Early lessons from the introduction of Adult Disability Payment in Scotland 8 December 2025
When the Scottish Government introduced the Adult Disability Payment (ADP) in 2022 to replace Personal Independence Payment (PIP), it set out to do things differently. [i] Although the two benefits have the same eligibility criteria and are paid at the same rates, Social Security Scotland made it clear that their aim was to treat claimants with “dignity, fairness and respect” throughout the process of claiming ADP.
Claim and award rates were significantly higher for ADP than for PIP in the earliest days of the new benefit, but the same trend was observed in the first year of PIP’s introduction. A ‘bedding-in’ period looks to be the norm. Three years on, the latest data does not suggest that ADP is a ‘soft touch’. ADP applications by new claimants have increased no faster than PIP applications in England and Wales since its introduction; the award rate for new ADP applications is now lower than new claims for PIP in England and Wales; and fewer ADP awards are made at the more-generous ‘enhanced’ rates than is the case for PIP.
Read the full report – Delivering dignity? • Resolution Foundation