Zehra Hassan v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

Facts

The appellant, Zehra Hassan, acted as appointee for her son, who was aged just 12 when the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions decided on 17 February 2024 that he was not entitled to either component of disability living allowance from and including 20 October 2023. The son suffered severe allergic reactions capable of causing anaphylaxis to various foodstuffs and matter, followed a strictly controlled food regime, took his own food to school and carried an adrenaline auto-injector at all times under an anaphylaxis treatment care plan; his mother checked ingredients with what the tribunal called extreme and warranted care when shopping. The First-tier Tribunal (Social Entitlement Chamber), sitting at Romford before Tribunal Judge E Coll, Dr Sivakumaran and Mrs J Hubert, dismissed her appeal on 8 April 2025, finding that the son was protected at home, that he rarely went out with friends, that the EpiPen had been used only once, and that the appellant did not have to provide extra care in connection with his bodily functions. Permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal was granted by Judge Citron on two arguable grounds: the failure to address an earlier award of DLA said to have run from 2020 to 2023, and the absence of findings about supervision at school. The Secretary of State supported the appeal.