Deafblind people in receipt of Incapacity Benefit (IB), Income Support (claimed because of a disability) and Severe Disability Allowance are currently being reassessed for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

We expect that many will have to undergo a face-to-face assessment, the Work Capability Assessment (WCA).

In order for this reassessment process to be accurate and fair to deafblind people, we are calling on the Government to ensure that:

• The assessment identifies the barriers to work faced by deafblind people, especially in relation to communication, mobility and access to information
• Written evidence from medical, social care and other specialist professionals is collected before any face-to-face assessment
• Assessors have access to specific information and training on deafblindness
• The face-to-face assessment is accessible to deafblind people
• Deafblind people avoid having unnecessary face-to-face assessments where there is sufficient written evidence for a decision to be made