Daniel Blake (Dave Johns), a carpenter in Newcastle in his late fifties, has a heart attack at work. After treatment, his own doctor tells him he’s not well enough to return to his previous job, but his local benefits office has decided he’s well enough to work and so won’t give him financial aid unless he seeks a new job. Determined to make it but technologically illiterate and frustrated with his situation, he can’t seem to meet anybody’s requirements until he meets Katie (Hayley Squires), a single mother driven to welfare to try to feed her kids while she seeks work. The two form a touching and sympathetic friendship as Daniel tries to find purpose in helping Katie get the assistance he can’t get for himself. But navigating the Catch-22 of political bureaucracy in an attempt to appeal his benefits request will inevitably exact its own price.