Thank you Mr P Good suggestion "personal reasons" I will use it if I have to. I've had a confirmatory "claim ended" letter from DLA, no questions. However they take two pages to list all the descriptors I scored LRC & LRM on, and gone to great pains to point out that I do not fulfil the criteria. Considering I gave no reason for ending the claim, I think their response is a little over cooked. Who on earth is in charge of drafting these template letters? I am still waiting for the confirmation letter from ESA acknowledging the close of claim and providing me with my P45. No further word from LA, isn't it amazing how quickly they can act if they suspect something is amiss with a claim? Yet to end claims, it seems to take ages for them to send confirmation out to the "ex" claimant Thanks all!

Consumer dude and antone, Thank you both very much for the advice. My reasons for ending the claims shall remain unknown to them.

Hello again Caggers, On 21st April 2016 I wrote to the LA to requesting them to end my claim for HB & CTA on 22nd April 2016. They have only just replied and their letter tells me I will shortly receive "an entitlement letter" to confirm and also, as I requested an updated Council Tax Bill to confirm the new amount owed and instalments. Then there is this line..... "Please can you let us know why you wanted your claim cancelled" I don't wish to tell them why I ended both of these claims. There is nothing sinister in my decision. Do I have to tell them why I ended my claims? Is there likely to be some sort of investigation if I don't tell them or will they just leave me alone? Thank you in advance for any advice

My Christmas Bonus of £10 was finally paid on 25th January 2016. As usual, no letter sent out to notify. I didn't ring the DWP either, for reasons I mentioned above. On Rightsnet there was brief mention that the delay in paying the bonus this year was planned, courtesy of George Osborne.

Hi Martin, I have always received it since first claiming cIB and now cESA. It has always been paid before Christmas and is in the PO account along with my ESA and DLA. I have the withdrawal receipts from previous years and current ones. Maybe in my area the BDC doesn't send out letters re' Christmas Bonus, I keep good records and all letters. It has been known for changes in notifications/payment dates to be made without notifying claimants. As I said in post above, I am reticent to ring them due to highlighting my name in the system, as my two year deferral for review date for ESA is today. A quick call in this case might end up with me being referred for DLA/PIP transfer which for the time being I am trying to avoid. No problems with my claims for ESA or DLA. All paid on time on fortnightly schedule as posted above.

Thank you for the reply Silverfox1961 I get paid fortnightly, ESA Mondays and DLA Wednesdays. No brown envelopes have arrived here yet. I don't remember getting a letter about the Christmas Bonus in recent years. Nothing in my file. It might only be £10 but it made a serious difference to Christmas here.

Hello Caggers Does anyone know if the Christmas Bonus of £10 has been withdrawn this year or subject to some DWP messing about with the dates it is paid? I am currently receiving Contribution Based ESA (SG) & DLA LRC & LRM I have checked back through the year and the only variant in payment was in April when the annual uprating happened of £1 per fortnight. I asked at the Post Office last week and they knew nothing about it. Last year it was paid on 1st December. I keep all the receipts. I am reticent to call the DWP as my 2 year deferral of review date is actually today. My next payment date is 28 December, if the Bonus is included then, it rather defeats the nature of it. Thank you to anyone who can shed light on this

Signed and shared.

Hi, I'm trying to find out the service provider of a telephone number. I have had this number for a contact in animal rescue for years and not been in touch for a long while, now I need to get in touch, the number is a problem. The number rings for ages then a female voice tells me "sorry there is a fault, please try again" so I do, and get the same message. I am ringing from my landline as I have no coverage in my home. I tried to report the fault to BT, but when they found it wasn't one of their numbers, their suggestion was to ask the person (the same one I am trying to contact by phone) just who is their service provider. The number used to be a BT number. BT tell me that the account was closed. So, is there any way of finding out who provides this number now, so that I can report the fault and hopefully, finally get through? I have no email address or mobile numbers for this person, so other than a long drive into the city to visit, I am a bit stuck. I am hoping that the number is the same and the person just kept the number when they switched service providers. Thank you for any advice you can give.

I've tweeted the link and asked for Re-tweets. If someone has taken Tess in, thinking she was a stray, then surely, locally there must be plenty of publicity about Tess, and I'd hope they'd come forward. The poor chap must be frantic.

Spotted this thread on rightsnet.org and it might be worth keeping an eye on it. http://www.rightsnet.org.uk/forums/viewthread/6844/ Early days in the thread yet, but it seems, as ever that there's a great deal of floundering and confusion about referrals for repeat ESA assessments being deferred. This is the first mention I have seen anywhere about possible use of the Equality law to defend against future claims of discrimination made by sick and disabled ESA WRAG claimants who are all in the firing line for sanction. First attempt at posting a link, hope it's approved!

Good luck Matt!

All patients with a diagnosis of cancer are entitled to free prescriptions. The exemption covers ALL prescription drugs, not just the ones related to the diagnosis. The exemption lasts for five years. Your Mum will need to get a FP92A form from her GP or Consultant, fill it out, get their signature and then send it to NHS Business Services Authority (BSA) Sometimes the GP surgery will do the sending off bit. Your Mum will be sent an Exemption Card, which she must present at the time she presents prescriptions to any pharmacy. Ask her to keep receipts for any prescriptions she has to pay for before she gets the exemption card. Pharmacies have a special receipt (FP57 form) that they use for this situation and she will be refunded the charges once she has the proof of exemption (the card) I don't think I can post links here yet, but Macmillan and Cancer Research have good, reliable information in a sensible and understandable form for everyone who is either diagnosed or looking after someone with cancer. All the best.

Does your Health Trust have an organisation called Healthwatch? This is usually funded by the Local Authority. They might not be called Healthwatch in your area, but if they exist they might have someone who knows about issues around managing care budgets for MH such as a Community Information Officer. Your local Clinical Commissioning Group might be able to signpost you to the right people.

Just learned that all nurses and midwives are also registered/regulated by The Nursing & Midwifery Council. Another register to check! Sorry about the omission