UK opens PIP review call for evidence to 28 May 2026
The Department for Work and Pensions has opened a Call for Evidence on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) so you can share real experiences of how the benefit works day to day. Announced on GOV.UK on 19 March 2026, the responses will inform the Timms Review into PIP. (gov.uk)
Make a note of the deadline now: the Call for Evidence closes at 11:59 pm on 28 May 2026. DWP says PIP currently supports nearly four million people in England and Wales with the extra costs of disability, so your insight could help shape recommendations that affect millions. (gov.uk)
Quick explainer: PIP is a non‑means‑tested payment that helps with extra living costs linked to a long‑term physical or mental health condition. It has two parts - daily living and mobility - and you can get one or both, whether or not you are working. (gov.uk)
Who is running the Review? It is co‑chaired by Minister for Social Security and Disability Sir Stephen Timms, alongside Sharon Brennan and Dr Clenton Farquharson CBE. (gov.uk) A 15‑member steering group brings together lived experience and expertise across welfare policy, accessibility, advocacy and leadership in Disabled People’s Organisations. (gov.uk)
What happens next if you contribute? The Timms Review aims to report to the Secretary of State in autumn 2026, with outcomes to be reported to Parliament. That means your evidence feeds into recommendations which, if accepted, may require legislation or operational changes before anything actually alters for claimants. (gov.uk)
What is the Review asking you about? The Call for Evidence invites views on four broad themes: the role and purpose of PIP; eligibility, fairness and equity in awards; people’s experience of claiming; and how shifts in society and work since 2013 should shape any reform. Use these as prompts for your response. (gov.uk)
How to take part. You can respond via the online form on GOV.UK, which DWP says went live from 8:00am on 19 March. If you need another format - web accessible PDF, large print, BSL, audio or easy read - email timmsreview.callforevidence@dwp.gov.uk to request it. (gov.uk)
What it means for you right now. The Review is about improving how PIP works; it does not change your current award today. The Terms of Reference say the goal is to ensure PIP is “fair and fit for the future” and to co‑produce the work with disabled people and organisations, rather than generate proposals for savings. (gov.uk)
If you’re learning or teaching about social policy, this is a live civic moment. Try a 30‑minute session in tutor time or PSHE: begin with the everyday costs and barriers disability creates, then map what a fairer, simpler PIP process would look like. Gather views and submit a collective response with learners’ consent.
Tips for strong responses. Be concrete about tasks you find difficult, the aids or support you rely on, the real costs you face, and how your condition fluctuates over a day or week. If you’re a carer, clinician or adviser, share anonymised patterns you see and practical changes that would make assessments more consistent and humane.
Who should respond? DWP explicitly welcomes disabled people of all ages, organisations that represent them, carers, clinicians, experts, MPs and other elected officials across the UK. Young people are named as a priority group, so if you are 16–25 your voice is wanted. (gov.uk)
Trust matters. Charities have asked for genuine co‑production so disabled people lead the conversation, not trail it. In 2025, Turn2us and partners urged the Review to be transparent and shaped with people who use the system - a standard against which this process will be judged. (turn2us.org.uk)