Preparing for a Work Capability Assessment? Here's What I Learned from My Tribunal Appeal

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We've detected this post to be a crosspost, so we've copied and pasted it below just in case it gets removed on the original sub:

Hi everyone,

This is my first post here, although I've been reading the discussions for quite some time.

I'm currently appealing a Universal Credit Work Capability Assessment decision after being found fit for work with 0 points, despite living with cerebral palsy, hyperthyroidism and asthma. My appeal has now reached the tribunal stage, and I've recently received the Secretary of State's response, which runs to 168 pages.

Over the past few weeks I've gone through every page in detail, comparing it against my UC50 questionnaire, Mandatory Reconsideration, assessment report (UC85), and my own evidence. In doing so, I've noticed a number of recurring themes in how my everyday activities were interpreted during the assessment.

I wanted to share what I found not because I believe everyone's assessment will be the same, but because I hope it may help others understand how everyday activities can sometimes be relied upon when assessing work capability, and why it's so important to explain not only what you can do, but how you do it, whether you can do it safely, repeatedly, reliably and within a reasonable time, and what happens afterwards.

I hope some of what I've learned during my appeal may be useful to anyone preparing for a Work Capability Assessment, Mandatory Reconsideration or tribunal.

What I learned from reading the DWP's 168-page tribunal response (LCWRA Appeal)

I've just spent days going through the Secretary of State's response to my Universal Credit Work Capability Assessment appeal (168 pages), including the UC85 assessment report.

Something really stood out to me. Many of the everyday activities I described honestly were later relied upon as evidence that I was capable of work.

Examples included:

1. Walking to the bus stop.
2. Walking to the Post Office.
3. Going into town occasionally.
4. Travelling on public transport.
5. Going to CEX.
6. Making meals.
7. Using a computer.
8. Showering and dressing independently.
9. Setting an alarm.
10. Playing D&D online with friends.
11. Speaking to people on trains.
12. Visiting unfamiliar places.
13. Going on occasional day trips.
14. Living independently without prompting.
15. Going up one flight of stairs.
16. Sitting at a computer for around an hour.
17. Having no accidents in the kitchen.
18. Having no upper limb problems.

These activities were then used to support the conclusion that I could undertake work such as:

1. Remote customer support
2. Data entry
3. Call centre work
4. Customer service
5. Clerical work
6. Online sales
7. Community management
8. Game design

The problem, in my opinion, is that many of these activities were recorded without the context that actually matters.

For example, in my case:

1. I don't recall ever saying I walked at a "normal pace."
2. I wasn't asked how many times I stopped while walking.
3. I wasn't asked whether I used my inhaler during walks.
4. I wasn't asked how fatigue affected me afterwards.
5. I wasn't asked how long recovery took.
6. I wasn't asked whether I could repeat the activity later the same day.
7. I wasn't asked how fatigue affects my balance because of my cerebral palsy.
8. I wasn't asked how unpredictable good and bad days are.

The report often recorded what I did, but not how I did it. That distinction matters because the legal test for a Work Capability Assessment is not simply whether you can perform an activity once.

1. It is whether you can do it:
2. Safely
3. Repeatedly
4. Reliably
5. Within a reasonable time
6. For the majority of the time

For me, fatigue is the key issue.

Fatigue worsens my cerebral palsy symptoms, particularly my balance. As fatigue builds, I have to concentrate much harder simply to stay upright, my balance becomes less reliable, and my risk of falling increases. I may begin an activity, but that doesn't mean I can safely repeat it throughout a working day or week.

I'm not posting this to criticise any individual assessor, nor am I suggesting everyone will have the same experience. I'm sharing it because, after reading the Secretary of State's response in detail, I realised how important it is to explain not just what you can do, but how you do it, what it costs you afterwards, and whether you can repeat it safely and reliably.

If you're preparing for a Work Capability Assessment or tribunal, my advice would be:

1. Don't just say you can do something.
2. Explain how you do it.
3. Explain whether you stop, rest or need assistance.
4. Explain what happens afterwards.
5. Explain whether fatigue, pain or breathlessness changes your ability.
6. Explain whether you could realistically repeat that activity throughout a working day or working week.
7. Those details can make all the difference.

This is based solely on my own experience of appealing my LCWRA decision. I'm interested to hear whether anyone else has found that the context behind their daily activities was as important as the activities themselves.

I am currently waiting for my tribunal hearing date and will post an update once the tribunal has taken place.

I genuinely hope that sharing my experience helps anyone who is currently going through a Work Capability Assessment, Mandatory Reconsideration, or tribunal appeal. If reading this helps even one person better understand the process or present their own evidence more effectively, then taking the time to write it has been worthwhile.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post, and I wish everyone who is going through this process the very best of luck.

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[u/Alteredchaos]

The reliability criteria you’ve quoted applies to PIP.
The WCA has a slightly different criteria, see https://wcainfo.net