An evaluation of a pilot data driven Attendance Allowance take up campaign across five London boroughs for the Greater London Authority
In the first half of 2024, the Greater London Authority partnered with Policy in Practice to run a data driven pilot campaign to increase the take up of Attendance Allowance in five London boroughs. These boroughs were Greenwich, Islington, Lambeth, Kensington and Chelsea, and Brent.
Policy in Practice analysed the participating authorities’ benefits administration data to identify households likely to be missing out on Attendance Allowance and the participating boroughs with the assistance of Policy in Practice then sent two letters to each identified household telling them that they may be eligible for Attendance Allowance and explaining clearly how to submit a claim.
The campaign’s goal was to increase the take up of Attendance Allowance amongst pension age households in the participating boroughs. As with past Pension Credit and other London-wide benefit take up campaigns facilitated by Policy in Practice with support from the GLA, the Attendance Allowance campaign demonstrates the incredible potential of targeted take up work through the proactive use of benefits administration data.
The campaign’s initial stage, which ran from May to July 2024, involved identifying and contacting potentially eligible households. Campaign impact was then tracked up until December 2024.
- 5,789 pension age households were targeted across the five boroughs
- 240 of those households went on to successfully claim Attendance Allowance, a success rate of 4.2%
- £1.1 million in Attendance Allowance is claimed annually by these households
- £106 in economic impact was generated for every £1 spent on the campaign.
- £7.1 million is the total estimated lifetime value in Attendance Allowance claims if those who have now claimed continue to do so for the rest of their lives.
These results do not include the impact from any increases to Pension Credit, Council Tax Reduction, or Housing Benefit prompted by the new claims for Attendance Allowance, nor the likely fiscal impacts of increased benefit income helping pensioners to continue to live independently and be happier and healthier for longer.
One resident’s story from an older woman living in Islington highlights the impact of this campaign. This woman had a health condition that was being exacerbated by stress caused by her low income, which left her unable to cover energy bills or taxis to her hospital appointments. After getting our letters, she got in touch with Islington Council:
‘If this resident hadn’t received the … letter explaining what Attendance Allowance is, it’s very unlikely that she would have contacted me to discuss her income. As it was, after being supported to claim Attendance Allowance and other related benefits, she received an extra £250 a week in benefits, allowing her to use taxis for her frequent hospital visits and can now meet her high energy bills. She told me that the extra money was a lifesaver.
Lynda Floyd, Islington Council
Every one of the 240 people who went on to claim Attendance Allowance after being targeted in this campaign will have a similarly powerful story to tell.
This campaign demonstrates the viability and impact of Attendance Allowance take up campaigns. It has already been emulated by other local authorities around the country, and a wider London campaign 16 different local authorities has recently been launched, with letters already sent to more than 12,500 residents potentially missing out on Attendance Allowance.
This is more than double the number of residents contacted in the pilot campaign, and we expect this number to grow in the coming weeks. If a similar rate of success is achieved during the current campaign, we can expect to see at least 500 new claims for Attendance Allowance across the participating boroughs, a transformative result.
