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Watch failure - Cambridge Jobcentre Plus delays easy fix to housing

The Hidden Scandal: How Cambridge Jobcentre Ignored a Three-Month Mistake

Welcome back to Universal Credit hell. Today, we are unpacking another lawless failure from my partner's journal—a simple mistake that Cambridge Jobcentre Plus allowed to cause three months of financial hardship, and a legal request they chose to ignore.

The Problem: A Lie Written into the System

The situation was straightforward. My partner lives in a shared house with three flatmates. But when Universal Credit calculated her housing costs, they didn't see flatmates. They saw "family members."

This wasn't just a clerical error. It was a lie written into the system. It meant that because she was out of work, the DWP's calculation wrongly assumed her "family" would pay her share. Her flatmates were now financially responsible for her in the eyes of the DWP. A bigger problem is that nothing we said could make the Cambridge team understand this basic reality.

The Inaction: A Mandatory Reconsideration Ignored

She told them about the error. She told them again. She told them a third time.

After being ignored, she put a formal **Mandatory Reconsideration request** in her journal. This is a claimant's legal right, the first step in any appeal. It is not optional. It cannot be ignored.

Cambridge Jobcentre Plus ignored it. For three months.

This highlights a staggering lawlessness:

  • A failure to understand that three people on a tenancy are not automatically family.
  • A failure to correct this basic fact when told about it at an interview.
  • A deliberate failure to recognise a formal, legal request to reconsider a decision.

Why This Matters

This isn't just about one Jobcentre. I see stories like this happening all over the country. It is a culture of delay and unaccountability that is baked into a broken system.

Help me fight to change this. Help me hold this Jobcentre, and others like it, to account.

Fundraising is coming soon. To see the full story and all the evidence from our three court cases, please visit the main campaign website:

https://ryanvcambridgejobcentreplus.blogspot.com/

#UniversalCredit #DWP #Cambridge #Jobcentre #MandatoryReconsideration #SocialJustice

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