A CONTROVERSIAL new way to claim benefits will start being rolled out in West Oxfordshire today amid a flurry of concerns.

The cabinet member responsible for finance at the district council, Toby Morris, has urged those worried about Universal Credit to take advantage of the support available.

But a benefits claimant from Ducklington told the Witney Gazette he was worried about the lack of information he had received and was uncertain about whether the changes would have any impact on him.

The new system is designed to make it simpler to claim benefits such as child tax credit, housing benefit, income support, and job seekers' allowance.

The changes mean a single credit payment is paid directly to the claimant once a month for all the benefits they are eligible for.

Dad of three, 43-year-old Lee Smyth, from Ducklington, receives working tax credits, child tax credits and housing benefit.

Mr Smyth, who works for Thames Water, will not be making a new claim but said he fears what will happen to him when he starts claiming Universal Credit further down the line.

He said: “I’ve had no letters or paperwork come through so I am a bit worried about when things are going to change.

“I think I will be okay because my claims are existing but I worry something could change out of the blue and I won’t know anything about it.

“I’ve heard on the news that payments can take anywhere up to five weeks.

"At the moment I get my benefits every Friday.

"Bills need to be paid and if that were to stop and I didn’t get paid for several weeks that’s not good, especially with something like council tax where I may get a court summons."

There is no limit to the number of hours a claimant can work each week on credit, in an effort to stop anyone being in a situation where they are better off claiming benefits than working.

Under the old system people lost their benefits if they worked more than 16 hours a week.

However, Universal Credit has proved controversial since it was first announced in 2010.

It is based on how much money a recipient has each month, meaning it is paid in arrears.

People claiming the benefit receive money for the last month worked, not for the month ahead, and this has lead to a gap between people getting their last payment under the old system and their first Universal Credit payment.

In some areas there have also been delays caused by errors.

The first stage of the rollout will only affect people who are making new claims – but existing benefit claimants, such as Mr Smyth, will transfer to the system by 2022.

Mr Morris, the district council's deputy leader, outlined the support available for claimants.

He said: “I urge anyone worried about making a Universal Credit application online for the first time, to take advantage of the additional support we are offering.

"Once up and running, I am sure people will find that receiving a single monthly payment through Universal Credit is simpler.

"It is important that we offer a helping hand as Universal Credit is a major overhaul of the UK’s welfare system and the biggest change since the 1940s.”

See westoxon.gov.uk/universalcredit for further information, including how an appointment can be made with a support officer.