Attendance Allowance

[FlatOutAgain]

Hi, I am completing the AA form for my mum who has been diagnosed with Alzheimers.

Should I fill it out as if she is answering it, as in 'I feel like' or 'I need help with'

Or do I put it as 'My mum has...'

I am completing the form as I have PoA for Finance so it is my name/signature on the form

thank you very much

You fill it in as if you were your mother filling it in.

The only way you can fill it in on her behalf as in "mum needs this or that" is if you are registered with the department.

I filled in my DH after his stroke as if I were he, and he then had a go at signing it. I had included the fact that writing was a skill lost as a result of the stroke.

He got the AA.

I am also filling one out at the moment - you have my upmost sympathy.

I am writing more objectively. So I am writing "Needs help with xyz".

Make it worse care scenario. So her on her worst day and make sure you include and issues with eating, for example that she needs food buying and preparing for her and that she needs food identifying for her. According to Dementia UK this is the most important part of the form.

Forgot to say that as you are the PoA signing it, it's ok for you to write it from you. "She needs help with...".

There is a guide to completing the form on the government site, and it can be downloaded. Given that you have PoA and will be signing the form then I'd look it up in the guide. I don't have PoA but luckily we have a joint account so I can deal with the money anyway.

I filled in DH's with a worst day scenario and am glad I did because gradually every day is now that worst day, and I can see things will get worse still.

It makes me so cross that there is a form to complete at all. When someone has got Alzheimer's of course they are going to need a lot of help.

Thank you very much

I completed it as if it were my mum so ....I this and I that

I think from the answers I will leave it as is because it has taken long enough to complete already as I keep second guessing myself. Mum is not capable of chatting about it and I know everything as I have to deal with it all. It's just that Dh and I have differing opinions. He said fill it out as .....mum/she...

I would hope that leaving as if mum had completed it is fine and should not be a barrier to getting the help

thank you again

I have recently completed one for my dad and as advised did it based on his worst days. Does anyone know how long the response times are at the moment for finding out if they’ve been granted it or not?

I should have completed it a long time ago but wrongly believed that she needed the diagnosis which she now has.

Anyone following my very long thread on her about mum a while back will know she calls out ambulances. She had another on this week but we have so many safety nets in place now we can deal with it quickly without her going into hospital. She is still making Dad's life a misery. We had the Admiral nurse out yesterday to help him but mum dominated the conversation and refused help on his behalf. I could cry

Thank you

I have changed the wording to 'she does/has ...' It seems to read much better now.

Thank you

Not necessarily. Alzheimers takes a long time to impair living to the extent of needing help, there isn’t enough money in the system to provide help for everyone, so it is based on needs. Just having an Alzheimers diagnosis doesn’t necessarily mean you have a high level of need.

The other equally important bit of advice is “a need that is met is still a need”. So ignore all the things you have put in place, and the workarounds she has put in place herself (eg sliding her plate of dinner along the work surface because she can no longer pick up that weight) and list all her needs, not just the ones that still remain after all the things that have been put in place.

Make sure you get a firm from council tax posted to your mother - to stop paying council tax for your mum

if she lives in the house alone then it’s 100% backdated to date if diagnosis, if living with one other adult it’s 25% off as in single adult household

gp may well need to sign form

Thank you

I did not know about council tax. I just looked at the website which says

If all but one of the residents is severely mentally impaired a 25% disregard discount will apply.
If two or more adults live in the property and are not disregarded, no discount or exemption will apply regardless of how many occupiers are severely mentally impaired.

I am not sure what this means. My mum and dad live together and she has diagnosed alzheimers. Is this saying that she is not eligible?

Not sure what the wording is saying - thank you

According to the form it says mum needs to be in receipt of AA which it what I am currently applying for

thank you

For the council tax, the doctor just signed the form for my parents and they got the discount, and yes they will qualify for a 25% discount

Thank you. I will call the council tax office tomorrow re: AA just to be sure as the form seems to say you need it but the website suggests you do not. I have a good relationship with mum's GP so no issue there at all. Unfortunately we speak at least once every two weeks about either mum or dad.

If your mum has any other conditions, it is a good idea to list these also. Attaching a copy of her repeat prescription form helps too.

@quicklybeendrivenmad

if both parents have dementia then they should get 100% off c/tax

you write parents, so not sure if you mean both or one parent

I am not sure what this means. My mum and dad live together and she has diagnosed alzheimers. Is this saying that she is not eligible?

it means if more than 2 adults live in the property - so as it’s just your mum and dad you would be entitled to 25% discount = single person rate if c/tax

yes your mum is eligible and from the date of diagnosis, so you should get it back paid

it will be charged as if it’s just your dad living in the property

hth

AA just to be sure as the form seems to say you need it but the website suggests you do not.

most council tax forms seem to suggest you need it - but reality is you don’t need it - a diagnosed from go and form signed should be sufficient with date of diagnosis

Thank you again for the replies

The form says:

1. Which allowance does the first person named above receive? (Please tick)

Then a range of options. Hopefully she will have AA in the next few weeks or so with the application I will send tomorrow.

Sorry for any confusion. Mum and Dad live together. Mum has Alzheimers and Dad has a wide range of physical disabilites, mostly linked to his type 2 diabetes but cognitively he is ok (ish).

So are you applying for AA for both parents?

We've just been through this for my Dad. I strongly recommend getting help with filling out. We are lucky as their is a charity in the area where he lives who provide this service

Initially AA for mum but as I have been completing it (now done just for Dh to check later) it seems as if Dad would also qualify as he has a lot of falls. He has seen all the appropriate organisations and had the house assessed for his needs with rails, toilet, chairs etc. fitted/adapted plus a new walker (not that he uses it). We have a button for him to call a warden (Council service) but he never wears it even though he has been stranded several times with calls to us.