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?

I admire you and all parents of disabled children. I think they are very brave. I think our benefit system is far too complex. All who go through it's punishing regime deserve better.

All parents of disabled children have already so much knowledge that if there were special grants for parents with special children, they should be given free opportunity to study for a course of study which will give them qualifications, and a new career.

The problem is that study is so expensive that many people who have infinite knowledge of children with disabilities cannot afford it AND provide for their disabled children.

To my mind there is a need for the Government to provide college places for any parent of a disabled child to take for free, because they are the future, where they have a qualification which will open doors for them. Of course it could be that parents of disabled children don't want to make that their profession. On the one hand I don't blame them, but on the other, they are the most experienced people to teach others how to be carers and how to plough through the rules..

"special children"?

Depends on the disability. The eligibility criteria for PIP is totally different from child DLA. It’s a working age benefit and much harder to claim. Just because a child has qualified for child DLA doesn’t mean they will automatically qualify for PIP.

As an example of the difference between DLA and PIP, when PIP was introduced in 2013 and DWP started to migrate existing DLA claimants on to the new benefit, thousands of claimants lost benefit because they were ineligible for PIP. Thousands more had the level of benefit reduced because they no longer qualified for the higher rates of payment under PIP.

I’ve read through this and it doesn’t change anything l’ve said in the post you tagged. A change of circumstances after retirement age which means that you no longer qualify for DLA would result in the claim being closed. There are no new claims for DLA for anyone over the age of 16 so if you needed benefit again it would be attendance allowance.

l understand what you’re trying to say about hospital treatment but the care/daily living components of disability benefits like PIP, DLA and AA are meant to contribute to the cost of care. When you enter hospital or LA funded care home, the state is taking over your care, so the continued payment of disability benefits would effectively mean the state contributing twice. State pension doesn’t stop on hospital admission and neither does pension credit. They are income replacement benefits and are not related to the provision of care. Some other related means tested add ins may be suspended while in hospital and restarted on discharge.

You also questioned the pension credit. If a pensioner who is on pension credit starts to claim the enhanced rate of AA pension credit will be paid at a higher rate to reflect the extra cost of disability.

l was a disability outreach worker before l retired and l’m also severely disabled myself so l’m well acquainted with the benefits system. All of the above information is in the public domain and in my experience claimants were well aware of the effect of hospital stays on their benefits. Don’t know why you’d think it needs a proclamation from the BBC.

Not all claimants are entitled to receive it, BUT they are all ENTITLED to apply for it, and if they are turned down, apply again and again,

This would be a complete waste of time unless something had changed between applications.

DWP carry out an assessment of a claimants’ disability, including a face to face interview where necessary. An assessors’ report is provided to the decision maker and benefit is awarded based on the report and any other evidence the claimant provides. If benefit is refused or the claimant thinks it’s not awarded at the right rate, then they can appeal, firstly by asking the DWP to look again at the decision and then by going to tribunal if they still don’t agree with the decision.

lf benefit is still refused there is absolutely no point in reapplying and going through the whole stressful process again unless something is different from the last application, because you will just be refused again as you still don’t meet the eligibility criteria.

If she was entitled to Pension Credit of £23 before her stroke, what happened to increase that by three times to £100 a week? If there was no change, then she should ask for a backdate,

What happened was clearly explained by this poster. Her mother became entitled to the higher rate attendance allowance when she developed disability due to stroke, so any pension credit in payment would be increased accordingly to account for increased costs of that disability. The award would have been backdated to the date AA was first awarded. She wouldn’t be entitled to any backdating of increased pension credit beyond that because she wasn’t entitled to it.

Yep, I remember that. My own mum got an increase in pension credit at that time. She was claiming standard rate AA at the time because of physical disability. That didn’t make any difference to the amount of her pension credit, but she had a fall which worsened her condition and after she was awarded the higher rate AA her pension credit increased again. The letter from DWP stated that this was because she had been successful in the AA claim. It was quite a substantial increase too.

It’s not just the fact that study is expensive, or that parents of disabled children cannot afford to provide for them if they study. It’s the fact that caring for a disabled child in very many cases is a full time job in itself, and also that many of these parents have to work as well to make ends meet. There are only so many hours in a day and caring for someone disabled is exhausting.

Thank you. I was not familiar with it, because my benefit stayed at DLA, so I didn't really take all that much notice. Too many people do that, unfortunately.

I doubt MPs know much about it. It shows that the country is run by civil servants, because MPs only know what the civil servants tell them..

The new government has promised better training for jobs. Perhaps this is an opportunity for you all on here to make your feelings and experiences known.

They probably think more in terms of increasing the number of apprenticeships, such as trades. What this country needs is to tap into the experiences outside the trading skills.

One thing that stands out in elections and on the news is that you hardly ever hear anyone say that the children of today are those to run the country in the future. Those who bring up the children are bringing up the future rulers of industry and it is industrial effort which is needed. They promise to increase the wealth of Britain: how?

Absolutely claim it but spend it on your daughters needs that u are currently funding
save the money you are spending now and you can decide what to do with that

you will pay an enormous amount in deductions probably 2.5 times as much as I earn
your funding other people’s benefits get some for your daughter

I thought that the pension credit was an allowance to the state pension when those who retire do not have a profession pension, and have to rely on the state pension.

Now you are saying that if a pensioner has age-related disabilities, the pension credit increases because the AA is increased.

I did not know that the pension credit is not only based on income, but on health and disability as well. It strikes me as rather unfair on those pensioners who have to have their pensions topped up by pension credit, but are only disabled by old age, not old age related disabilities.

I thought the AA was given to pay for extra help for disabilities in old age. I thought the pension credit was connected to the amount of income. Now you say that if you qualify for the higher AA you also qualify for more Pension Credit?

I wonder how many other people know that you get more pension if you also get more AA,

What about the other pensioners without a private pension? What is the difference between Pension Credit for someone who also needs care and those claiming the Pension Credit who do not?

If an elderly person is trapped in a hospital bed because there is no one at home to care for them, why don't they claim AA (if they are in hospital presumable the ward clerk will do that) and get increased Pension Credit as well? At minimum wage paid by social services to care staff they could have a good hour a day domiciliary care, which is more one to one than residents in care homes get.

Does Family Credit work in the same way, that if whoever in the family works and is able to claim Family Credit gets an increase of Family Credit when they are disabled and claim PIP?

There’s so much wrong with this post l don’t know where to start. You’ve even contradicted yourself in parts.

There are no new claimants to DLA for any age, but whatever they call it when you get it, you travel through life with, and if you are not getting the full amount, you can claim more when you need it, but there is a limit.

This is incorrect. DLA for a child changes to PIP at age 16. PIP is a totally different benefit to DLA with different eligibility rules. And those adults who are on DLA as a legacy benefit are subject to having their benefit change to AA if they become ineligible for DLA at review or they fail to renew by the given date. Also those people on DLA as a legacy benefit are unable to make a fresh claim to either component unless they were claiming it beforehand. So for example if your award was for care you would not be able to claim mobility and vice versa.

If a child under 16 already has the non means tested benefit, it is rolled over, but whether it is regarded as a new claim or not, I do not know now, and it is easily obtainable on google if I need to know, and yes, adults receiving DLA/PIP do not have to apply for AA. It is all there on google.

Disability benefits for a child are not ‘rolled over’ at age 16. Child DLA and PIP are different. DLA ends at 16 and PIP is treated as a new claim, but you can ask for the medical evidence used for DLA to be considered for PIP. And as above, DLA legacy claimants/PIP claimants reaching age 66, would have to claim AA if their DLA/PIP was stopped for any reason, as their are no new claims for either benefits past that age.

The OP wants to apply for the benefit which is now called PIP

No she doesn’t. She wants to apply for child DLA. PIP and child DLA are not the same benefit.

The fact is that regardless of how much money comes into the family coffers, if they do not claim it on behalf of a child who needs it, that child is entitled to appeal against the parents on the grounds that he/she is entitled to the money and that the parents must claim it on behalf of the child because THE MONEY IS THE CHILD'S and they DO NOT HAVE THE RIGHT not to take awau their child's opportunity to live as their peers without disability

The parent is the advocate and the appointee for the child. The decision as to whether or not to apply for benefit is parents’ decision until the child reaches age 16 when the child can make a PIP claim in their own right. If they do not have the capacity to do so and the parent has the authority on decision making, then that continues to be their decision.

It is no different to the cases where parents refuse to send their child to special education schools, because of publicity. That is child abuse too. There are parents begging local authorities to place their children according to need, yet there are other parents who cannot face their child's need for special education.

Parents of children with special needs, along with the professionals who support them are best placed to decide whether their children would benefit from mainstream or alternative education methods. It’s far from child abuse to decide to send a disabled student to a mainstream school and learn alongside non disabled peers if that’s the best solution for them. I grew up in an era where disabled children were expected to attend ‘special schools’ which offered little in the way of actual education. My parents fought long and hard to get me into mainstream schooling at a time when that was far from the norm. Physical disability doesn’t mean intellectual disability and there are many parents fighting for the right for their disabled children to receive support in mainstream schools. You seem to be suggesting that disabled children don’t belong in mainstream education, and that, along with some of your terminology such as ‘special’ children, and ‘slow children is downright offensive. And there is no compulsion for disabled children to leave school at the earliest opportunity. Since you’re so fond of google, try searching EHCP - in some instances there are provisions for disabled children to be educated after standard school leaving age.

So, yes, l think you’ve proved quite comprehensively that your knowledge of the benefits system and educational provision for the disabled is not up to scratch. It’s certainly not to a standard where you should be arguing the toss with those posting from professional experience of these matters.

l haven’t said any of this. Pension credit is paid to pensioners whose income falls below the pension guarantee level. Here is a link to age uk which explains it in more detail.https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/pension-credit/#:~:text=Pension%20Credit%20is%20a%20means,separate%20from%20your%20State%20Pension.

lf total income falls below the standard pension credit guarantee then pension credit is payable to top up to that level. Its means tested and counts all forms of income except disability benefits. If a pensioner is disabled and already claiming AA/middle rate or higher care component of PIP/DLA the level of pension credit payable is higher to take into account the cost of disability. If the pensioner makes a new successful claim for AA then they are entitled to the severe disability addition of pension credit, worth up to £81. It also qualifies the claimant to extra help with things like housing and council tax where appropriate. When a pensioner qualifies for a disability benefit they are advised that they may be eligible for all these things.

As has previously been advised, you can’t claim disability benefits if you’ve been hospitalised for more than 28 days. Bed blocking is complicated and has nothing to do with the level of disability benefits and everything to do with whether you are entitled to care from the local authority - it is they with whom hospital staff liaise to arrange suitable care on discharge and in some cases it can be provided free for up to four weeks depending on eligibility. But in many cases it’s not available immediately so the person remains in hospital until it can be arranged. Disability benefits can’t change that because they’re not paid at anything like the level needed to afford private care. Local authority care is based on what the person can afford to pay. Private carers wouldn’t be subsidised in the same way and would be unaffordable for most people in this situation.

Family credit no longer exists. It was replaced by working tax credits around 2003 and in most cases there are now no new claims to wtc because they’ve been replaced by universal credit, although some people still claim as a legacy benefit.

Most MP’s will be familiar with disability benefits because it’s government who legislate for it, and MPs vote on that legislation as well as any amendments. Civil servants in the form of DWP are there to award and pay benefits in accordance with legislation.

It’s not the training that’s the problem. It’s parents finding the time in between caring for their disabled children and in most cases, working. Caring in itself is a full time job. Where would they find the time to train ?

Many of what are called rising 16s are eligible for PIP, but not all of them are. The criteria for PIP are different than the criteria for DLA.

For carers who can manage studying, The OU has a carer scholarship.

I mentioned the control of the civil servants. An MP is only as good as the information they are fed.

Although that is true. Ministers and the PM have their own aides who also analyse and present information. They do not rely just on the civil servants.

The Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment, should NEVER be means tested. People in receipt of that are entitled to the same enjoyment of life as everyone is.

If you are well and healthy and strong, depending on what you want to do and the money you have to do it, you can do anything you like.

Disabled people cannot. No matter how hard we try, if we cannot walk more than a few feet or yards, we are limited in what we can do. Without the DLA/PIP, what would you imagine their lives would be like? It is so hard, and the forms are so long - a book of around 50 pages - that almost every minute of the 24 hours of the day have to be accounted for: how many times do you need this, or this, or that in a day, a week?

With children, if they qualify it, the parents must NOT refuse it for any reason. IT IS THE RIGHT OF THE CHILD to receive the benefit regardless of what their parents' income or whether they want to receive it on behalf of their child. Adults can choose their own wheelchair, according to their needs. They have the ability to know and search for what they need. CHILDREN DO NOT. They have to rely on their parents or guardians to supply their needs, and parents should not refuse it, no matter what their income is.

That you should even say you would deny a child's human right to live a better life by having their complicated needs provided shows how little people know about human rights and entitlement.

The second disability benefits become means tested is the second those right on the cut off end up missing out and being discriminated against due to their disability.

i know someone who has a son who was left disabled due to faults at his birth. They have since had a compensation package but their son is still disabled and as such still entitled to disability benefits

Disabled people are already discriminated against.

I made a suggestion. I am not advocating compulsory study for all people. There could be parents of disabled children who are able to study for qualifications - if there were places of study they could go to without having to pay for it. At the end of courses, not only would they have qualifications, but their own children would have the help of parents who had studied in order to help them.

Why you should put a damper on suggestions by finding fault with them, rather than help achieve something with wise words of encouragement, I don't know. Perhaps if you were disabled you might be more encouraging, rather than give people an excuse not to do something beneficial to themselves.

Every child is entitled to education no matter what their abilities/disabilities are. The Government HAS TO provide education for all children in a place suitable to their needs.

If Sir Keir is really serious about helping people qualify for better employment, and he particularly gives the care sector a mention, then he should put his money where his mouth is and make creche available for mums and dads of disabled children to enable them to study for qualifications which will lead to better employment. There are ways of helping parents to work and study while the children are at school, even make arrangements for them when illness strikes them down.

There must be parents of disabled children who cannot get even part time employment. If Sir Keir is serious, and his electioneering was truthful, then he should ensure that parents can go out to work and be able to socialise with others while they are on social security benefit, not only to benefit themselves, but be able to help their children to socialise. Perhaps he could start courses similar to the TOPS courses, which were 9-5 and students were paid a wage to study. Not only did they study for employment qualifications, but it got them used to getting up and going to work in the morning and coming home at night.

It is not impossible for parents to take courses leading to better qualifications while the children are at school. There is also the Open University and night school.

Obviously, compared to your superior knowledge of the whole system of disability benefits, pensions and credits, I am lacking in that direction. I am sorry you felt the need to point that out publicly.

It is no excuse, but I have been in receipt of DLA for decades and it has taken enough effort and stress to live on what I get from that. I was not aware that some benefits lead to means tested benefits and that if you receive one benefit, there is the possibility of having a Credit benefit even if you thought your income didn't qualify you for that.

I do get the Band reduction from the local authority, and very pleased to receive that. I am not sure, though, that even with a disability allowance added to the minimum income level, I would be able to apply for Credit as well. Worth considering though.