The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will contact a select group of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claimants by 4 September 2026 to invite them to participate in workshops aimed at shaping the future of the benefit. The move is part of the ongoing Timms Review, which is developing recommendations for changes to PIP.
Workshops to test emerging recommendations
The DWP is calling forward PIP claimants with disabilities and long-term health conditions to take part in 15 workshops held online and in person across the UK during September and October 2026. The sessions are designed to test the Review's emerging recommendations against real-life experiences and gather feedback on how the benefit could be made fairer and clearer.
Registration for the workshops opens on Wednesday 12 August 2026 at 10am and closes on Friday 21 August 2026 at 5pm. Selected participants will be informed by 4 September 2026.
Who can take part
The workshops are aimed at two groups: disabled people and people with long-term health conditions. In addition, carers, family members of disabled people, and support workers are all eligible to register their interest in taking part.
Dr Clenton Farquharson CBE, Co-Chair of the Review and member of the shaping recommendations workshops working group, said: "Disabled people and people with long term health conditions know better than anyone how PIP works in real life where it helps, where it creates barriers, and where it needs to change. That experience has to be part of shaping what comes next."
Encouraging participation
Dr Farquharson added: "I would encourage anyone with experience of applying for or receiving PIP to register their interest in taking part. The purpose of these workshops is not simply to hear people’s experiences, but to test the Review’s emerging recommendations against real lives and understand what could make them fairer, clearer and work better in practice."
He also emphasised a commitment to transparency: "Most importantly, I am committed to showing how what people tell us influences the recommendations we ultimately make."
The Timms Review is co-chaired by Sir Stephen Timms, Minister for Social Security and Disability, Sharon Brennan, and Dr Clenton Farquharson CBE. The workshops will help finalise recommendations for the future of PIP.
