DLA help with a child in process of being assessed for ASD and ADHD

[WonderMum2018]

I'm in need of some advice. My 14 year old son has had traits of ASD as ADHA from about the age of 3 years old, we have never had any help with him being assessed because he is ok at school, well so they say he is, but he does get detentions all the time for not doing homework or forgetting to hand it in. He also gets in trouble for disrupting the class in history the one subject he is not interested in. At school isn't the problem, it's as soon as he walks through the door after school and every day he isn't at school.

Anyway... I applied for DLA 6 months ago to be able to help him get off his electrics and get him out doing stuff he likes to do, just everything he is interested in is very expensive, and I thought because of all the extra help and supervising I have to give him at home and while out and about that I would give DLA a go, well it got refused and I asked for it to be looked at again and the same, refused. I did ask why and they told me that because I couldn't prove the extra help and supervising I do for him they can't grant the claim, My son didn't have have a diagnosis but was waiting to be seen by a clinic that study's the brain, but this isn't an assessment it is just for research, (the senco at school sent him,) we didn't have a referral for him to be assessed either.

Well now the doctors have referred my son to Neurodevelopmental service and they have accepted his referral and we are on a waiting list to be seen. (18 weeks or more waiting time) He has also had his appointment at the calm clinic to study his brain, we waiting for the senco at his school to get the report on that, could be 4 - 5 weeks then once she has it I will get the same report.

What I'm asking is if I make a claim again will I have a better chance of getting DLA with the referral ? And is there anything I can do to prove I help him with the things I help him with?

He would really benefit from the extra cash for him to have one to one time with me or my husband doing something he like and depend on his electronic as much.

You might get better help on the SN Chat/Children boards.

Although DLA is based on needs, rather than diagnosis, it is helpful to have extra reports from outside agencies/SENCo etc. Also take a look at the Cerebra DLA guide www.cerebra.org.uk/help-and-information/guides-for-parents/dla-guide/. It's also worth seeing if there are any local charities that can help you complete the DLA form - parent support groups for children with SN/Disabilities or possible the CAB.

I think your case will be stronger after diagnosis or when you have other professionals reports to send in with the claim.

I have a daughter who receives DLA and we sent in things like EHCP, paediatrican letter, audiology report, occupational therapy report, speech report etc

I couldn't delete this one but I have put it on SN children

It's all about using the right terms. The National Autistic Society can help and the Benefits And Work site, but you need to explain why he can't do x without supervision/prompting, what happens if you don't. And then why the 'obvious' solutions don't work. And how often there would be problems if you treated him like another 14yo, as opposed to how much you manage to do because of your extra vigilance. Good luck.

I sincerely hope your claim to be entitled to DLA can be seen for what it clearly is following the referral.

What you describe would apply to a, vast number of teenagers. Most parents would love more money to get their moody sons off the xbox and to be more active and spend more one to one time with a parent.

You will need to come up with needs that are specific to any disability he might have that is additional to his needs as a normal teenager.

My son was diagnosed with ASD at 9 and was awarded DLA immediately afterwards. My DS was and is very intelligent but he lacked danger awareness and had issues with following sequences for simple, practical tasks. When I filled in the form I detailed exactly how much practical help and prompting he needed, and I gave several examples of times when he had used poor judgement in keeping himself safe.

He's 21 now and moved over onto PIP, although he did lose the mobility component (he still get a free C+bus pass).

It’s worth applying again but you need to be able to prove he has additional care needs over and above his age. My son has asd and adhd both diagnosed (he is 6) and I get high rate care and low rate mobility for him. However his care needs are well above other children his own age and above most other autistic children in his school. He needs constant one to one support and often has two staff with him at school, no holiday club including additional needs ones can cope with him and I have had to give up my career. I had to evidence everything but I had lots of professional input so it wasn’t hard for me .

Thank you for your reply