Open call for evidence

Timms Review of Personal Independence Payment: Call for Evidence

Updated 31 March 2026

Introduction

The purpose of this Call for Evidence is to gather feedback and insight to inform the Timms Review of Personal Independence Payment (PIP). This Call for Evidence is being administered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on behalf of the Timms Review steering group. The steering group is keen to hear from organisations and individuals who have information that is relevant to the Review.

Key information

The government has launched the Timms Review to ensure that Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is fair and fit for the future in a changing world, and helps support disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence, including through employment.

The purpose of PIP is to provide a contribution to the extra costs faced by disabled people and people with long-term health conditions. We are undertaking the Review with the aim of making sure that PIP effectively captures the impact of long-term health conditions and disability in the modern world. The Review is being co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, carers, clinicians, experts, MPs and other stakeholders.

The Review is co-chaired by Sir Stephen Timms, Minister for Social Security and Disability; Sharon Brennan and Dr Clenton Farquharson CBE. The co-chairs work with a steering group of 12 members who jointly lead co-production of the Review. The steering group brings together a range of lived experience, expertise, and diverse characteristics.

The steering group has shaped the four themes that are the focus of this Call for Evidence, which is being conducted on their behalf by DWP. There is a strong commitment from the steering group to make all engagement that is undertaken as part of co-production of the Timms Review, including this Call for Evidence, as accessible as possible. The information that is gained from this Call for Evidence will provide critical evidence and insight to support the steering group to develop its recommendations.

You can read more about the Terms of Reference for the Review, how it will operate in practice and information about the Co-Chairs and steering group members from the documents provided on the Timms Review page on GOV.UK.

Further information about PIP, and how to claim, is available at GOV.UK on the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment guide for Assessment Providers guidance pages.

Call for Evidence description

This Call for Evidence is aimed at organisations and individuals who have information that is relevant to the Review. This Call for Evidence is being administered by DWP on behalf of the Timms Review steering group. The Timms Review is committed to engaging with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, carers, clinicians, experts, MPs and other stakeholders, so a wide range of views and voices are heard. The purpose is to gather evidence from all interested parties to inform the Review.

The Review welcomes evidence and insight from individuals and organisations with lived or learned experience, knowledge and expertise. Evidence can take many forms and could include written submissions, existing data or unpublished analysis or reports.

This Call for Evidence will be part of a wider programme of engagement with stakeholders which will be determined by the steering group. This Call for Evidence is open from 19 March 2026 and will close on 11:59pm on 28 May 2026. All evidence submitted will be made available to the steering group. In addition, DWP will create a summary response to support the steering group in consolidating the evidence received.

Call for Evidence

The Review would like to gather feedback and insight relating to the areas outlined in the Terms of Reference.

From the Terms of Reference, the steering group has shaped the work of the Review around four key themes:

• the role and purpose of PIP
• eligibility, fairness and equity in the award of PIP
• experience of claiming PIP
• changing context and the impact on PIP underpinned by some specific areas the group would like to focus upon

Key themes

Theme 1 - Role and purpose of PIP

The Review will examine whether PIP is meeting its intended purpose. Through this theme, the Review is interested in understanding what PIP should be doing to support disabled people and people with long-term health conditions.

The below question is to help prompt thinking on this theme:

How effectively is PIP delivering on its intended role and purpose?

While you are free to submit any evidence pertaining to the role and purpose of PIP, the Review is particularly interested in evidence relating to:

• the role of PIP in enabling disabled people and those with long-term conditions to live independently and fully participate in society (from the Terms of Reference)
• what role the assessment could and should play in unlocking wider support to better achieve higher living standards and greater independence (from the Terms of Reference)
• the extent to which the purpose of PIP is understood
• what it means to live independently and what this means for PIP
• the role of PIP in enabling and supporting people to do meaningful activity, including employment
• factors that affect the extra costs faced by disabled people
• perceptions of PIP in society and how this affects peoples’ interactions with PIP
• wider vision and ambitions for PIP and disabled people

Theme 2 - Eligibility, fairness and equity in the award of PIP

The Review will examine eligibility, fairness and equity in the award of PIP. Through this theme the review will consider what people want PIP to assess, how this is done, and the barriers people may face accessing PIP.

The below question is to help prompt thinking on this theme:

Does the PIP assessment, including the assessment criteria, effectively capture the impact of long-term health conditions and disability in the modern world, and provide fair access to the right support at the right level across the benefits system?

While you are free to submit any evidence pertaining to the fairness and equity in the award of PIP, the Review is particularly interested in evidence relating to:

• the assessment criteria for both Mobility and Daily Living elements of PIP – including activities, descriptors and associated points – and whether these effectively capture the impact of long-term health conditions and disability in the modern world (from the Terms of Reference)
• whether any other evidence should be considered alongside the functional assessment to fairly reflect the impact of living with a long-term health condition or disability (from the Terms of Reference)
• how the PIP assessment could provide fair access to the right support at the right level across the benefits system (from the Terms of Reference)
• PIP’s interactions with other forms of support, and how it may be used to cover gaps in wider support
• the use of evidence in making PIP award decisions
• the additional barriers people, such as those with protected characteristics, from different socio-economic groups, or in different locations, may face
• provisions for people with fluctuating, multiple and episodic conditions
• the use of technology in the evidence gathering process

Theme 3 - Experience of claiming PIP

The Review will examine the experience of claiming PIP, from applying through to receiving or disputing a decision and subsequent award reviews. Through this theme the review will consider the current experience of people claiming PIP, and how this could be improved.

The below question is to help prompt thinking on this theme:

What is the experience of people claiming PIP and does this vary for different groups of people?

While you are free to submit any evidence relating to the experience of claiming PIP, the Review is particularly interested in:

• customer trust in the process
• the assessment process and experience
• equity and inclusion in the process
• the public’s perception and trust in the PIP system
• communication and accessibility
• professionals’ training and skills
• reasonable adjustments throughout the claim process
• use of external assessment providers
• the award review process
• the appeals process
• the role of technology, including the potential use of AI, in the process

Theme 4 - Changing context and the impact on PIP

The Review will examine the changing context since PIP was introduced, and the impact that this has had on PIP and wider society. Through this theme the review will consider what changes have contributed to the rising number of PIP claimants, and how PIP adapts to the future and the wider changes needed to make PIP work.

The below question is to help prompt thinking on this theme:

What has changed in wider society and the workplace since 2013 (and might be expected to change in the future), how has this impacted PIP and does PIP need to change accordingly?

While you are free to submit any evidence pertaining to the changed context and PIP’s fitness for the modern world, the Review is particularly interested in evidence relating to:

• the factors contributing to increased disability prevalence in society including different conditions, ages, people, and terminal illness
• the impact of changes in wider society on disability prevalence and the rising number of PIP claimants
• the impact of changes in the workplace and labour market
• the flexibility of PIP to adapt to future changes in disability and society
• adapting to the future abolition of the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) and other changes to benefits
• how PIP can remain within fixed financial limits

Responding to this Call for Evidence

The Review is inviting responses to this Call for Evidence by 11:59 pm on 28 May 2026.

Online

Please respond to this Call for Evidence using the online form. You can submit your response anonymously.  

If your response includes attachments, or exceeds the character limit of the online form, please email your response to us on timmsreview.callforevidence@dwp.gov.uk.

By post

If you would like to respond by post, please mail your response to the Department for Work and Pensions at the following address:

The Timms Review
Disability and Health Strategy Directorate 
Department for Work and Pensions
Floor Two 
Caxton House 
London
SW1H 9NA

By email

You can email us on timmsreview.callforevidence@dwp.gov.uk to find out about alternative ways of submitting a response (for example, by audio or in British Sign Language). You can also use this email address if your response includes attachments or exceeds the character limit of the online form.

Please ensure that Call for Evidence responses are submitted before the closing date of 11:59 pm on 28 May 2026.

Accessibility

This Call for Evidence has been published in accessible versions including British Sign Language, Easy Read, audio, Braille, large print and Welsh translation. To request a Braille version or physical copies of other published accessible versions of this Call for Evidence, please email us on timmsreview.callforevidence@dwp.gov.uk.

Next steps

Once the Call for Evidence closes on 28 May 2026, all evidence submitted will be made available to the steering group to inform the next stage of the Review. In addition, DWP will create a summary response to support the steering group in consolidating the evidence received. A summary of responses received will be published during the course of the Review, as determined by the steering group.

Data protection and confidentiality

The Department for Work and Pensions will analyse and summarise responses and may use artificial intelligence to assist with the handling of responses - this will be under human oversight and will not replace human judgement in the consideration of evidence. An anonymised version of your response may be published in a list of responses, in a summary of responses received, and in any subsequent review reports. We may also share your personal data where required to by law, for example in relation to a request made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. We will remove information which could identify you, such as email addresses and telephone numbers from these responses, but apart from this we may publish responses in full. You can leave out personal information from your response entirely if you would prefer to do so.