Ryan v Cambridge Jobcentre Plus

A Day in the Journal: June 10th - The Day My Consent Wasn't Good Enough The fight shifted. After the initial battle over my right to use email, Cambridge Jobcentre opened a new front in their war of attrition: consent. I was trying to follow their process. I was trying to get my ID verified via a third party. I was trying to give them the permission they needed. They had a choice: follow their own guidance, use common sense, or invent a new rule. On June 10th, 2025, they chose to invent a new rule. The New Roadblock In a message timed at 12:20 PM, a manager named Carla laid down the new law. She dismissed my repeated attempts to provide consent through my journal. She insisted on a single, slow, and unnecessary method. Direct quote from UC Journal: 10 Jun 2025 at 12:20pm "To progress your Third Party Verification request DWP requires you to complete, sign and return the forms via the return envelope supplied. Whilst email maybe your preferred option this w...

A Day in the Journal: April 8th - The Day DWP Policy Contradicted Logic and Law Every so often, in the dense pages of a Universal Credit journal, a single day stands out. It’s a day where quiet, bureaucratic obstruction turns into a clear, stated refusal to follow the law. For me, one of those days was Tuesday, April 8th, 2025. The issue was simple: as a disabled person, I had requested a reasonable adjustment to communicate via email, as is my right under the Equality Act 2010. The DWP's response was to schedule face-to-face and phone appointments that I could not manage. On April 8th, after I formally objected, managers from Cambridge Jobcentre put their unlawful position in writing. The Official Refusal At 8:49 AM, a manager named Louise gave the first clear refusal, stating they needed to "see" documents in person and offering a phone call as the only adjustment: Journal Entry: 8 Apr 2025 at 8:49am "Hi Ryan. We currently do not undertake ID ve...

A Day in the Journal: April 5th - The Broken System at Day One My Universal Credit claim began on April 5th, 2025. It began with a broken door. The very first, and most critical, step—verifying my identity—was an impossible task designed by a system that doesn't talk to itself. For nearly two hours, I was stuck in a loop, trying to use the GOV.UK Verify system as instructed by the Universal Credit portal. The system repeatedly failed, but I kept trying because the alternative it offered was a telephone call—a method of communication that is extremely difficult for me due to my disabilities. After completing every other section of the application, from housing to health, the system finally logged a crucial, but false, confirmation. The Ghost in the Machine At 11:16 PM on the night my claim was submitted, my Universal Credit journal was updated with a single, misleading line: Journal Entry: 5 Apr 2025 at 11:16pm "Confirm your identity completed" I...