Oxford protest over cuts to disability benefits
Oxfordshire Disabled People Against Cuts protested outside the Oxford PIP assessment centre for changes to the disability welfare system.
Protesters assembled outside the Oxford Centre for Health & Disability Assessments, demanding an end to attacks against disabled people and a change to the disability welfare system.
Oxfordshire Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) held the protest on Saturday 1st November at 5:30pm. Signs held by the group read ‘No more deaths from benefit cuts.’ and ‘Welfare not warfare.’.
The protest specifically called for changes to the Government’s current system of work capability assessments, which are currently carried out by government contractors.
Patrick Carmody, a member of Oxfordshire DPAC, stated that these were “demeaning tests to decide whether disabled people were eligible for benefits and whether people were fit for work.
“There were many cases of disabled people that died shortly after being assessed as fit for work and having their benefits cut.”
Serco, a multinational that runs the assessment centre in Oxford, holds £10 billion in government contracts. The company made a profit of £274 million last year, which would be enough to pay for over 7,000 nurses.
Oxfordshire DPAC believes that these assessments should be scrapped, and eligibility for social security should be based on advice from GPs and other health professionals instead.
Mr. Carmody continues that “the narrative from the Government is that they are trying to get disabled people back into work.
“But PIP (personal independence payment) is paid to disabled people that are employed and those that are out-of-work. In fact, PIP helps to sustain many disabled people in work.
“And the Government’s own Access to Work scheme is in crisis and threatened with cuts. The BBC recently reported that in February 62,000 applications had not been processed and 33,000 people were awaiting payment.”
In July 2025, the Government were prepared to make £5bn worth of cuts to disabled people’s social security. Protests by disability organisations lead to a U-turn on personal independence payment cuts, but the health element of universal credit was slashed by half and frozen for four years.
Over two thirds of households with a disabled family member have also been impacted by the bedroom tax. This leads to residents of housing association or council properties having their benefits reduced if they have a spare bedroom.
Mr. Carmody states “Quite simply – DPAC is calling for an end to the attacks. Disabled people are entitled to equality, justice and dignity.”
Oxfordshire DPAC is a local branch of the nationwide group Disabled People Against Cuts, who formed after the first mass protest against austerity cuts and their impact on disabled people on 3rd October 2010.
Oxfordshire DPAC will be holding another protest on Wednesday 26th November at 5:30pm outside Carfax Tower.
It is designed to align with Budget Day, where the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has stated the focus will be to address economy that’s ‘not working well enough for working people.’
They are calling on trade unions, community organisations and campaigns to join them.