What do people actually expect DLA to be spent on??

[Whoknowshey]

This comes off a thread I read recently where a poster was being criticised for spending DLA on a fridge .

Im curious as to what people think DLA / PIP should be spent on ? Due to various circumstances I am aware of what people spend it on and I also have a child in receipt PIP so I know how theirs gets spent . Some differs to how my child’s is spent. Some I agree with , some I don’t but the fact is it’s for the individuals needs and that varies massively. Especially with non physical disabilities it would be hard to spend it on things directly related to their needs but there are many ways in which it affects their lives that it can help with .

Some I have came across;

• theme park passes- the child cannot do what others can , going out with friends etc . The passes give the opportunity to enjoy childhood safely.
• Toys/ things for hyperfocuses - a hyper focus is a form of regulation . To some it may look like an obsession with a character but it’s actually a way for the individual to regulate.
• Towards the family income because parents cannot work.
• Furniture - lots can get destroyed due to the individuals issues.
• Save it towards the child’s future . The child may not ever be able to get a job and adult social care is appalling .

I think all those things are justified . But I have seen comments against that.

My child has PIP as a young adult. They have a part of the money as theirs to do with what they wish ( which can be wasted hence why they do not have it all and I am their appointee - but also they have no way of having extra money as cannot work nor claim any benefits , have to stay in education to hold on to that EHCP and to help with their life skills etc ) A part goes into the house because I care for them financially as though they are a child - yet usually parents do not have to do this with an adult child. They know exactly what they are paying for with this - rent, shopping etc, social groups. It doesn’t really touch what I spend on them as the majority actually goes on a mobility car , because they have to be taken to most places . This way they are paying bills etc as they see it - an itemised of what they pay - because I know if they go in to supported living it will be eaten up by that and I don’t want them to get used to just having all that money, I think the way I do it is justified as it is for their needs ( food aversions so more expensive shop , get through clothes very quickly due to sensory issues , hyper focuses , social groups specific to their needs ) .

A bit fed up of seeing people attacked because someone doesn’t deem what they spend as “ for their needs “ yet those needs are so vast .

Interested on thoughts.

You could do a couple of simple checks. If you have a BP machine, take your BP when you're sitting, then when you stand, then after 1 minute, 3 minutes, and 5 minutes. If your blood pressure drops or your heart rate goes up drastically, it's worth asking the doctor about it.

So sorry this happened to you. My LB's brain I just was also due to incompetence.

I’ve just read your comment a couple of posts up and my heart goes out to you x

Tbf I think that some posters may think that by explaining the myriad of ways, which DLA, or PIP is spent on, will increase people's understanding, and lessen any criticism. I do not think that is what is happening here, imo there is no point explaining any of this to some people, as they will not change their way of thinking, regarding how they believe that any money should be spent. I personally would not waste my time explaining anything to them.

And they’ll privatise the NHS so I hope you are wealthy enough for that. And cut social care so you’ll be screwed in old age if you need help, or if you become disabled yourself!

I bet all these angry, disability hating people donate to Children in Need when it's on the TV, and feel ever so smug about it

Questioning how DLA is used does not mean you hate disabled people. Seriously, we need to get past this kind of extremist thinking.

We would be as well promising everyone a mansion and a unicorn.

UBI is a totally unaffordable fantasy.

The NHS is a well-intentioned disaster. America is not the only model of private healthcare in the world. Privatization does not always equal bad.

Social care was always done within the family unit and community, and that'll likely be the case again soon enough. We just can't afford the kind of things people have come to expect and some major recalibration will inevitably happen. It would be lovely if we could all have subsidized horse riding lessons for our kids but someone has to pay for it in the end. This will not last for very much longer

Thank you for saying this. It's not fair to smear people who are asking reasonable questions about whether it's right that we're subsidizing some of the things that we are as hateful. If we don't have the conversation, the markets will eventually have it for us

If the DWP who make the awards are not questioning what they are being spent on, then who is anybody else to question anything? Nobody owes anyone an explanation.

We’re not allowed to question decisions made by often useless government departments?! What is this, North Korea?

What does it matter to you, what it is being spent on? Are you in any position to affect any change? I thought not. The Government is, and until they start demanding to know what the awards are being spent on, quite frankly it is not any of yours, or anybody else's business.

DSA should be given in vouchers to spend on bills, therapy, food, clothing.

Do you mean DSA, or do you actually mean DLA/PIP? Because DSA is completely separate from disability benefits. DSA isn’t for bills, clothing, food, etc. It is Disabled Students Allowance. It isn’t a benefit that is paid to individuals.

I have a friend working in education who actually encourage people to get their kids a diagnosis of something in order to access various entitlements

Your ‘friend’ doesn’t understand that a diagnosis doesn’t lead to any entitlements. Provision/support/benefits are based on needs, not diagnosis.

What is the moral case for tax payer funded horse riding lessons?

Horse riding can be used as physio, to improve motor skills, improve communication and interaction skills, aid emotional regulation, sensory regulation, therapy, education…

he gets 9 hours a week, provision IN the home that LA insist I have to supervise) working on EOTAS. But even that I have to supervise, again formal complaint in as this is breach of Law, LA dont care.

You shouldn’t have to, but have you looked at JR? As you are finding, the normal timescales of the complaints process mean it isn’t a suitable remedy. Also, if you don’t wish for provision to be in the home, this is also something that can be challenged via JR - there is already case law on parents not being compelled to accept provision at home.

Because it’s taxpayers money! And we elect the government. And it’s this sort of nonsense that means we will be saying hello to Reform in 3 years. And how much do you think they care for benefit claimants?

The DWP just reflects current government policy. Current government policy awards DLA/PIP to individuals and currently doesn't require an explanation as to how it is spent. That is true.

This doesn't mean the policy is financially sustainable or morally ethical. This is why people have the right to question what exactly the money is being spent on and whether this is sensible or morally right. Someone down the line will end up paying for the theme park visits etc as we are accruing national debt at a worrying rate and it will probably be our children's generation that feel the true brunt of the financial mess we are creating.

Change will ultimately happen through democracy. Discussion and debate helps to inform opinion and change minds. There isn't a 'kind' side to be on. Spend more now on things like DLA/PIP and we will all (including the disabled) pay the price later or reign in spending now, disabled people will sadly lose out now but the future will be more financially viable.

How is it hateful towards disabled people to think the award levls are wrong. One family may spend the full award on a wheelchair or dammage to the house caused by meltdowns but another buys £50 a year in sensory socks and spebnds the rest on spa days or their kids isa.

Yes the items people quote very rarely add up to the sums given

It's funny how people are obsessed with what others spend their disability benefits on but no one questions what people spend UC or child benefit on

Precisely. None of these posters seem to want to acknowledge that they and all of their loved ones are one illness or accident away from a severe and life-limiting disability of their very own or that anybody can have a disabled child, no matter their circumstances.
I do wonder whether all this demonising and othering of disabled people comes from a place of fear, not that it makes it any more acceptable, I guess I'd just prefer to believe that explanation than accept that so many people can be this cruel and lacking in empathy, imagination and foresight.
Before anyone replies to tell me that they will be fine because they are fully insured and have amassed enough funds to comfortably support themselves and their entire family without state aid in the event of developping a disability, I should point out a few things.
Firstly, have you any idea how difficult it is to get severe illness cover that truly covers every eventuality and, in the event such a policy existed, what the premiums would be? Also, as someone born disabled, I was unable to obtain critical illness cover when I took out life insurance due to my existing disability, the life insurance premium was considerably higher too, another way in which disabled people are disadvantaged.
Secondly, do you really think that the average income family is able to put aside enough money every month to support them indefinitely in the likelihood one of the bread-winners becomes disabled? If so I think you are severely over-estimating the average take-home pay of a British family.
Thirdly, what about kids like me who were born with severe disabilities or develop them early in infancy? In order for our families to cover even a fraction of the costs involved in raising a child with certain disabilities one would have to start saving decades before you have kids, long before most people are even thinking about becoming parents!

Social care was done by the community. Great. So we’ll raise people’s retirement age but we’ll hope that they also start caring for their even older neighbours. Thats a fantasy. Do you really think people will start helping their neighbours shower?
Lots of people do care for their parents/family with help from social care because they don’t live locally/work themselves. We are an aged population. We need more social care, not less, relying on others doing it just won’t happen.

and the private model will be the one that makes Farrage and his mates the most money.

I agree its right and fair to question the concept of different benefits and how they are applied and used. I very much doubt pip and dla will carry on exactly in thier current form.

But I prefer something factual and evidence based over a mn thread of asking individuals what they spend it on and then telling them that they are wrong based on people's own misunderstandings and even prejudices.

Many posters have said that they spend more, than they receive. Are they to be discounted?

How many disabled people (it families of disabled children) do you know who only spend less than £2 a week on disability related things? The only people I really know who don't have many disability expenses don't receive DLA or PIP

I have noticed that things have gone very quiet regarding changes to the PIP system, anyway. The Government was quite vocal about there being changes. And since then it has been🦗🦗.