for mandatory reconsiderations have hit the highest level since PIP was created Combined with poor decision-making and lengthy tribunal delays, these backlogs are massively prolonging hardship for disabled people
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Turn2us @turn2us.org.uk · 26/02/2026
We’ve joined with disabled people, organisations and charities to write to the co-chairs of the Timms Review. See our joint open letter with our recommendations for the steering group here: www.turn2us.org.uk/about-us/news-an… #TimmsReview
Text asks if PIP and financial insecurity experiences will be heard in the Timms Review. Below, two people, one in a wheelchair, converse at a table.Text on orange background about PIP claimants facing financial insecurity, underrepresentation, and potential impact of review changes. Text: Most PIP claimants have experience of financial insecurity, with 28% of disabled people living in poverty. Without clear plans on what's next, we are concerned that the voices of people who have lived experience of receiving PIP and financial insecurity may be underrepresented. This group will be particularly affected by any changes to PIP that come out of the Review.Quote on orange background about PIP's importance for safety and housing, highlighting unease due to lack of representation. By Roxie, Z2K Expert. Text: "For people like me, PIP is not an abstract policy issue. It is what keeps us safe, housed, warm, and able to cope. When a process is presented as fair, transparent and grounded in lived experience, but I cannot see people who reply on PIP to survive reflected at steering level, it creates a deep unease." Roxie, Z2K, Expert by Experience
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Z2K (Zacchaeus 2000 Trust) @z2ktrust.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Many disabled people have understandably lost trust in DWP after years of dehumanising decision-making. It's time we work together. ➡️Our letter with @disrightsuk.bsky.social @mind.org.uk @turn2us.org.uk @mencap.org.uk @trusselluk.bsky.social www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
independent.co.uk
Charities warn Labour’s PIP review must ‘earn the trust’ of disabled people
Exclusive: A group of over 50 charities and disabled person’s organisations warn that the review is ‘causing concern’
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Important distinction to be made here between getting PIP to make better use of clinical evidence - which is crucial - and introducing a mandatory requirement for a diagnosis in order to be eligible - which would be harmful. Lots of people with significant needs struggle to get a diagnosis
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Helen Barnard @helenbarnard.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
This is interesting because one of the top asks of many claimants and representative groups is for the process to place MORE weight on medical evidence. Because the less expert parts of the process tend to be the bits that lead to poor decisions and get very frequently overturned at tribunals.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
This is actually quite an interesting report, which has been briefed to the press in the most harmful way possible The current system for passported benefits is a mess & requires loads of separate applications - huge unnecessary burden & so many people miss out ukonward.com/reports/the-...
ukonward.com
The Hidden Benefits Bill: How Universal Credit claimants get £10 billion in extra benefits | Onward
The eyewatering cost of Britain’s benefits bill is often discussed, but a key part of the conversation is usually missing.
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Bit frustrating to see this in the homelessness strategy DHP budget is a tiny fraction of total LHA shortfall - and even within that only 1/5 of DHP awards are to cover LHA gap. It's nowhere close to making up for the freeze
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 03/12/2025
New blog from me on Budget announcements on health & disability benefit assessments Govt rhetoric on this issue (celebrating 'face-to-face checks') is worrying - the announcements themselves are more mixed
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Samuel Thomas @smlthms.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
Budget docs show that the impending cut to UC-Health - framed as a 'cost neutral' rebalancing with the rate of the UC standard allowance - actually amounts to a net £2bn cut by 2030/31
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