Welfare benefits
Most psychiatric patients, including those subject to a hospital order, are entitled to receive welfare benefits. But patients who, were it not for their illness, would be serving a term of imprisonment, do not receive any welfare benefits: domestic and ECtHR challenges to this situation by s47/49 and s45A patients have been unsuccessful, the final judgment being SS v UK 40356/10 54466/10 [2015] ECHR 520. Patients not entitled to welfare benefits may be paid "pocket money" under MHA 1983 s122 (in Wales) or the National Health Service Act 2006 (in England): see R (Mitocariu) v Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 126 (Admin).
Legislation
The following is related to this subject area.
- Miscellaneous legislation. Social Security (Hospital In-Patients) Regulations 2005 — These regulations, among other things, (a) abolish the down-rating of in-patient benefits after 52 weeks, and (b) deprive restricted transferred prisoners (those under s47/49, s45A (while the limitation direction continues in force), and similar Scottish provisions) of state benefits. In force since 2006.
- Miscellaneous legislation. Social Security (Persons Serving a Sentence of Imprisonment Detained in Hospital) Regulations 2010 — These Regulations amend the relevant social security legislation so that post-tariff indeterminate-sentence prisoners who have been transferred under the MHA do not receive benefits on their tariff expiry date, but must wait until their actual release, thus reversing the Court of Appeal decision in R (D and M) v SSWP [2010] EWCA Civ 18. In force 25/3/10.
Cases
The following is an automatically-generated list of the pages in Category:Welfare benefits cases:
- DB (as executor of the estate of OE) v SSWP [2018] UKUT 46 (AAC)
- MOC v SSWP [2022] EWCA Civ 1
- Obrey v SSWP [2013] EWCA Civ 1584, [2013] MHLO 129
- PM v SSWP [2025] UKUT 85 (AAC)
- R (D and M) v SSWP [2010] EWCA Civ 18
- R (EM) v SSWP [2009] EWHC 454 (Admin)
- R (Mitocariu) v Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 126 (Admin)
- R (MM) v SSWP [2013] EWCA Civ 1565, [2013] MHLO 132
- R (RD) v SSWP [2008] EWHC 2635 (Admin)
- R (RJM) v SSWP [2007] EWCA Civ 614
- R (RJM) v SSWP [2008] UKHL 63
- SS v UK 40356/10 [2011] ECHR 107
- SS v UK 40356/10 54466/10 [2015] ECHR 520
- SSWP v Slavin [2011] EWCA Civ 1515
- Stec v UK 65731/01 [2005] ECHR 924
- Stec v UK 65731/01 [2006] ECHR 393
- Tendring District Council v AB [2024] EWCA Civ 1248
- Tendring District Council v SSWP [2024] EWCA Civ 1509
External links
Lords Hansard 23/6/10: Written answers (Internet Archive). The question was: "To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether long-stay in-patients in psychiatric hospitals are entitled to the same social security benefits as persons not in hospital." The initial part of the answer was: "Psychiatric patients who, were it not for their illness, would be serving a term of imprisonment, cannot receive Department for Work and Pensions benefits."
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What links here:
- MHA 1983 s122
- Social Security (Hospital In-Patients) Regulations 2005
- R (EM) v SSWP [2009] EWHC 454 (Admin)
- National Health Service Act 2006
- R (D and M) v SSWP [2010] EWCA Civ 18
- Social Security (Persons Serving a Sentence of Imprisonment Detained in Hospital) Regulations 2010
- R (Mitocariu) v Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust [2018] EWHC 126 (Admin)
- DB (as executor of the estate of OE) v SSWP [2018] UKUT 46 (AAC)
- SS v UK 40356/10 54466/10 [2015] ECHR 520
- SS v UK 40356/10 [2011] ECHR 107
- MOC v SSWP [2022] EWCA Civ 1
- Tendring District Council v SSWP [2024] EWCA Civ 1509
- Tendring District Council v AB [2024] EWCA Civ 1248