Help us stop Universal Credit cuts for disabled young adults

2 mins read

Monday 26 May 2025

The government is proposing to remove access to the health element (currently called the limited capability for work and work-related activity – LCWRA element) of Universal Credit for most young adults aged 16 – 21 once they claim Universal Credit in their own right.

This proposal would mean a huge drop in income of almost £100 per week for nearly 110,000 disabled young adults.

It would have a devastating financial impact not only on disabled young adults who are not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET), but also on many who are in education or low-paid employment. 

This proposal pushes disabled young adults and their families further away from employment prospects and further into poverty.

It is not a policy that should be implemented. It is not a proposal that Contact could support in any way. 

We must stop this. Please support our campaign!

Email your MP to oppose the change

Please email your local MP about the devastating impact this will have on disabled young people.

We are asking MPs to write to Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the Rt Hon Liz Kendall MP, to rethink this proposal.

We have set up an email to your MP, making it quick and easy for you. 

Thank you to everyone who has been emailing their MPs recently.  We really appreciate your support. 

Will anyone be exempt from this proposal if it goes ahead?

The Green Paper acknowledges that the government needs to “consider what special provisions need to be put in place for those young people where engagement with work or training is not a realistic prospect”.  

In a speech last week (21 May), the Rt Hon Liz Kendall MP, said: 

“Those with the most severe, life-long conditions that will never improve and who can never work will have their Universal Credit protected – including young people aged under 22.”

However, this extremely high threshold offers very little protections for most young disabled adults.

Ultimately, Contact does not accept that there is any justification for slashing financial support for any young disabled person aged 16 – 21.

Join the campaign to stop these cuts.