8 November 2005 - Benefit Fraud Inspectorate (BFI) Inspection Report on Boston Borough Council
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, John Hutton, has today published an inspection report by the BFI on Boston Borough Council’s processing of claims for housing benefits.
In 2004/05 Boston Borough Council administered some £13 million in housing benefits, about 44 per cent of its gross revenue expenditure.
In 2004/05 the council reported that it was taking 57 days on average to process new claims for housing benefits. At the time of the inspection in July 2005 the majority of the management team had only been in post for a few months but performance was beginning to improve as the backlog of claims had been cut. Allowing for some misreporting of performance the council was taking an average of 47 days to process new claims in the first quarter of 2005/06. However, significant further improvement is needed to meet the Standard of 36 days.
BFI found significant delays at each stage of the new claims process and in processing changes of circumstances. The longest delays were in the time taken to obtain all required information from customers. No monitoring of the throughput or clearance of work meant there was a lack of control over the flow of work. A limited management checking regime meant the council did not have reliable feedback on the quality of work done or the ability to identify areas where performance needed to be improved.
BFI is an independent unit within the Department for Work and Pensions that reports directly to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the standard of benefit administration and counter-fraud activity.
James Plaskitt, Minister for Housing Benefit and Anti-Fraud, announced the publication of the report in a written ministerial statement.
Notes to Editors
- Each BFI inspection report is considered by the Secretary of State who decides whether any further action is appropriate. The Secretary of State has powers to issue directions to a local authority to secure acceptable or minimum standards in performance.
- Media enquiries on specific reports please contact BFI press office on 01423 83 29 82
- All BFI inspection reports can be found on the BFI website - www.bfi.gov.uk.
BFI Press enquiries: 01423 83 29 82
DWP Press enquiries: 020 7238 0766
Out of Hours: 07659 108883
Public enquiries: 020 7712 2171
Website: www.bfi.gov.uk or www.dwp.gov.uk