My take on that is slightly different. First, it is about how people get into the process, which concerns accessibility. The freephone number works for many. We expect any public body to clearly signpost support or advocacy services. You would expect, where possible, telephones to come with loop systems; British Sign Language users can access services, too.
Although that is one aspect of accessibility, Niki Maclean is highlighting the need for accessibility throughout the process. Whether the conversation is by phone or face to face, the whole process must be accessible: it should not be accessible only at the start point; how the money is paid at the end point must also be accessible.
I cannot speak for local authorities about how prepared they are. From what we see, some will be a hop, a skip and a jump away; others will face a big challenge. One of the bigger challenges is resource. We are not overresourced in the welfare fund review team. In fact, we are right at the limit of delivering our service, but that does not stop us making the phone calls, talking to and engaging with people. That would be a very big challenge if you had not done that before; it would take more resource in those circumstances. Perhaps we should say that although it might take more resource at the delivery point, delivering a better service is likely to take fewer resources and need fewer reviews. In addition, if you have reviews, they are easier to consider, because you have more information available.
I highlight that authorities have not said that they are a hop, a skip and a jump away, and different authorities will need different amounts of work to get there.