Disability benefits change means my son could lose £200 a month - it's terrifying

Erika Lye says she's "the sunshine" in her house, always smiling for her sons Logan, 20, and Jack, 16.

But behind closed doors, she is terrified about money.

She fears that a new change to the health element of Universal Credit could send her family over a financial "cliff edge".

After a summer of political rebellion over benefits last year, the first changes are coming into effect. From Monday, 6 April, new applicants for the health top-up to Universal Credit - an additional payment which supports people who can not work due to disability or ill health - will receive half of what existing claimants get.

The government says it hopes to save £1bn by 2030/31 by cutting the payments from £429.80 a month for existing claimants, to £217.26 a month for new ones.

A spokesperson said the Universal Credit system had "forced too many people to be written off, left behind, and denied the opportunities to build better lives for themselves and their families".

"That's why we're bringing forward these reforms – increasing the incentive to work, ensuring sick or disabled people can access genuine support, and bearing down on the cost of living by boosting the standard rate of Universal Credit," they added.

Any young person under 16, or still in education on 6 April, has also needed to wait until after that to apply.

Logan Lye has cerebral palsy and learning disabilities. He applied for the Universal Credit health top-up - also known as Limited-Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity (LCWRA) - in 2025, and will be in line to receive the full £429.80 per month.

But his younger brother Jack, who is autistic and non-verbal, will only be eligible to apply sometime after 6 April when he finishes being home schooled.

This means he could receive £200 less a month than Logan, and mum Erika says that is keeping her up at night.

"I am so concerned. Families like mine are going to be pushed to: 'I've got to put my child into care because I can't even feed them.'"

There are some exceptions to these changes. Those who apply after 6 April but are nearing end of life, or meet the Severe Conditions Criteria, will continue to receive the higher rate.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has said this criteria will involve a healthcare professional who "must determine that their level of function will always meet the LCWRA criteria" - meaning their condition is lifelong and with no real prospect of recovery.

But the specifics are yet to be set out, so while Erika hopes Jack will meet them, she worries that she can't yet be sure.

The government's impact statement into the change to Universal Credit found some people were already "struggling to get by" on the standard allowance of £400 for a single person, meaning the health top-up, worth an additional £400, was a temptation not to work and the system needed to be re-balanced.

It reported that 1.9 million people received the health top-up in 2019/2020, but that was predicted to increase to three million by 2029/30.

"This is bad for people, bad for businesses and bad for the economy," the impact statement said.

"We know that good work is good for people's mental and physical health."

But families who rely on the top-up, and charities who support them, say they are concerned about the impact it will have.

Derek Sinclair, a senior welfare rights expert from the charity Contact, said the changes would be a "massive financial blow".

"I think in a lot of cases, the money's all being pooled together as one household kitty to help meet whatever expenses the disabled child has," he said.

"We already know that lots of families with disabled children are struggling financially. They're missing out on things like therapies, equipment and activities. We've got very real concerns about this."

According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 50% of people receiving the Universal Credit health top-up are either unable to heat their home, behind on bills or have low food security.

About 900,000 children are said to live in a household where someone receives it.

The foundation said younger recipients were "at even greater risk of hardship".

Senior policy adviser Iain Porter said the fact the change was coming into effect overnight made an "unjust situation even worse".

"The government should instead be ensuring that Universal Credit is at least enough to afford essentials," he said.