I wasn't talking about any course in particular or any that should be carried out by a health care professional as i would outright refuse to take part in those. If i need to attend something to improve or help me cope with the anxiety, depression etc... then it should be suggested by and arranged by my gp. CBT, Counselling etc... I meant the courses in general. Skills coaching, Courses they claim to help you with your confidence, self esteem etc... but which are really a cover for interview techniques and job search.

I've done various courses at my provider for the past few months and some have actually been enjoyable. I was in the same position, Anxious, shaking, sweating etc... And 100% dreading it. But if i can take one thing away from them it's that it's helped me to start socialising again instead of sat at home doing nothing and gradually i've become more comfortable with it. It's not easy, far from it but small steps eh? It also helps that my advisor trys to push me out of my comfort zone with job oppurtunities etc... but when i say no, he drops it. I appreciate that. The one thing i will say to be wary of is that the majority of these courses seem to be C.V preperation, Interview skills, job search etc.... under disguise and by a different name. As long as you know what you can and cannot be made to do then you should be fine. Try it, It will be difficult at first but you may find yourself like me and enjoying the socialising part of it without paying attention to what it's actually about.

Thankyou for the reply Mr.P, it's appreciated! I know i can block there number with my mobile but i thought i would play nice and give them the opportunity to respect my wishes first. If i get one call from them after i've asked nicely then that's what i'll do. Landline isn't an issue as it's never plugged in. The only reason i have a landline is because it's required for the internet. I can deal with the phone calls issue quite easily. It's the other points i need guidelines and clarifications on really.

Hi there, I want to give as much information as possible so i'll be as detailed as i can and i ask of you that you please take the time to read it all as it would really help me. I currently suffer from severe depression, anxiety and occasionally agoraphobia. This is mainly caused and triggered by stress and pressure and results in panic attacks and uncontrollable shaking and sweating. Was on IB for around 5 years and moved to ESA. After the inevitable but expected zero points on my ATOS/ESA assessment and a decision maker agreeing with ATOS my claim was sent to tribunal from which i was successful and placed in the ESA Wrag group. Don't have the exact dates but this would have been around March 2014. With a 12+ month prognosis. Fast forward to around November 2014 and i was referred to PeoplePlus/A4E but as they didn't have an office near me any contact was done by phone. They have since opened a local office and i have been attending appointments from around May/June 2015. So far it's been ok. I've completed one course which although it was difficult (health wise) i enjoyed it. Mainly due to the (3rd party) "teacher" being extremely pleasant and relaxed. So far my advisor has been pleasant and appears to understand what my barriers are. Though one day they'll say " you're not ready for work yet" and the next day it's "I want you to start applying for jobs soon". But now the pressure is being put on me and it's causing my health to be affected which i intend to address with them this week but first i need to get my facts and my (and there) rights correct. Ideally with the relevant DWP guidance provided. I'll try and keep it as organised as possible. 1.) The DWP guidance here (chapter 2, page 6) and here (item 44) both clearly state that a participant on ESA cannot be mandated to apply for jobs or take up work either paid or unpaid. I've seen on CAG that they can't mandate you to do job search either but i've not found any proof or guidance about this. Can anyone point me in the right direction? I've not been asked to do this yet but in conversations with other claimants i've expressed my opinion that if you can't be mandated to apply for jobs and you're not yet ready for employment then surely doing job search is not of benefit to you. I've also seen on both CAG and DWP guidelines that ESA Wrag claimants can be mandated to take up an unpaid community based placement. Yet there own guidelines state ESA claimants cannot be mandated to take up any unpaid work. Yes, i know it's meant to be confusing but can anyone advise on this? (i've not been asked to do this but it got me curious). 2.) How often should i be expected to attend "reviews"? Mine are called Employment Planning Reviews. They are mandated and at a frequency of around 1 per week. Some have been more often, i.e. One on a Friday and the next the following Wednesday. I've not had 2 in the same calendar week (i hope that makes sense). I've seen some information that says 6 in your two year period and some that say not more than one a month. I'd like to get some clarification on this. 3.) I'm being pressured into doing a course which appears to be ran by an employer i wont name but results in you applying to that company towards the end of the course. I've already said no twice but my advisor is adamant i should do it. I'm guessing i can be mandated to do the course but not mandated to submit an application. But the pressure and stress about this is already affecting my health and is causing me to feel worse. 4.) Is there any template someone can provide with which i can withdraw all phone call consent? I intend to address this vocally but would like something in writing in case i need it. I had an interview with my advisor last week during which he mentioned number 3.) above. I said no as i'm not ready yet. But. I still received a phone call yesterday (Friday) trying to pressure me into it, i said no again and they said we'll discuss it Monday. It's ruined my weekend which is now consisting of anxiety, stress and worry. Though i am quite happy to keep receiving the text message reminders of appointments. Overall, i would like some clear guidelines of what they can and cannot do. I've been ok with it so far as going out once or twice a week is slowly helping me and making some new friends (other claimants) is helping me start socialisng again. But the pressure the're starting to put on me is making me ill again and i want to stop it before it starts. I'm having a crappy weekend full of anxiety, stress and worry because of it. I don't intend to have another one. If you've made it this far, thank you! and i really appreciate any advice or experience you can provide!

Seen it on BBC after the budget that for someone who's employed to not be worse off after the tax credit cuts etc... they would have had to increase the national living wage to £12. Budget for the working people? Right...

ESA WRAG starts at 48:00 "For future claimants only we will align the ESA Work related activity group rate with the rate of jobseekers allowance" "No current claimants will be affected by this change" Though the News and Newspaper websites don't mention it's for new claimants only. Scaremongering?

I'm curious how they can remove the £30 a week 'top-up' from WRAG? I'm on WRAG now and get the full £102.15 per week. Surely there's an argument to be had that why should 2 people, who are on the same benefit, have a £30 a week difference? This really doesn't seem fair to new claimants. Although i imagine my question will be irrelevant once the inevitable happens and it's removed from existing WRAG claimants aswell. I can see them asking existing WRAG claimants to have another medical, failing them (obviously) and telling them they need to make a new claim.

Just fixing attachments now, i know they're too small. Fixed.

Ok, so i went for my ESA medical on the 29th Feb and have just received the letter saying i got 0 points. The letter seems to include the examiners report and how many points i got for each descriptor which is a total fabrication and 0 points as expected on everything. Note: i didn't expect 0 points because of my condition but because of what i've read here. Now, my history: I have been unemployed for a period of 6 years during which i have been on Incapacity Benefit (i can't remember the exact dates but it's between 4 and 6 years.) I am diagnosed with suffering from Anxiety, agoraphobia and severe depression, i've been on multiple medications and now on 300mg (2 x 150mg) trazadone daily as well as sleeping tablets which i take when needed. I have been on this medication for around 2-3 years now. I struggle to get out of my flat and when i am out i'm normally back in within 5 minutes due to panicking, stress and starting to feel faint. I do have a history of self-harming & over dosing to the point where i'm only allowed 2 weeks medication at a time. and have seen multiple specialists and therapists for things such as the self-harming and CBT and i'm currently waiting to see a counsellor. Everything was explained to the examiner and she agreed and seemed to show sympathy. but then decided to fabricate & twist everything i told her when writing the report. I have scanned and attached the letter (with my personal details removed of course.) Please take a look and tell me what you think. My final payment will be on the 20th April which gives me 4 weeks (2 more payments) to seek advice which i'm hoping somebody here can give me. I think i've blacked out all personal info, just let me know if i haven't. And feel free to rip apart and dissect the whole thing. I would list everything that's wrong but every paragraph is. I was expecting 0 points after what i've heard and read here but this is a total fabrication and twists every word i said. Thank you for taking the time to read this and any help is greatly appreciated. [/url]

Well, after speaking with a lovely lady at virgin: Debits (lots) were attempted on card from the beginning on January. 6 payments were taken on the 6th march totalling aprrox £260.00 6 payments were taken on the 10th march for exact same amounts as 6th march the payments taken on the 6th march are showing as "transaction not found" Account currently in debt by approx £260.00 She also said that the only 2 ways these payments could have gone through would be : a) Sounded like she said something like "previs" which she said was unsuccessful??? b) Offline transaction Both of which she said are not allowed and they shouldn't have done so either way they shouldn't have taken the payments. Her advice was obviously to ring CG and request a refund (should be fun), card has been blocked. I will be ringing CG but just wanted a bit of advice as im a little confused as to the 2 methods she referred to and how to deal with CG etc.... Thanks.

Obviously it's not impossible as it's happened and left me £260.00 in debt to Virgin. It is 100% a prepaid MC.

I did back in Dec/Jan but again, i don't recall giving that information to anyone. Even if i had surely they shouldn't be passing that information around? and surely they shouldn't be able to debit a prepaid card like that?

I have a Virgin prepaid MC and Cashgenie have taken payments putting me in debt to Virgin. They've taken 4 payments of approx £50.00, 1 payment of £20.00 and 1 payment of £40.00 (i don't want to put the exact amounts as they may be reading this). Leaving me with a negative balance of approx £260.00 on a PREPAID card, this card has only had £2.00 on it for the past 6 months and i can't even recall giving them the card details. These were all taken in 1 day. Like i said, i'm positive i didn't give them this cards details and i certainly didnt authorise any withdrawals from it. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Not true, i have a Virgin prepaid MC and Cashgenie have taken payments putting me in debt to Virgin. They've taken 4 payments of approx £50.00, 1 payment of £20.00 and 1 payment of £40.00 (i don't want to put the exact amounts as they may be reading this). Leaving me with a negative balance of approx £260.00 on a PREPAID card, this card has only had £2.00 on it for the past 6 months and i can't even recall giving them the card details. These were all taken in 1 day. I will start my own thread with this but prepaid cards are far from safe.

Must have been archived before i edited the post then.