DLA Mandatory Reconsideration 2023

[Mumofboysteamginge]

Hi, I’ve been following the DLA wait times thread since I applied for my 7 year old son in October. We had the decision yesterday and it was declined 😭 I was absolutely devastated.

We applied because my son was involved in a serious RTC (we were going on holiday with our friends, he wanted to travel in their car following us, a car came round a bend missed us but hit them head on) understandably he struggles with the fact he was the only one in the car and blames us for letting him in there). He was the only one awake and conscious in the vehicle, he has chronic flashbacks, normal everyday life things (sirens, bangs, travelling, weather conditions and so on are triggers) they send him into a state of survival and all his rational thinking is gone. Nights are horrendous for him, he lives like his life is in constant threat, he fights sleep and often gets dressed in the middle of the night so he’s ready should anything bad happen. Flashbacks are more prominent through the night.

school are aware of his issues. Now he’s under CAMHS school have been asked to stop any mental health interventions as this could interrupt the trauma therapy. hes happy at school because of the structure and routine, no real unpredictability etc.

anyway I’ve done this tread for anyone going through MR and hope we can all support each other through the process!

xxx

[Shellbod81]

Hiya , thanks for this thread , think it’s will come in handy for us waiting for MR decisions , aww bless your son it must of been so terrifying for him 😞…..my 12 year old suffers from vasculitis (HSP) he got refused DLA back in November, I wasn’t going to fight it but his condition is just getting so much worse he dosnt go a week now without flare ups (his blood vessels leak through his body attacking his organs causing rashes , swelling , bruises and lots of pain to the point he can’t even walk! …..anyway he’s under peaditrician , rheumatology , kidney specialist, vasculitis specialist and now been referred to a child psychologist but it’s affecting his mental health ….I am not giving up without a fight now! ….I applied for his MR jan 16th , spoke to a lady last week that said they are taking 5-6 weeks , although the letter i received says don’t contact until 11 weeks ….fingers crossed we get the help our boys deserve! Good luck x

[Mumofboysteamginge]

@Shellbod81

Hiya , thanks for this thread , think it’s will come in handy for us waiting for MR decisions , aww bless your son it must of been so terrifying for him 😞…..my 12 year old suffers from vasculitis (HSP) he got refused DLA back in November, I wasn’t going to fight it but his condition is just getting so much worse he dosnt go a week now without flare ups (his blood vessels leak through his body attacking his organs causing rashes , swelling , bruises and lots of pain to the point he can’t even walk! …..anyway he’s under peaditrician , rheumatology , kidney specialist, vasculitis specialist and now been referred to a child psychologist but it’s affecting his mental health ….I am not giving up without a fight now! ….I applied for his MR jan 16th , spoke to a lady last week that said they are taking 5-6 weeks , although the letter i received says don’t contact until 11 weeks ….fingers crossed we get the help our boys deserve! Good luck x

Hi love, what reasons did they give you for the decline? Did you do your reconsideration over phone or by letter?
how does your son get on at school?

the reasons they gave us was that he doesn’t require more care than a child his age - I spend more time with my 7 year old than my 3 year old, specifically keeping him and his siblings safe due to his overwhelming emotions that he cannot self regulate. I have to spend time explaining what’s coming next. He’s reverted back to being a toddler and has self doubt in everything he does!

doesnt require more supervision than a child his age - he has to be with me or another adult in everything he does particularly in the late afternoon evenings (often when he is over stimulated due to the demands of conforming during the day!)

aids can be used for bed wetting - has pull-ups however he gets dressed into day clothes so he is ready should something bad happen, therefore takes the pull up off

night terrors are not a care need - evidence that they are not night terrors they are flashbacks, resulting in angry unpredictable outbursts of emotion and fear!

no behaviour issues at school and attends family days out!? - school are well aware of his mental health issues but have been requested by CAMHS to allow school to be school. A place where there aren’t many triggers, driving in car, bangs, sirens, flashing lights. Dark etc

its so hard getting them to see it for what it is!!

[Shellbod81]

so he got refused November 5th , I phoned January 16th - which was well out of the 30 days to do a MR but the lady was lovely , said for me to send anything extra within 3 weeks -

tbh I can’t remember when I phoned up they gave me a few reasons (I was just far too deflated to listen) one of the things was that there was no care plan in school , I’m my MR I’ve put how he masks his condition a lot in school due to his age and the embarrassment of being different and less able then other kids his age! I’ve told them school are fully aware of his condition, he has a first aid pass to skip PE and go to the toilet whenever he needs and to go to access (out of class lessons with additional support) …..I’ve sent in his most recent paed letter which stated he’s being referred for ultrasounds on his kidneys and testicles (one of the main long lasting effects of his disease is kidney damage) and how he’s been referred to the top expert in the country at alder hey and also his referral to the child pyhscologist …..have you started your MR? Because you really should!! Did they tell you how long it will take? Xx

[Shellbod81]

I’ve also included a personal diary for 3 weeks over how he was at Xmas , day to day step on his struggles , and a supporting letter from my friend who has twin boys his age (she’s a physiotherapist) and it’s clear to see he’s less able then kids his age ….I was going to leave it when he got declined , although he’s just getting worse so I’m not giving up without a fight now! X

[Mumofboysteamginge]

sounds like my boy, he like to conform and previous to the incident and still now he’s a popular member of his class… sort of class clown lol! School is his escape from day to day life routine and structure suits him really well. He has 3 other brothers so understandably home life can sometimes be unpredictable along with my dh working so hard and often away from home.

now I’ve had time to calm down I understand that the way I’ve worded things doesn’t seam like much more care. I have to be more detailed about how we are responding and helping him.

tonigjt I’m going to sit and write a normal day vs an unpredictable day and what we do to manage it!? Does that make sense?

we have a CAMHS appointment on Tuesday so I’m going to ask his practitioner if she can write me something up to support my claim!

weve got to fight because no one will do it for us xx

[gloriawasright]

You have to submit the mandatory reconsideration letter ( I think you can do it over the phone but having a paper trail isn't a bad thing )
As soon as you get your reply back and if you are declined again ,you need to get in touch with your local welfare rights team .
You need to tell DWP you will be going to an appeal .but from that moment in the welfare rights take over all the paper work needed,so don't be put off by the thought of it all .you will get all the help you need .
They will advocate for you and they put your case forward for you at an appeal .
They take all the stress away .
And your claim starts from your application so you will get all money backdated to that date .
Good luck ,it sounds like your boy has had a tough time recently x

[Shellbod81]

@gloriawasright have you had an MR? Was you successful? It’s just all so stressful , it was July I phoned up for my form , just a long wait ….I have seen on the other chat that there are others who have had MR’s declined so I’m not holding hope even tho I am adamant my son deserves it to help him x

[Shellbod81]

@Mumofboysteamginge you keep going for what you feel is right for your son , only us mums know what it’s like looking after a child that is struggling, I would defo fight it if I was you x

[Mumofboysteamginge]

@gloriawasright

You have to submit the mandatory reconsideration letter ( I think you can do it over the phone but having a paper trail isn't a bad thing )
As soon as you get your reply back and if you are declined again ,you need to get in touch with your local welfare rights team .
You need to tell DWP you will be going to an appeal .but from that moment in the welfare rights take over all the paper work needed,so don't be put off by the thought of it all .you will get all the help you need .
They will advocate for you and they put your case forward for you at an appeal .
They take all the stress away .
And your claim starts from your application so you will get all money backdated to that date .
Good luck ,it sounds like your boy has had a tough time recently x

Thanks for your post. Who are the local welfare rights people and what do they do to help? X

[gloriawasright]

@Shellbod81

@gloriawasright have you had an MR? Was you successful? It’s just all so stressful , it was July I phoned up for my form , just a long wait ….I have seen on the other chat that there are others who have had MR’s declined so I’m not holding hope even tho I am adamant my son deserves it to help him x

To be honest, I have never known of an MR resulting in a change of decision.
I have gone to appeals over the years,with the help of welfare rights and have always won at appeal.
You do have to go through the whole process of MR first ,then appeal.

Many people give up after being turned down again. And the appeal looks scary and overwhelming.but it really is worth doing.and the help you will get makes all the difference.
You can appeal without having to appear in front of the panel,
But statistically you have a better chance of winning if you appear.
You will have a welfare rights officer appointed to you ,and they are by your side all the way.
Your son is more than entitled to benefit so don't give up. It might just take a little longer to get it .

[Mumofboysteamginge]

I’ve just got off the phone to school. Wanting to know what the plan is. They are in the process of creating a ‘personal learning plan’ (way to track learning through interventions etc) and also doing a pupil passport (based on care) ways to let fizz out the bottle! Just don’t think the actual documents will be back in time!?

think I maybe applied at the wrong time as now CAMHS appointments have begun, everyone else involved is actually now taking this seriously

[Lougle]

@gloriawasright

To be honest, I have never known of an MR resulting in a change of decision.
I have gone to appeals over the years,with the help of welfare rights and have always won at appeal.
You do have to go through the whole process of MR first ,then appeal.

Many people give up after being turned down again. And the appeal looks scary and overwhelming.but it really is worth doing.and the help you will get makes all the difference.
You can appeal without having to appear in front of the panel,
But statistically you have a better chance of winning if you appear.
You will have a welfare rights officer appointed to you ,and they are by your side all the way.
Your son is more than entitled to benefit so don't give up. It might just take a little longer to get it .

My DD has ASD. She was declined on first application and when I asked for MR, I took each statement line by line and identified where I had given evidence that refutes it. E.g. 'You say she can do x independently. In question 15, I told you that..... DD can't do this independently. A typical child of her age can do x, y, z. DD can only do a, b, c.'

I did that for each and every statement and she was upgraded from a nil award to MRC, LRM.

You have to be really explicit. So for night terrors, for example:

"DS suffers from night terrors. During this time he is unable to process external stimuli and has entered the flight/fight state. He is unaware of the impact of his actions and is a danger to others because he flails his arms and in his panic, he can hurt people. When we are awoken, we have to go to his room and hold him for 30 minutes before he starts to calm down. During this time he is very volatile. It takes over 30 minutes for him to start to be able to talk. It takes a further 20 minutes for him to calm to the point that we can leave him. Once we have settled him, we have to stay awake for a further 45 minutes to ensure that he has properly settled to sleep and his night terror doesn't return. DS suffers night terrors on 5/7 days.

On days when DS has had a night terror the previous night, he needs much more reassurance to be able to start the day. Because he has been disturbed in the night, he is exhausted and is unable to organise himself for the school day."

[Shellbel10]

Hi I got turned down for mr. Just wondering if we was to do appeal, can you also put in for a new claim at the same time.

[Shellbod81]

@Shellbel10 sorry you got turned for an MR , I’m just waiting on a decision, can I ask reasons you got turned down and what evidence you sent in please x

[Shellbel10]

Hi I sent in ieps showing from the last 2 years copy of sleep medication and ot assessment report

[Shellbod81]

@Shellbel10 sorry you lost your MR , I’m not holding much hope from what I’ve heard it’s almost impossible to win an MR! Will you take it to appeal? I am going to , it’s just all this waiting it’s ridiculous it could take months on end to get to appeal my initial scan date was august 4th 2022 , if I genuinely didn’t feel that my son was entitled I would leave it , but I feel the need to carry on as he really struggles and only I can fight for it! X

[Shellbel10]

I do feel deflated with it all. I’m not sure I will do tribunal I might just put in a whole new claim

[Shellbod81]

i totally know how you feel , I just don’t think I’d have the energy and patience to gather all that evidence again for a new claim hence why I will go to a tribunal with all the info they have , I know of others who have been awarded with less needs then my son seems to be Russian roulette as to who’s desk it lands on 😞

[gloriawasright]

You have nothing to lose by going to an appeal .and you have a very good chance of winning. If you lose there then you can put in a new claim.
If you scrap the appeal and start a new claim now you will lose all the months money that you would receive backdated if you win at appeal .
which is going to be a fair sum of money by the time you get to the appeal.
As well as all the info they already have,they also hear from you.
You will be able to explain all the difficulties and issues your son has.
The panel ask you lots of questions, and you will have your support from your welfare rights officer with you.
It's nerve wracking,and intimidating.but you are fighting to get what your boy is entitled to .
I don't know about you but I can explain some thing so much better verbally than trying to write things down .once I start talking I can't stop .
So give the appeal and give it your best shot .
Lose ? Well you gather all the extra evidence and start all over again .
Life with a child with difficulties feels like you are always fighting for them.but there's nobody who knows your child as well as you do .so you will get the strength from somewhere ,and we get better at all this as time goes on. Just remember you are doing your best for your son.
Good luck 🤞

[Dinoboymama]

You have to do a Mr before you can go to tribunal.

We went to tribunal and won. We had the evidence to back up each point but the DWP clearly didn't read it. We sent over 100 pages. The judge in the tribunal asked us no questions at all and awarded the higher rate for both as it was clear our child was entitled to it.

[WreckTangled]

Joining you all 🙄

[Shellbod81]

@WreckTangled sorry to hear that can I ask why you got declined x

[WreckTangled]

I’m still waiting for the written reasons but she did go through them on the phone. The things I remember are: he’s in a mainstream school, he doesn’t have a learning difficulty, he can speak freely at school, he does need support when out and about but no more than any other child his age (he’s 10 and can’t speak in public), because he can speak freely at home (defining feature of selective mutism), he doesn’t need anymore care than a child of his age (he’s 10 and gags every time I even ask him to consider wiping his own bum). The thing is I know for a fact that loads of children with SM do get DLA as I’m on all the groups, ds also has sensory processing difficulties ie we can’t go to a beach that has seaweed as he starts gagging. We can’t go to a beach with sand and he has meltdowns about the sand for the whole time and then the following days as he finds it everywhere. None of these things are typical and are just a couple of examples of all the things he struggles with. It’s so frustrating when it seems to be one rule for some and another for you. But then I also see people get declined when they have higher needs and I feel even worse for them.

[Macariosmummy]

Hi everyone I have been posting on the dla wait times thread for a couple of weeks but found out today that we have been declined.

unfortunately my sons current school don’t support his ASD referral and the DM spoke to the deputy head teacher yesterday and due to that we were declined ( I am waiting for the letter explaining why we were declined). I was wondering if anyone knows how long it takes for a MR and also I have spoken to my sons old school (who first told me they suspect he has Asperger’s syndrome) and his old teacher and Senco said they will be happy to write me a letter to support my claim and I have a paediatric report I can send but as he hasn’t been diagnosed I’m not sure if he will win the MR

any advice on anything else I can send in please?

[gloriawasright]

@Macariosmummy

Hi everyone I have been posting on the dla wait times thread for a couple of weeks but found out today that we have been declined.

unfortunately my sons current school don’t support his ASD referral and the DM spoke to the deputy head teacher yesterday and due to that we were declined ( I am waiting for the letter explaining why we were declined). I was wondering if anyone knows how long it takes for a MR and also I have spoken to my sons old school (who first told me they suspect he has Asperger’s syndrome) and his old teacher and Senco said they will be happy to write me a letter to support my claim and I have a paediatric report I can send but as he hasn’t been diagnosed I’m not sure if he will win the MR

any advice on anything else I can send in please?

The DWP state that a diagnosis isn't necessary. It's about the child's needs and that they need more help than a child of the same age would need .
I think that a diagnosis helps a lot despite what they say .
gather all your evidence ,write a very long report outlining all the things you have said here ,and more .
Then ask for the reconsideration,but keep your expectations low as they are more often than not declined ( I know some are not )
Then be prepared to start the appeal process,where you will have a much bigger chance of winning 👍