To book myself a carer's ticket?

[No1Zero]

My son is 3. He has ASC. However, any three year old would need a parent present. When do you turn from parent to carer? Do you ever turn into a carer for ASC (he is mobile but can't do anything for himself)?

I'm a single parent family and I don't know if I'm unreasonable for booking a carer ticket for myself which would, of course, be free.

You'll be fine with middle rate DLA and I'd really encourage you to buy carers' tickets whenever they're on offer. I have two children with ASD and over the years I have had so many occasions when we've had to leave somewhere we've just paid for because they're not coping, or one parent has to spend the whole day calming down a child while the other parent and siblings carry on enjoying the day out, that kind of thing. I consider the carers' tickets to be entirely reasonable to take account of these kinds of situations! I also have a third child who is neurotypical and caring for him is definitely nothing like caring for the other two. Of course any three year old needs a parent with them but your DLA is evidence that the care you need to give goes above and beyond that required for any neurotypical three year old. If a carers' ticket is on offer, take it!

I think it varies between organisations tbh, though I've always been asked for proof that I'm receipt of carers allowance when I've purchased carer tickets.

Carers allowance, while it works for proof it limits your disabled person to only ever going out with the same carer. We have used carer tickets for years and the vast majority of places will accept DLA/PIP which means anyone can take the person out.

Long before we got DLA we used medical letters to prove the diagnosis for our now adult DC.

Is she part of the access scheme for the theatre?

I have it noted on my account with the bigger theatre groups so when I buy tickets online I not only get an access price but a free carer seat i I need it.

My eldest DD is disabled. We've been to Longleat 3 or 4 times and always had a carer ticket. Proof of DLA is absolutely fine.

Thank you all. I will book the carer's ticket. I think I might take a photocopy of my son's DWP DLA letter and leave it in the car for these situations. I am still struggling to come to terms with taking what is on offer to me as I feel guilty so thank you all for helping me with this.

Proof of DLA is absolutely fine.

There is also something called a Max Card you might want to look into.

I always book carer tickets for my DC. 9/10 we don't get a full day out of tickets so I just see it as a discount.

Ditch the guilt. There is nothing to feel guilty about imo. Life can be a struggle for many people with disabilities. It costs far more to live life as a disabled person. I have seen people not claim what would make their lives a bit easier, because they are worried about what people will think, or they feel guilty. Having a copy of your son's Dla letter in the car is a good idea, as well.

Sorry to resurrect - looking for a sense check.

DC8 is autistic. Dx at age 3. No PIP, DLA or Carers (don’t believe we’d be eligible) and is doing fine in mainstream school but they do have an Access card, original diagnosis paperwork and a recent GP letter detailing condition and impact. Also interim paediatrician’s reports but would have to dig them out to check exactly what’s in them.

Is this likely to be ok for carers and the queue access thingy? The guilt is real, as PPs describe, but then I think back to the most recent day trip somewhere similar and the three meltdowns while we were there.

I've always had to prove disability with a DLA letter. It would be worth ringing ahead.

Why are you assuming they wouldn't get DLA? Sounds like you would be eligible to me.

Don't put it off man. DLA isn't just about the money and a DX at 3 says your bairns missing out

Most places specify DLA/PIP but Longleat seems really vague and some of the stuff upthread suggests we might be ok on what we’ve got, but I don’t want to gamble. I could just do the obvious thing and call, I guess!

I always thought DLA was a nightmare to claim and as DC is doing fine in mainstream, they wouldn’t be near eligible. I might have another look; thanks for the nudge.

This is one of the only "perks" so take it. Once of my dc has a best friend with a serious health condition, this means at theme parks their little group of friends get free fast track passes, which is probably the only "positive" about the health condition.

If the opportunity is there, you may as well take it.

I always feel like a fraud booking a carer’s ticket… that was until we visited a museum over the summer which my son zoomed around at breakneck speed, barely interacting with anything. Then I was glad not to have wasted my money!

In my experience the majority of those using carer tickets are parents/ guardians and family members. It's never a problem and to be frank, is expected. Any reputable attraction or experience would not bat an eye.

If your child gets DLA and you subsequently get carers allowance, then yes you are entitled to claim carers tickets.

Thanks. Sometimes it’s just helpful to hear it from others.

Aslong as you carry your dla letter for proof you can use carers ticket for anything museums etc. I've only ever been asked to see it a couple of times most believe us

I have this quandary a lot. My 4yo daughter also gets middle rate dla.

Then I tell myself that we keep avoiding going to attractions because it's so expensive when she can usually either only go for half a day, or I have to find somewhere quiet for her to nap (1-3 hours), and we have to go at a much slower pace. The carers tickets are a way of taking the sting out of getting half the experience.

But I still hesitate sometimes.

You become a carer when the person you are caring for needs more than would be usual for a child of that age. Usually most places ask for proof of DLA for children under 16.

My mum receives PIP for a disability and has a blue badge. I am a carer but not full time, so don't receive carer's allowance.

The way it works mostly is you buy a ticket for the disabled person and then you get a ticket free for the carer.

Well it's not a fun form to fill in I'll admit. You pick the worst day the bairn didn't cope with and use that day for the entire form, ask someone who knows their way around the form to help. Send in DX and all letters from HCP and whatnot. They want to know all the things that the bairn struggles with, not the things the bairns fine with.

Don't believe all the nightmare stories. Mainstream can be fine in primary. But what do you see as fine? Mine used to mask in school but meltdown when he got home. So he was perceived as 'fine' but in reality he wasn't coping in mainstream much and DLA isn't about how they're coping at school. It's the whole picture. You don't even have to mention what it's like school.

Generally you can get get a carers ticket as long as the child you are accompanying has some kind of proof of disability eg dla/pip/diagnosis letter (fairly recent, they refused my DD's when it was 6 years old despite autism being lifelong saying proof had to be within a year) and crucially tge child ticket is chargeable, you can't get a free Childrens ticket and a free carers ticket usually (in my experience) so sometimes I have had to buy an adult ticket for dd and I got in free as they didn't issue carers tickets on discounted tickets, other times the child had to be over 5 or whatever the chargeable age was. Theme parks are the toughest to get into because people are trying any way to get a queue jumping ticket - far higher scrutiny than say a stately home who waves us in without paperwork usually with dsd (my dd is rarely with us as has other interests!)

You don't do it on their worst day any more as that can be considered fraud. If it fluctuates, then you need to describe that.

Its definitely worth trying to claim though.

I have a national disability card, which gives me cheaper access to things. I don’t get PIP or any benefits. Anyone who comes with me can enter the event for free as my “carer”. I don’t actually need a carer, but at all things I’ve been to, the staff point it out. That’s generally art galleries and exhibitions.