‘Why don’t I just die, and make life easier for you?’

Jan Ward - professionally, Jan Daniels - from Hodnet is an entertainer. She’s a singer and songwriter, but her live performing career was cut short by her life-long health problems. You can find an album of her songs on Spotify.

Jan’s on Universal Credit. Her recent dealings with the DWP left her distraught, depressed and contemplating suicide, as she explains in this episode of Hello You the Shropshire podcast.

Have you had a similar experience? Jan isn’t the first person to tell me they’ve felt the DWP’s approach to dealing with claimants has been uncaring, inflexible, officious and simply unkind. She is, though, the first to be prepared to tell their story. Are these stories representative of only a few people’s experiences? Or does this indicate there could be a cultural problem at the DWP?

At the very least, shouldn’t benefits claimants be entitled to be treated with the same kindness and respect that, for example, a bank account holder would expect from their bank?

What do you think of Jan’s story? Leave a comment by clicking here

Coming soon on Hello You the Shropshire podcast

Jan contacted me direct because she wanted her story to be heard. She’s not alone.

Over the next couple of weeks you’ll hear some more remarkable stories, including startling claims from former staff at a very high-profile local organisation, and a response to those claims from the man at the top.

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Take care of yourself

Take care of the people around you, and I really hope those people are taking care of you, too.

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