Universal Credit: Integrated telephony system designed to support case management

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has adopted an integrated telephone system to support case management in Universal Credit Full Service.

'Case management' is described as building relationships and trust with claimants and understanding their individual circumstances to provide them with appropriate support.  

Supporting these objectives, the DWP has a telephony strategy which enables claimants using the telephone to directly contact the Case Manager best placed to support their query. The system can automatically route the caller to the relevant team if the caller is using the telephone number with which they registered for Universal Credit. Where this is not possible, calls are handled via the DWP's national telephony hub, which can result in the full query not being resolved and a handover required to the claimant’s Case Manager.

Those acting as a claimant's representative can also get in touch with the Case Management Team by calling 0800 328 5644, but the claimant must have given their explicit consent through  their journal, a telephone call, or in person.

In order to be directed to the appropriate team, the representative will need to provide:

• the telephone number the claimant has used to register with Universal Credit;
• their post code;
• the first line of their address; and
• their date of birth.

There is a limited amount of information that the DWP may disclose without explicit consent. This is outlined in Section 2.1 of the guidance "Universal Credit consent and disclosure of information". The SFHA has been advised that when Landlords dial 0800 328 5644, they are taken through instructions that will route them through to the Case Manager, if they provide the information asked for in the automated messages.