[2025] UKUT 035 (AAC)

MJ was in receipt of Employment and Support Allowance (income-related) (“ESA”) between 8 March 2011 and 10 February 2018. Her award included Severe Disability Premium (“SDP”) in the period immediately preceding her claim to Universal Credit (“UC”).

On 10 February 2018 she made a claim for UC as a natural migrant (i.e. because of a change of circumstances). On 11 August 2019 the Secretary of State determined that she was entitled to the transitional SDP amount in the sum of an additional £285 per month. That decision was made pursuant to Schedule 2 to the Universal Credit (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2014 (“the 2014 Regulations”), inserted by the Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 (“the 2019 Regulations”), which provided for transitional SDP amounts and which were made following the High Court decision in R (TP, AR and SXC) v. Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2018] EWHC 1474 (Admin)) (“TP1”) (on appeal [2020] EWCA Civ 37).

On 13 October 2020, the Secretary of State converted the transitional SDP amount to the TSDPE. On 18 June 2021 MJ notified the Secretary of State of a relevant change in circumstances, namely that she had been diagnosed with polymyalgia.

At the time of the erosion decision, MJ’s UC award comprised a carer element of UC. On 25 October 2021, with effect from 10 October 2021, the Secretary of State decided to add a LCWRA element to MJ’s UC award and in consequence the carer element of the UC award was removed, pursuant to regulation 29(4) of the 2013 Regulations.

By virtue of regulation 55 of the 2014 Regulations, the effect of the addition of the LCWRA element was to erode MJ’s TSDPE to nil. Overall, the amount of her UC award went from £975.20 for the earlier assessment period (10 September 2021 to 9 October 2021) to £879.98 for the following UC assessment period (10 October 2021 to November 2021, i.e. the assessment period which is the subject of the appeal).