[senco-forum] Disability Living Allowance

That was a very well reasoned reply - we tend to be a bit quick to judge

In my opinion the best informations on applying for DLA (Disability
Living Allowance) can be found on the 'Benefits & Work' web site;
http://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/. It's also well worth paying the
membership fee that gives full access to all their resource materials.

The DWP assessment criteria used by their decision makers is also
online (I don't have the URL to hand but I know I found this using
Google).

Best wishes,

David Bowles

> That was a very well reasoned reply - we tend to be a bit quick to judge
> others - particularly others who are less fortunate than ourselves.

> I have a single, working parent of a dyslexic child who had been diagnosed
> as severe ADHD and has a full time, one-to-one helper at school (Year 3)
> She is a singularly worthy, working parent who is struggling to maintain a
> sense of normality in her household and I would certainly regard her as a
> worthy recipient. This parent receives no allowances. I would like to advise
> her to apply. Before doing so I would like to have a copy of the criteria
> for DLA. Can you tell me where I might get a copy?

> Eddie C.

> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "David Bowles" <bowles.d at gmail.com>
> To: <senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk>
> Sent: Monday, June 05, 2006 6:47 PM
> Subject: Re: [senco-forum] Disability Living Allowance

>>> Strangely enough I was telephoned last week by a charitable organisation
>>> which represents parents of children with SEN and discovered that one of 
>>> my
>>> Year 8 pupil's mother is trying to get disability living allowance for 
>>> her
>>> daughter who has, what I think is fairly mild, cerebal palsy - she has
>>> trouble walking and wears splints but I'm not aware that this causes any
>>> problems in school and she participates fully.
>>
>> Remember the DLA assessment criteria have nothing at all to do with
>> what a child is like at school. Its a Disability LIVING allowance they
>> are applying and not a Disability SCHOOLING Allowance.
>>
>> The assessment criteria for this allowance are related to the support
>> needed at home and NOT when a child is at school -- the latter is
>> meant to be fully covered by our Statementing system and the COP.
>> Furthermore at school children tend to get lots of additional support
>> from peers and from adults they simply don't get at home.
>>
>> Please don't judge this parent without detailed knowledge of how DLA
>> works. This would be like a parent criticising a teacher who gets lots
>> of extra money simply for "crossing the threshold" but in essence
>> doing what they've always done! ...or because "being a SENCO means a
>> teacher gets extra points on the management pay spine for just a
>> tinsey bit of trivial extra admin work"! (not)
>>
>>
>> David Bowles
>>
>>
>> 

David Bowles