DLA Rejection

[nothappytobeheretoday]

Help please,

I've just received a letter that my claim for DLA has been rejected because:

My son:

does not need help with personal care for about an hour; or

right through the day, frequent attention with his bodily functions, or continual supervision to avoid substantial danger to himself or others; or

at night repeated or prolonged attention with his bodily functions or frequent or prolonged watching over to prevent substantial danger to himself or others.

He was also denied higher rate DLA for getting around.

They said they based this information on a medical report that I sent and a report that they asked for.

I sent them a highly detailed application about my son's needs and it seems like they didn't even read it?

He has no sense of danger, (will run into the street, into a busy parking lot, will knock over other children to get to what he wants, climb everything and not care how high, put his hand in the oven & toaster despite how much I say not to, etc.) needs constant supervision day and night, has trouble walking/running without falling over and is on the MDA pathway.

I am struggling as a second nursery has said they cannot cope with him so I am unable to work. OT and nursery have recommended all sorts of things for us to buy and places they want us to take him e.g. trampolines and swimming - which are really adding up!

Do I need to wait for a diagnoses to apply again? Our paediatrician has now left her post and we have not yet been given a replacement. Her report that I sent does look insubstantial - is there a way to fully document his needs that they will take seriously without a new paediatrician?

Thank you for all of your help.

Oh and it was our paediatrician who said we should apply for DLA - in particular to get a blue badge so he would be less of a danger to himself or cause an accident!

You don’t need a diagnosis for DLA.

You could make SARs to gather evidence.

Rather than apply again you can ask for a mandatory reconsideration and if still refused appeal.

For HRM, if you are applying under the SMI or VUW criteria the flowcharts are in this document. Check DS meets each point and you have evidence each point.

You can apply for a blue badge without DLA.

Thank you @JustKeepBuilding - I really appreciate your guidance.

Hi,
You do not need DLA to apply for a blue badge, I did these 2 things separately. Although I did find the information required for the blue badge was probably more extensive than the DLA application. If you have OT involved, ask to be seen by the community OT. This team wrote a risk assessment for my daughter stating she is not safe in the community at all and puts herself and others at risk. I would expect this was a strong part of us gaining a blue badge. You could use this as further information for DLA.
I had the GP do a home visit for my daughter (she couldn’t actually leave the home) and she wrote a referral in to the hospital and I requested a copy for evidence. Without wider professionals backing you with evidence, it is hard to get DLA. I’ve also heard they’ve changed the forms and reduced what you write, but what they are assessing against is still the original content. Search for ‘Contact’ they have great detailed leaflets/booklets on what to include.
Good luck, it is not easy navigating the systems. My daughter was awarded DLA care for 2 years and so I am due to start her renewal soon, I’m already dreading it!!