10 stagesFollow the pound
From Parliament to the person receiving it, what each stage costs and what it doesn't tell us.
Labels: cost to deliver is the price of running the system. Cost of failure is money lost or spent fixing mistakes. Pass-through is benefit money that flows on to someone else, such as a landlord. Pass-through is not waste; we show it so you can see who ultimately receives public money.
1 Money allocated
context
Parliament votes the money. Benefits are 'demand-led' (AME): whoever qualifies gets paid, so the bill is forecast rather than capped. DWP's running costs come from a fixed budget (DEL).
What we know
What we don't know
No known gaps recorded yet.
2 Running the system
cost to deliver
DWP's own costs: staff, Jobcentres, IT systems, buildings and transformation programmes.
What we know
What we don't know
3 Contractors
cost to deliver
Work DWP pays private companies to do, such as health assessments for disability benefits, employment programmes, and IT and call-centre services.
What we know
No figures collected yet.
What we don't know
4 Councils
cost to deliver
Local councils run Housing Benefit and Council Tax support. DWP pays them a subsidy towards the admin cost.
What we know
No figures collected yet.
What we don't know
5 Decisions and disputes
cost of failure
When people challenge a decision (mandatory reconsideration, then tribunal appeal). A decision overturned means the first one was wrong, and fixing it costs money.
What we know
No figures collected yet.
What we don't know
6 Paid to people
the pie
The money that actually reaches people as pensions and benefits.
What we know
What we don't know
7 Paid wrongly
cost of failure
Fraud, claimant mistakes and DWP mistakes, which cause both overpayments (paid too much) and underpayments (paid too little).
What we know
What we don't know
8 Never claimed
cost of failure
Money people are entitled to but never claim. It isn't spent, but it shows the system isn't reaching everyone it's meant to.
What we know
No figures collected yet.
What we don't know
No known gaps recorded yet.
9 Clawing back
cost of failure
Recovering overpayments and repaying advances, often by deducting from people's ongoing benefits. Some debt is written off.
What we know
No figures collected yet.
What we don't know
10 Where it ends up
pass-through
Some benefit money passes straight on, for example to landlords through housing support or to Motability for cars. This isn't waste, but following the pound means showing who ultimately receives public money.
What we know
No figures collected yet.
What we don't know