Virtual PA firm cheers access to work grant news

Admin and More, a Kettering-based business providing customised assistance through virtual PA services, has greeted news of the Department for Work and Pensions’ announcement regarding online claiming for Access to Work grants starting April 2024.

Founder Elizabeth Wright emphasises the need for immediate attention from the department to address the backlog of Access to Work payments owed to employers and suppliers involved in supporting the scheme.

In line with this vision, they introduced their own initiative, “Empowerability,” at the beginning of the year, with the aim of raising £200,000 to foster a more inclusive workforce through meaningful work placements for individuals with disabilities.

Elizabeth is confident that this program holds the potential to positively transform numerous lives and reshape the culture of workplaces across the UK.

Wright said: ‘We are at a crucial crossroads here in terms of balancing supply and demand which needs urgently looking at. According to gov.uk, from July to September 2022, the disability employment rate fell whilst the non-disabled employment rate rose, meanwhile a November 2023 report by the TUC highlighted a shocking “pay gap”’. Access to Work is a huge part of redressing this situation, helping disabled employees into the workplace and helping their employers with access to funding and support. The problem is, the system is struggling to keep up and sadly, many employers are beginning to feel the pinch as payments are being delayed.

“They often do not have the skillset, let alone the time or resources to process these claims if they do no have external support from companies like ourselves and other skilled partners. The demand is sky-high. We have never been busier within our Access To Work division in terms of processing claims and payments on employers and employees’ behalf but we are hearing lots of suppliers and employers are losing faith. It can create a real cashflow crisis when the funds are delayed because the employees still need to be paid, whatever the delays in the system.  I fear that if this continues, employers may lose confidence in Access to Work which would be a crying shame because the difference it can make is genuinely life-changing for so many people.”