Department of Social Security (United Kingdom) (original) (raw)

The Department of Social Security (DSS) was a governmental agency in the United Kingdom from 1988 to 2001. The old abbreviation is still often used informally. Advertisements for rented accommodation used to describe prospective tenants who would be paying their rent by means of Housing Benefit, or the "Housing Element" of Universal Credit, as "DSS" tenants. However, because of many changes within the benefit system, which is managed by the Department for Work and Pensions, the "DSS" tenants phrase has become outdated and is rarely used.