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Gary Vaux hails a benefit that could boost the income of five million older people - but not until 2003.

Do you remember supplementary benefit? It was replaced by income support. Eventually the government decided that income support had a negative image among pensioners, so they called it the minimum income guarantee (MIG) instead. And now? Get ready for pension credit from April 2003.

The key element of pension credit is that it operates in a completely different way to income support, in that it gives more money to people with some savings or works pensions - up to certain limits.

The estimate is that pension credit will improve the financial position of up to five million pensioners. There is likely to be an immense impact on the work of social services staff when the new benefit is introduced. And the preparation work needs to start soon, if we are not to be caught off guard.

Because pension credit is a new means-tested benefit that effectively sits on top of MIG, there will be a strong need to promote take-up.

Direct advice from welfare rights staff and other front-line workers in social services, housing, health, the voluntary sector and so on will be far more effective in persuading people to claim than Department of Health publicity. Many of those who could claim pension credit will already be in receipt of housing or council tax benefit. This means liaison with housing benefit sections to identify pensioners who are currently just above MIG levels, who could gain from pension credit.

The recent DoH paper on home care charging was disappointing, as it made no reference to pension credit. This is despite the government being well aware of its imminent introduction in relation to its suggested date for revised home care charging policies (first stage October 2002, second stage April 2003). In considering any revision to councils' home care charging policy, the impact of pension credit will have to be considered, otherwise the process will inevitably be flawed.

The abolition of the capital limits for income support for pensioners, and the introduction of pension credit with no upper savings limit, may lead to a similar shift in residential care charging policies, which you will also need to be alert to. If such a change occurs, there would be a reduction in the number of "self-funding" residents, for example, which would impact on social services budgets.

Incidentally, much has been made of the new MIG claim form, introduced in October 2001. Much reduced in size, the form is supposed to make claiming easier. It does too, but beware - if your client's circumstances are out of the ordinary, the initial MIG form will act as a trigger for one of the following four supplementary forms:

- MIG2: temporary stays in residential home or nursing home.

- MIG3: if there is any other income (other than occupational pensions) - for example, from boarders and lodgers, insurance policy.

- MIG4: other people who live with the claimant - for example, children.

- MIG5: for pensioners who are working.

According to the Department for Work and Pensions, it will not be sending these additional forms to clients to complete. Instead, benefits agency staff will collect the additional information over the phone or by home visit. Social workers might need to be aware of this, particularly when arranging temporary residential care. It might even be worth asking your local benefits agency office for copies of the MIG2 in particular.

Gary Vaux is head of money advice, Hertfordshire Council. He is unable to answer queries in person, either by post or by telephone. If you have a question to be answered in Welfare Rights, please write to him c/o Community Care.