THE rollout of the controversial Universal Credit starts in Brighton and Hove today.

Calls have been made nationally by charities and some political figures to slow down the new policy.

But Prime Minister Theresa May insists it will go ahead, affecting approximately 20,000 households in Brighton and Hove.

The launch takesplace today for BN3 postcodes, November 29 for BN2 and mid-January 2018 for BN41 and BN1 areas.

It affects people making new claims and for claimants whose circumstances change.

People who are already on benefits and do not have a change of circumstances, will be transferred to Universal Credit between 2019 and 2022.

Councillor Emma Daniel, chairwoman of the city council’s neighbourhoods, inclusion, communities and equalities committee, said: “The introduction of Universal Credit is a big change and we do have concerns about levels of support around the claim process and the delays in payments.

“We’ve done a lot of work around the likely impacts of the change in the city and worked with our community and voluntary sector partners to make sure the support services are in place to help people as much as possible.

“However, the move away from housing benefit, and council budget reductions, does limit our ability to help people financially.

“The Jobcentre will tell you if you need to apply for Universal Credit.

“We strongly advise people to respond to all correspondence with the Jobcentre and the Department for Work and Pensions, and to stay on top of their claim.

“We also advise people to get help and support early if they’re worried about money or making claims online.”

The Jobcentre will write to claimants to tell them when they need to make a claim for Universal Credit.

Universal Credit combines six existing benefits, Housing Benefit, working and child tax credits, Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance and Income Support.

The main changes for claimants are:

l Universal Credit will be claimed and managed online.

l No benefit is paid for the first seven days for most claimants.

l Payment will be paid monthly in arrears by default.

l Payment will default to a single member of the household.

l First payment is usually made six weeks (or longer) from the initial claim.

l The rent element will be paid to the claimant by default, rather than the landlord.

Although existing claims for help with rent will continue to be handled by the council, new claims will not, meaning a gradually reduced role for the council in providing financial welfare support for residents.

There has been a lot of work across council services to prepare for the changes to help minimise the impact on residents, including commissioning advice and support services to help with budgeting and money issues, and help to get online.

The council has also produced a quick guide outlining possible solutions to likely issues claimants will face.