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?

My dd doesn't have an income either..I don't not feed her because of this.

Technically DLA is supposed to support your child/you… it isn’t supposed to be saved.. but there’s nothing stopping you spending the DLA on things she’s needs and putting ‘other’ money aside for her for when she’s older!

DLA is because children with extra needs need more support. For example I got 3 hours sleep last night… a regular occurrence… so I personally would struggle to hold down a full time job! She also needs a phone to monitor her blood sugars, the DLA pays for her phone, she also needs lots of other things to manage her disability so it pays for those things.

How fo they get through?
You can't just say hey my child's disabled please give me DLA and they give it to you have to provide proof.
Don't get me wrong plenty of people will put in an application for the flimsiest of reasons ( as I said previously I see it daily on a Facebook dla group I'm on) and it frustrates me aa they clog up the system but they don't get awarded and they get irate about it.

Its none means tested so doesnt matter how much money you have in the bank, if The Op,s daughter is eligible ,she will get an award

I’m not blaming pensioners, if you read my post I say absolutely it’s not their fault. It’s the way the system has developed. We need to look at the big picture instead of blaming groups that have little or no political power. And like it or not the amount of money paid out by the state to pensioners far outstrips anyone else. So if we are discussing whether it’s right for a well off family to claim DLA for their child, if we are saying such benefits should be means tested (which many people on here seem to support) then we should also be looking at other non means tested welfare payments, which includes both pensioners and NHS care more generally. I personally think it’s right that the welfare programs I mentioned aren’t means tested and I would like to see social care included in that list, as I think that’s really medical care by another name. But if we are going to have these conversations then we need to be honest with ourselves about where our taxes are really being spent.

I would definitely apply. Although you will have to reapply for PIP. And put it in a bank account for her.

It's a maximum of £108 per week which doesn't buy much care. I have a friend who pays £25 per hour for care.

In which case it’s just swings and roundabouts, isn’t it? How about they spend the DLA money on daughter’s disability expenses, but save an identical amount from their own salaries for her future, does that suit you? 😂

It'll still affect her daughter when it comes to claiming benefits

Either she meets the criteria or she doesn’t. It isn’t means tested. However, it does worry me that we have an unsustainable benefits system. Children are expensive for everyone. If she is able enough to attend mainstream school, what additional costs are you incurring that you think should be funded? She can’t be preventing you from working if she is at school. The school will provide a TA if her EHCP requires one. In your shoes, my main concern would be ensuring she is on a path to being able to live independently as an adult. You are fortunately to have the means to do that in a way that few people do. Even if that reduces her future eligibility for taxpayer funds, it will probably result in a better outcome for her, as you will be able to control it and ensure she gets what she needs when she needs it.

You clearly have little idea about disability. My child is in a mainstream school with a full time 121. The after school club isn’t funded to be able to support him 121 and I can’t finish work at 3pm every day. So we have an after school nanny for one child (and two others in the club to ensure he gets 121 support). This costs far more than he’ll ever receive in DLA. And no, he won’t ever be able to live independently no matter how much money we throw at it, so he needs the DLA so that his application for PIP and suitable care as an adult will be more straightforward.

Absolutely. But if they can avoid the need to claim means tested benefits all the better. Just because she’s autistic doesn’t mean she won’t be able to work - it depends on the individual. My neighbour can’t work for various reasons (the cannabis addiction being a big one) but he did work in a factory when he was young. I have myself worked alongside autistic people in the Civil Service, one in particular was very good at accounting and held quite a senior job role. There are some very successful people who are autistic. As her daughter is in a non specialist school perhaps she can avoid having to rely on benefits, fingers crossed. 🤞

Can you not find someone for £20 an hour, locally? It would pay someone for 5 hours a week. It is better than nothing, People don't realise that the local authority social services charge that, even more in some places.

Does your friend use an agency? Agencies charge up to £30 an hour and pay the carer minimum wage. I have private arrangements now. It is shocking that care people and helpers only earn minimum wage. It is not so bad if they are working in one care home all the time, although bad enough, but to have to go from client to client must be stressful - and slave labour.

I started paying carers at £20 an hour. My carer for the last five years had rises, and I was paying £25 an hour. That carer has cancer, so am searching someone until they are better. I am starting at £20 again at the moment while getting someone to fill in until my carer is better.

I don't know what care people usually earn privately, but they are pleased with £20 an hour at the moment, so they are not earning that much now. I pay that for cleaning and gardening too.

So that’s an example in your case of why you need the money and it was therefore worthwhile you applying for DLA. Some families, however, don’t need it for that because their circumstances are different. There has been no indication from the OP that they incur any such costs. Indeed, the OP said they would save the money. DLA does not guarantee PIP or even make it more likely. Each individual is assessed afresh at the time.

And, similarly, even children who will need support as adults are helped hugely by their personal circumstances being good. Being born in the 21st century in a first world country is, in itself, a blessing, because the support is unparalleled in historic terms. You know nothing of my circumstances and have misconstrued what I wrote. And, when things are tough and we want to beat ourselves up for not being superheroes with magic powers (something all parents do from time to time) I think it’s helpful to remind ourselves of how lucky our children are.

Hi. I have 2 daughters on PIP now they are adults but they got dla when younger and imo you should apply but you cannot save the money.

Firstly, dla sets up a trail of evidence. Your daughter will probably need to claim pip when she turns 16 and it is much easier to do this if she already gets dla. She will need pip regardless of your income - for supported living for example, which is hugely expensive.

Secondly it opens the door to services in your locality and an ehc plan if you are in England. Of course you don't need dla specifically for this, but it helps enormously. The letter from the DWP saying she gets PIP is a kind of passport to other services. It can be hard to persuade other services she qualifies if she doesn't get PIP.

Thirdly, your finances could easily change. Ours did. My husband and I both had big jobs but I ended up giving up work to look after our children and then he was made redundant. Other couples often split up as it can be so challenging parenting a child with additional needs. I ended up claiming carers allowance too.

But you can't save the money. The DWP are really clear that they are giving this money to help with the extra costs of disability and they have prosecuted people who have saved it.

And your daughter can't have large sums of money in her name if you want her to access adult social care for supported living. Anything more than about £23k and she won't qualify. You would need to set up a trust so she doesn't inherit too. Best to speak to National Autistic Society or MENCAP about this.

Good luck

The notion that the rich get richer by claiming disability benefits is appalling. This is a universal benefit available to everyone, and it’s universal for a reason - disability is universal. She claiming for her child, and the benefit opens the door to other disability services. The OP is paying more in tax than she will probably ever take out in DLA. So you’re saying she’s expected to help provide these benefits for others but she shouldn’t claim for her own child even though she’s perfectly entitled to do so ? That’s not having a social conscience it’s being smug and self congratulatory at the expense of the child.

I can tell you categorically and from the viewpoint of a professional disability outreach worker that the DWP do NOT prosecute people for saving up DLA or any other disability benefit. People please stop with this utter nonsense. The DWP are not the slightest bit interested what the benefit is spent on as long as it’s for the benefit of the disabled person. They don’t ask for evidence of spending and there is absolutely no legislation prescribing its’ expenditure. DLA does not set up any trail of evidence beyond the date and level of award and the medical and other evidence used for the award, and you can ask DWP to consider all the medical records they hold when the claim changes from DLA to PIP.

DWP don’t recommend saving DLA/PIP beyond saving for larger purchases etc, as it is meant to cover current costs, but there is nothing stopping parents from saving it for the child as long as they’re aware of the effect of savings levels on other means tested benefits and services. Once more for those at the back, DWP do not prosecute you based on how you spend the money and you are not required to keep records of how you spend the money or justify what you spend it on as long as the disabled person benefits.

Attitudes like this annoy me too. I was a disability outreach worker and if l had a pound for every time someone has told me that one of my clients is ‘not as disabled as they make out’ l’d be rich. Unless you live with the person, know everything about their medical history and are privy to the details of their claim and subsequent assessment results then you can’t possibly know whether they qualify or not. The DWP are not stupid and the assessments for disability benefits are very difficult. In my experience more claims were turned down or paid at a reduced rate than were ever accepted at face value. The benefit system doesn’t work that way.

You’ve misunderstood. I was agreeing with you.

Apologies then. I read it as you telling me the form isn’t about justifying expenditure when that is what I said.

It’s a universal benefit and as a net contributor OP is helping to fund it for others to claim. If her child qualifies there’s no reason she shouldn’t claim it.

Attendance allowance is the only non means tested benefit payable to pensioners and it’s there because eligibility for PlP stops at 66 unless you’ve claimed before that age. AA is actually significantly less than other benefits in monetary terms because it does not have a mobility component so the maximum benefit is £104 a week. The less well off pensioners who are eligible for pension credit can get a higher level of that benefit if they claim the higher rate of AA. And it’s not necessarily for age related illness, it’s awarded on the basis of how much help the person needs with daily care because of a health condition or disability. AA also stops when the person goes into full time care to which the state contributes.

The percentage rate of state expenditure on state pension is just under half the total benefit budget, not 80% of it. On everything else, l agree with you.

It’s £104 a week at top rate so would pay for about 5 hours care a week at current rates. Local Authority care should kick in on discharge from hospital but any AA payable will be included in the financial assessment. And the reason ward clerks don’t help patients apply for AA is that claimants are not allowed to initiate a claim while in hospital.