WASPI key meeting update as campaigners consider fresh DWP challenge
The Ombudsman previously said the WASPI women should get up to £3,000 compensation
The WASPI campaign has issued an update(Image: Getty)
The WASPI campaign (Women Against State Pension Inequality) has issued an update regarding their efforts to get DWP compensation. The campaigners were disappointed recently as the DWP announced it would not be providing compensation.
This was the second occasion the Labour Government had ruled on the issue. Back in December 2024, ministers confirmed no compensation would be forthcoming, but WASPI successfully applied for a judicial review of that decision. The activists were set to do battle with the DWP in court in December 2025. But then at the last minute, ministers retracted the decision, saying they would issue a new decision in light of fresh evidence.
Legal representatives working for the DWP then negotiated an out-of-court agreement, paying £120,000 towards WASPI’s legal costs. This raises the question of whether WASPI will challenge Labour’s latest decision through another judicial review.
In a February 27 update to supporters, WASPI confirmed: “Since our last update, WASPI’s legal team have undertaken a careful line by line scrutiny of the Government’s new decision and the barrister team has been fully briefed; we will meet with them in the coming days.”
“We will update you on our next steps once we have received their advice.” The WASPI campaign is one of numerous organisations who represent women born in the 1950s who were impacted when the state pension age for women increased from 60 to 65 and subsequently 66.
The women claim they were not properly notified about the policy change, and that the DWP ought to have contacted them much sooner. An earlier inquiry by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman determined the DWP was guilty of ‘maladministration’, as letters should have been sent to the women at an earlier stage. The ombudsman recommended compensation for the women ranging from £1,000 to £2,950.
While Labour accepted this maladministration finding and offered an apology for this, it refused to provide compensation. Delivering the second verdict, Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden told MPs: “The evidence shows that the vast majority of 1950s-born women already knew the state pension age was increasing thanks to a wide range of public information, including through leaflets, education campaigns, information in GP surgeries, on TV, radio, cinema and online.
“To specifically compensate only those women who suffered injustice would require a scheme that could reliably verify the individual circumstances of millions of women.”
Grace Hardy, a tax accountant at Hardy Accounting, believes there are significant lessons to take away from the WASPI saga. She said: “The overarching lesson is that the UK tax and benefits system is genuinely complex, changes frequently, and does not reliably notify those affected by changes.
“Treating your own financial position as something to actively and periodically review rather than something that will look after itself is probably the most valuable single habit anyone can develop.” She encouraged those preparing for retirement not to presume that existing rules will remain unchanged.
The financial expert said: “Pension ages, tax thresholds, allowances and benefit rules are all subject to change. Any plan that depends entirely on current rules holding indefinitely is fragile.”
This guidance is especially topical, as the state pension age is set to rise once more very soon.The qualifying age currently stands at 66 for both men and women and will increase in stages from April 2026, reaching 67 by April 2028.
Ms Hardy said you should also keep an eye on several financial rules as they apply specifically to you. She explained: “Know what applies to you specifically. General media coverage tells you the average or headline rules.
“But your state pension age, your National Insurance record, your specific tax position, your pension entitlements these are individual. Use the Government Gateway to check your state pension forecast and National Insurance record.”
She also recommended seeking independent financial guidance regarding big decisions, such as consolidating your pensions, defined benefit pension withdrawals, and estate planning matters. Ms Hardy warned: “These are areas where mistakes are costly and often irreversible.”
