Tribunal Help

Weby

Sorry for the delay in answering, my browser yet again hiccupped and lost all of my answer just before I clicked submit

To score four points for Preparing Food you need to show

Needs supervision or assistance to either prepare or cook a simple meal

I assume that you need assistance rather than supervision.

The primary issue you will likely need to deal with is that the DWP guidance states that carrying things is not relevant to the test, quite how you are supposed to prepare a meal without doing this I don't know, so this is certainly something that you can argue against, however, the panel will also look at ways that you might simplify this type of activity, so as example for cooking vegetables; you could put an empty pan on the hob and then fill it with water using a smaller and more easily managed container, at the end of the cooking you could use a slotted spoon to remove the vegetables to another container removing the need to pick up a hot pan.

So your task will be to think of how each task can be simplified and where relevant argue that you would still have problems, remembering that even these simpler activities must be done reliably, so using the same example; if you suffer from memory problems you might say that due to this you would still be liable to pick up the hot pan of water with the associated risk of burning or scalding yourself.

For Managing Treatments

For four points you need to show that you

Need supervision, prompting or assistance to be able to manage therapy that takes more than 3.5 but no more than 7 hours a week.

If you scored the one point for "supervision, prompting or assistance" then you should not need to argue this point in detail as it is accepted that this is an issue, so the argument revolves around the time required. A good start would be for you to accurately time each of the activities involved in your treatment, remember that there may be other things that have to be done in order for the treatment to be done, as a simple example, to take tablets most people will need a glass of water (or the equivalent), to help them do so, so the effort and time to get a drink should be included in the time, perhaps you have to eat before or after you have taken certain tablets.

If it was due to the use of aids or appliances, then your task will be much more difficult as your will need to establish the need for "supervision, prompting or assistance", one thing you might want to consider is whether these are available reliably, as an example; if the only person who can prompt you is your husband, then there may be large parts of the day where they are unavailable to do this, even if it were over the phone.

Lastly, if your evidence contradicts what the assessor has assumed or stated, then draw the panels attention to these points to show that they are unreasonable.

Best of luck

Gordon

Weby

Congratulations on the win, it's not easy to sit in front of a Tribunal panel and persuade them that you meet the criteria.

Gordon