MIXING WITH OTHER PEOPLE -SOCIAL SUPPORT

Hi Kenny,
Is this social support for PIP?
If so, then social support can be any person specially trained, such as support worker GP, etc, but thus also includes a family member or close friend if they know you and understand your difficulties.
However if you are wondering about requiring social support to bd able to engage socially with other people, this needs to be someone who goes with you and is present during a social event and makes sure you are safe and can help you understand and be understood whilst there. If I understand you correctly you receive assistance with anxiety, who offer counselling and advice from time to time over the phone. Unless this advisor/counsellor actually attended with you to enable you to attend a social event it is unlikely that this would be enough to be support to qualify for points.
However the fact that you need help dealing with anxiety is important evidence of your disability. Your advisor can help you with your benefit claim by writing a report to shown how your anxiety issues cause difficulties for you. This can help show DWP that you need help to perform descriptor activities for either PIP or ESA.
Please have a look at the guides on the members pages as these provide a lot if helpful information. There are separate pages for PIP and ESA.
I hope this helps.
LL26

Hello MrFibrospondodythmatic,

The law actual says '“social support” means support from a person trained or experienced in assisting people to engage in social situations", i.e. not a social event.

I would argue that some elements of attending a GP appointment and/or hospital appointment are social situations, in that you are expected to have interaction with people who you are not the professionals who are working with you. You could for example imagine someone with severe autism finding the waiting room in a GP surgery very difficult to cope with. Similiarly someone with extreme anxiety might struggle with a hospital waiting area. I have accompanied people to appointments because they are not able to deal with whole package unsupported.

Catherine

Hi Mr Fibrospondodythmatic,
I may be able to help further here.
Caselaw suggests that appointments to the GP etc are not social events. As per Catherine.
Descriptor 9 deals with the ability to engage with others - interacting appropriately, establishing relationships etc. Social support in this context is a personal who knows you well or a trained person who goes with you and basically facilitates you being able to socialise. If you only go out with a person who knows you then this suggests you need social support.
The fact that you need someone even to attend the GP also suggests a need for support, but isn't necessarily conclusive that you need support to socialise.
Perhaps communication is the issue, and you need support to communicate? (Of course you may need both!)
DWP will no doubt argue that conversation with the GP or cashier at the supermarket will show you can socialise without support. The caselaw says otherwise. Mere pleasantries are not sufficient, and you need to be careful not to fall into the trap and invite the negative assumptions by DWP!
Have a look here:
www.gov.uk/administrative-appeals-tribun...ip-2017-ukut-352-aac
Also the GP is likely to be a trained person, so a visit aline to GP won't matter. Also, a few GP visits, or occasional few words to a cashier won't comprise the 'majority of days' under regulation 7.
I hope this clarifies things further.
LL26