Salford expert provides evidence to parliament on safeguarding vulnerable claimants, before addressing veterans conference

Professor Lisa Scullion from the University of Salford, who is Professor of Social Policy and Co-Director of both the Sustainable Housing and Urban Studies Unit and the Centre for Research on Inclusive Society, will be contributing to the Work and Pensions Committee inquiry on Wednesday 15 November. Lisa has been invited to provide evidence on safeguarding vulnerable benefits claimants and to respond to questions from parliamentarians on the issue.

Following the evidence session, Lisa will travel to York, where she is one of only a small number of academics due to present at the 2nd Office for Veterans’ Affairs Conference, alongside a number of high-profile speakers including Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer for England. 

Lisa’s contribution to the Work and Pensions Committee inquiry and conference presentation will both focus on Salford’s ground-breaking Forces in Mind Trust (FiMT) project, which looks at veterans’ experiences of the benefits system. Starting in 2017, this longitudinal project has provided a unique understanding of the various challenges that veterans can face when navigating the benefits system and has been used by the Department for Work and Pensions to enhance the support they provide to the Armed Forces community. The project also led to the first ever call for a trauma-informed benefits system.

Lisa said: “I am incredibly proud of the work that we have been leading at Salford and the impact this has already had in relation to both social security policy and practice, along with the support we’ve provided to military veterans. Continuing to engage positively with key stakeholders who are responsible for developing policy and changing practice is absolutely vital for researchers.”