Criticism of the Work Capability Assessment Initially, both the DWP and Atos denied having had any target for getting claimants "off" sickness benefits. However, both eventually admitted that Support Group "norms" were being used nationwide, though they both denied that the purpose of "targeted audit" was to limit the number of claimants placed in the Support Group. Atos said that the audit process triggered by the breach of a "norm" was intended to ensure consistency across the firm's UK team: if the assessor's reports met the DWP's expectations, the healthcare professional would not be asked to change their recommendations. In May 2013, another doctor who had
Incapacity Benefit workplace might have removed some of the barriers to disabled people returning to work. In two pilot studies of the Work Capability Assessment as a tool for judging the fitness for work of long-term Incapacity Benefit recipients – when 1,347 disabled people living in Aberdeen and Burnley, who had been on their benefit for at least two years, were assessed in late 2010 – provisional results suggested that: The reliability of this provisional data has been challenged, since many of those categorised as 'fit for work' subsequently won their appeals against the initial decision, suggesting that the results of the