Written evidence submitted by MS Society [ESD0115]

About MS

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a neurological condition that affects more than 150,000 people in the UK[1], equivalent to one in every 400 people. It’s unpredictable and different for everyone. It’s often painful, exhausting and can cause problems with how people walk, move, see, think and feel.  

About the MS Society

The MS Society is the UK’s largest charity for people living with MS. We’re here for everyone living with MS – to provide practical help today, and the hope of a cure tomorrow. We play a leading role in research. We fight for better treatment and care. We let people with MS know they’re not alone and offer advice and support to help them.  

Summary

• MS is a debilitating condition, affecting hundreds of thousands of people of working age, many of whom are at risk of compromising their health or leaving the workforce before they want or need to without progress in employment support.
• Most people with MS are either in work, or out of work and not looking to return. They are rarely out of work and looking for work.
• For some leaving work is the right thing to do, usually because their MS symptoms had made working too hard – and they should be financially supported if they have to leave work, and not feel forced to work when it is not appropriate for them to do so.
• However, many people with MS want or need to work, but feel forced to either stay in work and compromise their health, or exit their job earlier than they want or need to. Often this is because they do not get the right support from their employer or from the Government to maintain their employment whilst managing their condition.
• But with the right support, people with MS can be treated more fairly at work, have the opportunity to progress and thrive in their careers, and live healthier, more secure, more independent, more fulfilling lives.
• The Government has a responsibility, and an interest, in protecting the health and wellbeing of disabled people, and supporting those who can work and want to work to succeed in securing reliable, high-quality and fulfilling work.
• So, in response to this evidence, and to overcome the barriers people with MS face at work, the Government should now take action to:

• Improve access to appropriate healthcare, social care, vocational rehab and occupational health – with better work between DHSC/NHS England and DWP as part of the NHS 10 Year Plan to tackle interconnected areas of health and work. Alongside this, we would also like to see a Modern Services Framework for neurological conditions 
• Increase the rate and flexibility of SSP 
• Enhance and expand rights to flexible working - in particular, implementing and enforcing the right to flexible working as default 
• Drive greater accountability for employers to provide Reasonable Adjustments 
• Improve understanding of disabilities and neurological conditions, and support for disabled people at work – through further information, guidance and support for organizations, managers and colleagues on MS and disability 
• Improve the quality and access to in-work government and employer support - in particular strengthening the Access to Work and Disability Confident schemes 
• Ensure all people with MS, whether in or out of work, have adequate social security support. In particular ensuring disabled people are able to get the support they need from essential benefits like PIP to cover their extra costs and enable them to better find and maintain work 
• Making transport more affordable and accessible for disabled people - standardising eligibility criteria based on the Social Model of Disability, and removing restrictions on the Disabled Persons Bus Pass 

Why has progress with closing the disability employment gap slowed in recent years?

Progress with closing the disability employment gap has stalled, and MS Society research has found that for people with MS the gap is even greater than for disabled people overall.

Our ‘My MS My Needs’ survey indicates that the employment rate for people with MS in 2022 was estimated to be around 32%[2]. This is significantly lower than the employment rate for non-disabled people (82%), and lower than the average disability employment rate (55%).[3] This has a significant effect on the financial security, health and wellbeing of people with MS.

Our recent research with the Work Foundation looking at the experience of employment among people with MS found that 22% of respondents were in part time work, which is also higher than the average for non-disabled people (16%).[4]

We believe progress has stalled for a number of reasons, including:

• A lack of support for managing health while working
• Inadequate sick pay support and lack of disability leave
• Lack of flexible working options
• Inconsistent provision of Reasonable Adjustments
• Lack of understanding, support, and negative attitudes towards health and disability
• Difficulties accessing broader social security, particularly Access to Work and Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• Inadequate transport support to enable disabled people to get to and from work

What barriers prevent disabled people who want to work, or to work more, from doing so? How do these vary for different disabilities? How do these vary across the country?

People with MS face significant barriers to securing and maintaining work. Most people with MS begin to experience symptoms between the ages of 20-40[5] – meaning many are diagnosed at the peak of their working life.

The nature of MS means the condition significantly impacts the ability to work for nearly all of those affected. The vast majority of people with MS (96%) who participated in our recent study with the Work Foundation reported that their MS has had an impact on their ability to work. For nearly a quarter of respondents (24%), MS had such a severe effect on them that they felt unable to work at all[6]. This underscores how the drive to close the disability employment gap has to come in tandem with a recognition that for some people work is not appropriate or possible. This understanding should be followed through in policy and practice – ensuring people do not feel forced to work when it is not appropriate for them to do so, and are personally and financially supported if they have to leave work.

The barriers and enablers for employment for people with MS are also determined by the employment status of those with MS who can and want to work.  Due to the nature of the condition, people with MS are predominantly either already in work, or out of work and not looking to return due to effect of their condition. A relatively small amount of people with MS are out of work and looking for work – somewhere between 1-2% based on recent surveys[7]. This, in combination with the knowledge of that around 50% of people with MS feel forced to leave employment before they want or need to[8], signals that the crucial focus when it comes to people with MS and employment should be to support those in work to maintain employment.

Once people with MS leave the workplace they rarely return. Sometimes this is because the barriers to entering new employment are high and require a range of inputs to break down, but often this move is the result of MS symptoms progressing and worsening. Therefore, whilst the barriers to entering work need to be addressed, it is the barriers to remaining in work that should be the prime focus for people with MS.

This focus on keeping people in work also comes from consistently hearing from people with MS that whilst many people with MS do want to work, they feel forced out because of a lack of support. 1 in 2 (50%) survey respondents in our recent Work Foundation research stated they had left a job because of their MS. In addition, A third (31%) of those currently in work also indicated that they work in a job below their skill level because of factors that they related to their MS[9]. Often this is because they did not get the right support and adjustments from their employer, or good enough support directly from the Government to maintain and progress their employment whilst managing their condition.

Whilst focusing on employment outcomes, it is also notable that there is a significant group of people with MS who are in work, but feel they have to compromise their health to do so. Half (50%) of the people who responded to our recent study said a lack of support and financial pressures had led them to stay in a job that compromised their health[10]. People in this situation should instead be getting the support they need to remain in work whilst looking after their health, or be able to get the support and financial assistance they need to be able to leave work whilst protecting both their health and their financial security.

The MS Society’s new research programme with the Work Foundation was set up directly to dig into the barriers faced by people with MS in more detail, and in conclusion it was three main groups of barriers that were identified. They were:

a)    A lack of flexibility in people’s jobs – with 26% of those surveyed reported workloads unmanageable and incompatible with the effect of their MS symptoms, and 21% reported facing challenges because of limitations with flexible working options[11]

b)    Issues with people’s work environments and work settings – with 21% of people in our study said getting the adjustments they needed at work was a challenge, and 41% of those who left work because of their MS stating that the proper implementation of workplace adjustments would have helped them to stay in work[12]

c)     Lack of knowledge and understanding from employers and colleagues – with 48% of those surveyed cited a lack of employer knowledge about how MS affects people’s working lives, and 45% of those who left work because of their MS stated that a better understanding of the condition by their employer would have enabled them to stay in employment[13]

The barriers to people with MS getting into, and maintaining, good employment also extend beyond these core themes – with distinct challenges also being present in:

• Issues relating to health – where poor access to appropriate healthcare and social care, poor access to vocational rehab and occupational health services, and a lack of progress in modernizing the provision of sick pay (or advancing the rollout of other leave entitlements like disability leave) act as a barrier to employment
• Welfare – where people missing out on disability support like PIP can mean they are less able to cover their extra work related costs (like support to get ready in the morning, or taxis)
• Transport – where restrictions on eligibility and use of blue badges, Disabled Persons Bus Passes, and Disabled Persons Railcards limit people’s ability to access work

Despite this, it is important to recognize that, if tackled, these areas of challenge could flip and present opportunities to enable more disabled people, and people with MS, to work should the Government take action to:

a)    Enhance and expanding flexible working practices - with particular focus on implementing and enforcing flexible working as default in employment across the UK

b)    Make work environments and work settings more accessible – with a focus on better implementation of workplace adjustments

c)     Improve knowledge and understanding of MS and disability

What kinds of support are most effective at supporting people with different disabilities (such as physical, mental or fluctuating conditions) to enter and stay in work?

In our recent research with the Work Foundation, 28% of respondents who had left work said that better Government support (such as the Access to Work scheme) would have helped them stay in work, and 26% also cited better employee benefits (like disability leave and hospital appointment leave) as something that would’ve helped them stay in work[14].

We also consistently hear from many people with MS about two other key areas of support that are most important to them at work – sick pay, and Reasonable Adjustments. Sick pay is a particularly important form of support for people with MS because of the relapsing and progressive nature of the condition, and the sudden, significant impact these unpredictable effects can have on people’s health. Inadequate sick pay can contribute to people with MS being forced to leave work before they want or need to, or to not take the leave they should, and instead feel forced to stay in (or return to) work when it is detrimental to their long term health to do so. As a result, we believe it is right, and most effective, that employees should receive their usual weekly wage in Occupational Sick Pay (OSP) when they are sick. As a minimum, and in lieu of this ultimate goal being met, we believe employees should receive either their usual weekly wage, or the National Living Wage (whichever is lower), in SSP when they are sick. This should be provided at an hourly rate for 52 weeks in a 3-year period – with these adaptions making SSP more useful for people with fluctuating conditions. This is so people who are sick can focus on looking after their health, whilst maintaining financial security. This will ultimately create a better chance of people remaining and flourishing in their jobs when they are well enough to return to work.

Reasonable Adjustments are also often cited – with people with MS saying the existing legal duty on employers is not effective enough, nor enforced well enough; And that people with MS have also often not been given any useful information about why their Reasonable Adjustment request was refused, despite this being a legal duty for employers[15]. This has lead to people leaving work earlier than they have wanted to, and so to support more disabled people in work the Government should strengthen the legal duty, and must crack down on employers who do not provide Reasonable Adjustments without good reason.

Finally, in our most recent research study conducted in partnership with the Work Foundation it was also revealed that 41% of people with MS who were in work receive PIP2. Often, this was coupled with citations of how the payments not only support individual’s health, but also how this support is vital to helping them stay in work – with the benefit paying for things like visits from carers, and help with things like washing, cooking and getting ready, and travelling to, work. Issues with the assessment as it stands mean many people with MS miss out on getting PIP, and any tightening of the assessment criteria for PIP (as was initially proposed in the Pathways to Work Green Paper) would mean many more miss out on support they need to cover the extra costs of disability, and not just impact people’s health and wellbeing but also their employment prospects. It is clear that if people are able to qualify after the PIP assessment process, PIP payments delivered as a non-means tested, cash benefit are likely the single most effective route to ensuring people with MS live more independent fulfilling lives, and prosper in employment.

This considered, in conclusion there are three key areas which we recommend could be highly effective in supporting more people with MS to enter and stay in work:

1. Making access to secure and flexible work standard practice, by:

• Implementing and enforcing the right to flexible working as default from day one of employment
• Encouraging employers to support enhanced flexibility in job characteristics and job design
• Better implementation and stronger enforcement of the right to Reasonable Adjustments - updating the statutory guidance for Reasonable Adjustments, including shortening the timeframe for employers to respond to employee requests, and cracking down on employers who do not provide Reasonable Adjustments when they are legally obliged to do so

2. Improving the quality and access to in-work government and employer support, by:

• Increasing the rate and flexibility of SSP – focusing on setting out a roadmap to increase the rate of SSP to an employee’s weekly wage or the National Living Wage
• Encouraging employers to consider offering additional leave for health appointments and disability related issues and illness
• Improving funding and resourcing of the Access to Work scheme - with a focus on scaling up the use of Health Adjustment Passports
• Bolstering the Disability Confident Scheme - including implementing the recommendation of the Disability Employment Charter requiring all employers at Disability Confident Levels 2 and 3 to meet minimum thresholds regarding the percentage of disabled people in their workforce, and aligning the Disability Confident scheme with the proposed Equality (Race and Disabilities) Bill and require large employers signed up to the scheme to publish rates of pay, rates of Reasonable Adjustments and access to remote and hybrid work
• Improving and better promoting guidance for employers on MS and disability by establishing a national network of workforce health hubs as ‘one-stop shops’ for employers and individuals to access advice on supporting people with long-term and fluctuating health conditions like MS to stay in work

3. Ensuring all people with MS, whether in or out of work, have adequate social security support, by:

• Rejecting any plans to constrain access to PIP, and focus reforms of PIP on ensuring people get the support they need whilst also being treated with fairness, dignity and respect while going through the assessment process 
• Ensure benefit payments cover essential costs and support a dignified standard of living

Crucial support for people with MS to enter and remain in work then finally also comes through the success of other public services - in particular health and social care, and transport.

How successful has Access to Work been at supporting disabled people into work? How could it be improved?

Access to Work is a lifeline for many people with MS, and a large number of the reports we get from people with MS about the scheme are positive.

Despite this, baseline awareness of the existence of the scheme in 2025 is still low. Polling by Scope found that almost two-thirds (65%) of disabled people had never heard of Access to Work[16], and in our survey ran in partnership with the Work Foundation only 1 in 10 (10%) respondents with MS said they had accessed the scheme[17]. And despite the value of the scheme to disabled people, there have been reports that the application process is hard to navigate, and the customer service received is often poor[18]. There are long delays with decisions and payments, and these have grown over the last couple of years – with over 60,000 outstanding applications and 33,000 outstanding payments as of June 2025[19]. These delays and access issues for the scheme cause issues for both claimants and employers – acting as a roadblock to employers taking on disabled staff, preventing people from accessing jobs and pushing people out of work.

Proposals in the Pathways to Work Green Paper, such as shifting the onus to provide support more towards employers, could also prove to be a threat to the effectiveness of the scheme. It is reasonable to expect employers to comply with their legal duty to make adjustments, however, we are concerned that shifting the onus of provision more onto employers without having far stronger accountability for employers to make adjustments will lead to people not getting the adjustments they need. Additionally, expecting people to rely on low-cost aids and adaptations through the market means it is more likely people will end up with standardised equipment, in place of the high-quality, tailored support they can get through Access to Work. Recent revelations about ‘internal restructuring’ of the Access to Work programme add to these concerns[20]. Any new restrictions placed on the types of technology, equipment and support available for those who do qualify for the scheme could be hugely detrimental for people with MS and their employment prospects, and undermine the entire premise, and stated aims of the programme.

An ongoing challenge of using Access to Work is that when people move jobs, they need to make a new application to the scheme for support. They cannot easily move their list of adjustments and support from job to job and have to deal with delays each time they take up a new role. People can usually also only apply to the scheme when they have a confirmed job offer. This means people are unsure of the support they may get before applying for jobs, which can deter people from applying for jobs in the first place, as they are not confident they will get the support they need put in place once they start work. This limitation to the scheme may also enhance employers reluctance to take on disabled employees, as they may be worried about the costs and difficulties this could lead to. 

To improve Access to Work, the Government should:

• Clear the backlog and fast track urgent cases - better resourcing the delivery of the scheme to cut down delays to applications, and to reimbursements
• Protect the core principles and funding of the scheme – not putting more responsibility over to businesses
• Ensure the scheme is funded appropriately and continues to allow for the provision of assistive technology and specialist equipment
• Improve awareness of Access to Work amongst disabled people and employers – improving signposting and running publicity campaigns

• Roll out the Adjustments Passport trial to everyone who gets support, so they can easily move their support from job to job 

• Allow prospective applicants to explore their support options before starting work, including offering the option of granting in principle ‘indicative’ awards - which would let people know in advance of starting work what support they will get

How successful has the Disability Confident scheme been at improving employer practices? How could it be improved?

Disability Confident should and could be a shining light for the Government, and its ambitions to create fairer, more inclusive employment in the UK. But as of now, the scheme has not had a tangible impact on reducing the barriers that disabled people, including those with MS, face in employment.

Some people with MS find the scheme at least offers greater chance that the employer is likely to be knowledgeable and understanding of the challenges disabled people have placed in their path. 28% of people surveyed in our recent study said when job hunting, they focus on jobs with Disability Confident employers[21]. However, people with MS have reported that in practice Disability Confident employers have sometimes not delivered as expected, with people having poor experiences where they were not well supported. Many believe that it is too much of a ‘tick-box’ scheme lacking strong checks on whether employers are living up to their Disability Confident label[22].

There are several fundamental issues with the scheme that currently reduce its success and impact. Firstly, there is no mandatory reporting for Level 1 or Level 2 employers, with employees self-reporting on their accreditation. In addition, there are also no target thresholds or proportions for the number of disabled people employed. Particularly in the context of the changes that will now be mandated to large employers and public bodies through the new Equality (Race and Disability) Bill it is clear the Disability Confident scheme must be strengthened.

One way to make clear the distinction between exceptional Disability Confident employers and others could be Disability Confident employers agreeing to minimum thresholds regarding the percentage of disabled people in the workforce (as has been recommended by the Disability Employment Charter).

To improve the scheme further, and ensure a distinction from other large employers, we believe Level 2 and 3 Disability Confident employers should now also openly implement enhanced levels of reporting within their organisation, in order to showcase their commitment to disability employment. To make sure that Disability Confident employers are delivering the policies and structures they should be, we think that mandatory reporting should exist for: 

• Pay - to mirror the proposed disability pay gap reporting 

• Rates of Reasonable Adjustments

• Access to remote/hybrid working 

What effect does the Motability scheme have on employment outcomes for disabled people?

The Motability scheme is a vital form of support for many people with MS who face more significant mobility challenges. It can have a hugely positive effect on the ability for people with MS to live more independent, and more fulfilling lives, and can directly support employment, helping people with MS to get to and from work more easily.

At the moment though not everyone with MS who could benefit from the Motability scheme is able to do so. Issues within the PIP assessment criteria (in particular the 20m rule) already mean many people with MS who need support from the scheme miss out. We would like DWP to expand access to Motability beyond those on the higher rate of the mobility component of PIP so that more people can benefit from the scheme.

The conversation around transport for disabled people should not just be limited to Motability though. In addition, employment outcomes for disabled people, and people with MS specifically, are also impacted by how well set up public transport is to work for disabled people[23].

As such, the DWP should also consider ways it can work with the Department for Transport to make sure all disabled people have easy and affordable access to other support schemes, and public transport options, including:

• Blue badge parking: Ensuring there is a single, accessible national application process for Blue Badges, and standardising eligibility criteria for badges
• Buses: Co-designing a single, accessible national application process for the Bus Pass with Disabled people, standardising eligibility criteria for bus passes and removing pre-9:30am and post-11pm restrictions on the Disabled Persons Bus Passes
• Trains: Ensuring that it is clear that all people with MS can get a Disabled Person’s Railcard, as well as those who qualify through the ‘gateway benefit’ they receive (like PIP)

What should the Government prioritise with its additional employment support for disabled people arising from the Pathways to Work Green Paper?

We welcome the funding set aside for employment support in the Pathways to Work Green Paper. Much of this additional support has so far been earmarked for spend on things like better resourcing of JobCentres, and employment support programmes for people out of work. This is welcome, but its effectiveness is limited. Only around 1-2% of people with MS are out of work and job seeking[24]. Consequently, the Government must be careful not to overfocus on those out of work, and instead focus on what additional support can be targeted to keep people in work. There are a number of actions and opportunities (including some low cost, legislative options) that the Government could immediately take to do this – for instance by improving the flexibility of SSP, or bolstering and better enforcing disabled people’s rights to Reasonable Adjustments. This, in our opinion, would be a more strategic and effective course of action for the MS community, and for the Government’s employment aspirations than any employment support packages.

When considering actions the Government can take that more neatly fit within the realm of employment support though, there is still some actions that we believe would be more effective for disabled people, and people with conditions like MS. In sum, we’d recommend investments in programmes that offer more tailored, bespoke support – that can adapt to the varied and unpredictable nature of MS. This said, our suggestion would be that rather than spend significant sums on generalised employment support, the Government instead prioritise investment in things like:

• Support for employment related health services that can be tailored and help get people back into work quickly, or help people stay in work whilst managing a health condition – including vocational rehab services, and occupational health services
• Better funding and resourcing of the existing Access to Work scheme, as well as putting in investment to improve public awareness of the scheme amongst disabled people and employers

What can the Government learn from the Work and Health Programme?

The Work and Health programme has offered some positive impacts and learnings in the time it has been operational, but has predominantly been felt to be very limited in its reach and impact for people with MS.

An APPG for MS inquiry into employment in 2022 found that whilst the programme was an improvement on what had come before, and showed improved ambition and intention, many people with MS still found it did not adopt enough of a tailored or holistic approach to supporting people with employment[25].

In addition, the impact of the scheme was felt to be severely limited simply due to the lack of scale. Only around 1-2% of people with MS are able to work, but out of work, and job seeking[26], and only a tiny fraction of these can have been expected to have had any knowledge or contact with the Work and Health programme.

The learnings that can be taken forward would be that the more tailored and holistic employment support can be for people with MS, the better impact it will have.

How well is Connect to Work working? Does it work better in some circumstances, or for some disabilities, than others?

In principle, the Connect to Work scheme is a positive and beneficial part of the DWP’s employment support offering. That said, despite expansions in the number of people it can support, the number of people supported is still relatively small overall – and by extension the numbers of people with MS who are supported is expected to be incredibly small. This in of itself means it has so far had a negligible positive effect for the MS community – on accounts of the lack of scale.

The scheme itself also has limitations, and we have received reports from some people with MS that both the Work and Health Programme, and the Connect to Work programme, have not been holistic enough, or set them up adequately to be in a good position to maintain employment once they are in a job[27].

For it to work better for people with MS, it would need to be rolled out further and also adapted – with people with MS likely needing more intensive, tailored support than is currently being offered.

How effective is the support provided by Disability Employment Advisers? Are they able to support across all disabilities?

The move to reorientate and refocus the JobCentre away from policing benefits and towards supporting people more holistically into higher quality employment is a welcome one, and we have been happy to see a boost given to the resourcing and role Disability Employment Advisors (DEA) can play within this.

However, the overwhelming reports have been that people with MS have not been able to get the support of a DEA, and even when they have they have reported feeling that understanding of health conditions was low, the support provided was too general, and the job options recommended to them unsuitable for someone with their condition[28]. In addition, the lack of trust in the JobCentre, and DWP more generally, has in the past led some people with MS to avoid all contact[29].

In response to this, the Government must first rebuild that trust between the DWP, the JobCentre and disabled people. This happens not just through changes to the JobCentre itself but through changes in policy and rhetoric across the department as a whole – especially in relation to how the Government approaches access to benefits, and how the Government approaches (and talks about) getting people ‘back to work’.

Beyond this, the JobCentre’s role and DEA’s role could be enacted more effectively with:

• An increase in the number of the DEAs
• Improvements to training for these advisors – on fluctuating neurological conditions like MS, and what support people with MS might require in particular employment sectors
• Ensuring that disabled people are also being given advice and guidance on the legal rights and support they can lean on to help maintain their employment once they are in work – like their rights to flexible working and Reasonable Adjustments, and support they could get through things like PIP and the Access to Work scheme

What should be the focus of the 1,000 Pathway to Work advisors?

The investment in new Pathways to Work advisors is welcome. Additional support for people out of work because of ill health could be helpful (especially if it is flexible, and well tailored), but it is limited in relevance and impact for people with MS due to the severe, debilitating nature of the condition for many of the cohort who are not in work.

That said, there are a small pool for whom a Pathways to Work advisor support could be well suited – and in those scenarios the focus should be on:

• Tailored, intensive support that takes a holistic perspective, and a long term view on employment
• Ensuring that disabled people are also being given advice and guidance on the legal rights and support they can lean on to help maintain their employment once they are in work – like their rights to flexible working and Reasonable Adjustments, and support they could get through things like PIP and the Access to Work scheme 

It must be reiterated though that for many people with MS leaving work is the right thing to do, and people should not feel at all pressured to return to employment when it is not appropriate for them to do so. The offer of support from the Pathways to Work advisors to people out of work for health reasons therefore must remain explicitly voluntary, and the Government must be careful with the language and rhetoric used regarding the scheme if it wants to build engagement and trust with disabled people.

To what extent is the success of DWP’s plans to improve disability employment contingent on improvements made to other public services, in particular, health?

Boosting disability employment is completely contingent on the Government fixing public services and tackling wider factors which are often the underlying causes of people with MS being out of work when in fact they can work, and want to work.

Some of the key dependencies for progress on disability employment will be:

• Access to appropriate health care to help people better manage their conditions – particularly neurology, mental health and rehabilitation services 
• Access to work related support from healthcare professionals – including vocational rehab and occupational health services

• Working age adults receiving an appropriate level of social care – from the social care sector, or from informal carers suitably reimbursed through an improved rate of Carers allowance

• Better support for unpaid carers – with carers able to take paid leave
• More accessible and affordable transport options

The responsibility to grasp this issue sits with the Government and primarily the DWP, but other stakeholders across Whitehall must play their part if the disability employment gap is to be reduced. Department must work more collaboratively and The Disability Unit, with its remit embedding the consideration of disability across all government policy, is also in a prime place to drive some of this work and should play a central role in the Government’s aspirations here.

How can DWP apply a systems-based approach to safeguarding in the design and delivery of employment support for disabled people?

We want the Government to ensure that disabled people, including those living with MS, are involved directly in the development of new safeguarding practices as equal partners, and that their views and experiences form the basis of improvements in this area.

Finally, our foundational advice would be that a clearer set of underlying principles should underpin all of the DWP’s work – with primarily the principles of empathy, dignity and respect embedded in every policy and practice. This could improve safeguarding practices and the wider work of the Department, as well as help rebuild the relationship and trust between the DWP and disabled people.

October 2025