To apply for DLA for DD when we have a household income of over 300k?

[Milesandmilesandmiles]

Just that really - we have an autistic daughter who needs support with most things (although is in mainstream school). Between us DH and I earn over 300k, so we don’t need the money. However, conscious that we won’t be around for ever and we could save it for DD’s needs as she grows. But is this what state benefits are for?

DLA could be paid for some mental health conditions from 1996, but the number was much lower. It was generally more for physical disabilities.

Tbf ,the patients on the wards I worked on had long term illnesses such as schizophrenia, Bi polar, schizoaffective disorder etc ,many of which were poorly managed and the patients were severely debilitated by them

DLA for mental health was limited to conditions which were considered long term substantial mental illness, involving second line consultant led healthcare. But the definition was very narrow and if I remember rightly there had to be evidence that they caused substantial problems with personal care or mobility. It was the Tory government who abolished DLA for working age adults and replaced it with PIP and opened up claims to a much wider range of mental health conditions, both long and short term (dependent on satisfying eligibility timescales) and those which are GP managed. I don’t for one minute suggest that people shouldn’t be able to claim for these conditions if they have a substantial impact on their lives, but it has to be recognised that the benefit bill has ballooned as a result.

Do you have any disability support organisations you can access ? They can help you to identify any extras you may be entitled to. The obvious one is the Motability scheme if either of your children get higher rate mobility.

In my experience (ex outreach worker for the disabled) depending on the level of DLA payable, you can get easier access to the blue badge scheme, concessions and discounts on travel, toll roads/tunnels and bridges, and days out. There are holiday firms which cater for disabled people and will often give a discount for DLA/PIP recipients. VAT relief is available on disability related purchases, depending on the disability, and sometimes proof of a DLA claim is helpful. You can also claim carers allowance for a DLA/PIP claimant, and depending on circumstances there are discounts for council tax/rent, caps on water bills, free prescriptions and disabled facilities grants for adaptations to premises to suit disability. You can also access additional wheelie bins from your LA if you have extra waste due to disability.

The list isn’t exhaustive and there may be other services available via your LA. It’s worth checking out, and a lot of information is available online.

Disability benefits are entirely unrelated to whether the person can work or not. They are there to support vulnerable people with the sometimes huge cost of living with a disability. Disability isn’t a choice and it’s the mark of a civilised society how well we look after those who can’t or have reduced ability to do so themselves. At each and every round of welfare reform disabled people have been at the forefront of cuts because they’re the low hanging fruit - they can’t fight back and are at the whim of whatever government is in power. You think people like living like this ?

Don’t be ridiculous. There is no finite ‘pot’ - one persons’ claim doesn’t affect the next person in any way at all, it’s entirely dependent on the effect of the disability or health condition. Her DD is not the one with the income, OP is. OP is claiming for the child, not herself. Do you think parents shouldn’t be able to claim child benefit, or subsidised nursery fees too ? Because if not, your attitude is ableist.

So if you introduce means testing for disability benefits - and let’s be clear, they are there to mitigate the cost of disability - where does the axe fall ? How do you make sure that someone who really needs them doesn’t lose out because they are a few pounds over the threshold ? Disability benefits are universal for a reason and before means testing government would have to unravel them as the qualification for a lot of other disability benefits and services.

If huge amounts of people are claiming (as is the case - claims have ballooned since the pandemic) then in my opinion means testing according to income is not the answer. Means testing is a race to the bottom. How do you justify paying benefit to one claimant, while the next may have a similar level of disability but is over the threshold by a couple of pounds ? You absolutely can’t, which is why disability benefits are universal, rightly so in my opinion.

The solution is a proper examination of the processes involved in determining whether someone is eligible or not. At the moment, as anyone who has been involved with the system either as a claimant or a benefit adviser will know, it’s totally unfit for purpose. DLA used the social model of disability and claims were considered from the point of view of allowing the disabled person to take part in society without their disability putting them at a disadvantage. It was a holistic approach and allowed claimants to say what they would/could do if benefit was awarded. PIP uses the medical model, so concentrates on the effects of the disability or condition, and naturally forces the claimant to concentrate more on what they can’t do, because that’s how eligibility for benefit is determined.

It’s not a question of budgeting for all of the needs of the population. It’s supporting those with genuine, life affecting disability and weeding out those who are only claiming because the present rules allow it. For example, short term or temporary conditions (lasting longer than 12 months) in my opinion should not be supported. Neither should simple health conditions which have little impact. But unfortunately the present system allows this instead of targeting funds at long term or permanent disability - either mental or physical. Until we sort that out and have a proper system of assessment, taking into account the opinions and evidence of properly qualified healthcare professionals, including those actually involved with the claimants, we’ll get nowhere.

Everything in life is a blunt instrument. The expectation that everything can and should be exactly fair based on a population of 80 million, is a fantasy tbh

You can apply for a free bus pass/discounted railcard - and it's made so much easier if you have an award. I've had to do this recently, and the recent award I got (Adult Disability Payment - I'm in Scotland) has been something of a gateway to getting these. Also made applying for a Blue Badge easier.

DLA does indeed stop at 16. But those who were claiming DLA and aged 65 or over on a certain date in 2013 (can’t remember the exact date) were left on DLA until their awards ran out or their circumstances changed. So there are some adults who are still claiming DLA as a legacy benefit with indefinite awards. And indefinite awards are still made for PIP claimants where it’s determined that the condition is unlikely to change. In reality this is a ten year award with a light touch review - sometimes this won’t even involve the claimant as DWP will write to the their healthcare professionals for confirmation that nothing has changed. Once OP’s DD is migrated from DLA to PIP at age 16 she may well qualify for an indefinite award if the disability is substantial and unchanging.

As PIP / DLA are used as eligibility for things like disabled persons railcard, bus / travel pass, blue badge, etc. if you means test disability benefits, you're also means testing those passes for most people.

First OP's child needs a DLA award which will stop at 16 in any case. Not sure what gives people a 10 year award on PIP. DC has severe learning difficulties cause by a genetic disorder. There is no cure and things will never get better. we got 3 years. despite there being no prospect of any improvement. 🤷

And that right there is the problem. There is no consistency in the decision making because it’s not a medical person who decides the length or level of award, it’s a case manager - admin - who make that decision based on substantially flawed assessors’ reports which largely don’t involve the claimants’ own healthcare professionals because any evidence the claimant submits is mostly disregarded in favour of the assessors’ opinion.

Then it should be fantasy for everyone, not just the sick and disabled.

We don’t need the money (it’s around £100 per week) but we receive DLA for DD (also autistic and has arfid). It’s not for savings but just goes into our main account so is used on a daily basis anyway. However, the act of receiving DLA provides a formal acknowledgement that she is disabled and that in itself has a number of other benefits for her (and us as a family).

The reason DLA is not means tested is because it’s not a benefit that is only for those from poorer families but for all children who are entitled to it.

Our income is not as high as yours but we’re comfortable and make ends meet. We claim DLA to cover any private therapies (SLT/OT etc) our child might need and also it can be used as evidence for accessibility needs so she can be included in events etc.

It’s not the money that DLA brings - it’s the doors it opens.

We don’t earn as much as you and I have to say I felt guilty applying but once my DS was awarded I realised I had no need to feel guilty. He’s entitled to it. If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have been awarded. Apply and don’t feel guilty

I'm torn with this. The needs of my autistic child impacted on my ability to progress with career (couldn't work full time or access specialist childcare etc) so we needed the money both to compensate my loss of earnings, and to cover the expense of food issues etc. We also got a blue badge to allow us to use disabled parking spaces as shopping was problematic for us. Plus receiving DLA meant we could access support services.

If you don't need the extra cash (and honestly, with £300k household income, be honest, you really don't) maybe you could donate some/most/all of her DLA to a local autism charity, but still access the parking/support she would then qualify for.

The award is for your daughter, you meet the criteria, it's all fine.
As the parent of an autistic daughter, the extra costs are often hidden but certainly mount up!

DLA is not means tested. There is absolutely no need to tell anyone what your income is or how you spend it. Claim it: if you do not now that you have a diagnosis and an opportunity questions may be asked later. I have had DLA for a very long time. I didn't ask for an increase until covid and made another application for increase. I was asked to explain why I had not applied before. They paid the increase, but all the same, I wished I had not put up with the problems when I could have had it increased.

If you qualify to receive it, you receive it. It is the need. You do not even have to spend it on helpers. The government does not have to know how you spend it; they will ignore anyone who tells them anything about your claim and how you spend it.

In any case, the money is for your daughter, and no matter how much money you have coming in. It is for your DD so that her need is not a burden on the family.

You could set up a irrevocable trust for her future health related needs using your funds. In the US we have long term care trusts or insurance.

@LostTheMarble
Thank you for your question. My autistic child is now 19. At 16, anyone claiming DLA has to make a new claim for PIP anyway. As a parent I could meet his needs with the help I had from his EHCP - it gave him a 1:1 at school. I do provide ongoing support for him and he claims Disabled students allowance ( not actual money but help getting software to aid his studies and some mentoring at uni). If he found he couldn't cope with life later on, he could apply for PIP then. His diagnosis and EHCP is enough to have achieved the support he needed this far. I didn't claim be because I didn't need to. I claimed for my disabled boy (now 17) because I needed help to pay for the extraordinary amount of extra costs we have faced because of his disability. I claimed that because I really needed the help.

1. You pay tax
2. DLA is not means-tested because Disability has extra costs
3. DLA can open doors for more support

Apply for it. If you're entitled, you're entitled