Child dla new claim July 2026

[Mumto4and5]

Hi,

just wondering if anyone else is waiting for a child dla decision?
I applied for my daughter on the 14th July , was sent a text on the 28th July to say form was received and asking for birth certificate. I rang last week to say I was sending the birth certificate but would be a delay as I didn’t have it so was waiting for a replacement. The man on the form confirmed her DOB by using child benefit claim. He said it was assigned to a case worker .

Today I had to ring to ask if they have received the extra evidence sent as was showing it wasn’t delivered. The woman wasn’t very friendly but said it was scanned on the 6th, they’ve received the evidence today and that it was in a queue for a decision maker now. Not sure if this means it could be months still or not.

applied for my 4 year old daughter.

has anyone else had a decision with this rough timeline ?

thanks x

Hi I’m close to you, my form and evidence was received 30 July. I called last week I haven’t had a letter with the reference etc just the text the lady said it’s all on the system and to call back end of this week if I haven’t had anything through.

I’ve heard of people finding out really quick recently then others waiting the full 25 weeks. I imagine the queue for the case worker is going to be long. Just doubting everything I wrote now and if I wrote enough x

It does look like it’s 4-8 weeks from what I’ve seen. I’ve got 2 claims this new one also a MR for my other child. That decision was quick, although not a positive outcome scanned 18/05 and decided 19/06 then I submitted a MR on 6/7. I keep thinking have I put enough on the new claim as that’s the mistake I made with the first, then have I been too direct in what I wrote on the MR as I went to town on it and far more direct than I would normally be.

It’s horrible isn’t it, the whole doubting yourself . I didn’t realise how much of an effect it would have actually applying and waiting for a decision which I know sounds daft. My little girl is 4 and starting school in less than 2 weeks, dreading it as they are already saying don’t think can provide full days care for her 😭 she’s been let down massively in waiting for referrals and things to happen x

It is horrible, I thought the whole point of DLA is to alleviate the stress, but they just add to it. I think it’s more the unknown that’s the worst part, if they actually explained the process properly it might make it easier to understand plus their system is just bonkers. Literally everything is a battle when it shouldn’t have to be. I’ve had to defer my 4 year old until next year, my 5 year old is at school and that’s a daily war, I’m dreading him going back! I can see why so many people end up homeschooling. x

Ah your kids are the same age as mine then, my 5 year old goes back into Year 1 in September and Daughter due to start reception. It’s so frustrating, the school are saying they aren’t allowed to change her pull up even though she has an incontinence diagnosis and waiting for more tests with that also. They then tell me on her setting in days she did that she’s behind in her overall development yet they only want her in half days as a trial and possibly not accept her at all.

it’d make the process so much less stressful if you could see an online tracker of where the application currently is lol x

Yes exactly the same ages, how mad is that.
schools the same with my 5 year old he has co-ordination issues along with other things and they won’t even help him with pulling his pants and trousers up properly, comes out every day with red marks where they are rolled up and his bum hanging out! They’ve identified since nursery he is behind and needs more help but won’t actually help, it’s so frustrating.
It would and annoyingly DWP do have the infrastructure in place with other benefits. I used to work in systems and I completely bamboozled a poor call handler a couple of weeks ago, I went off on a tangent of how they could make some minor tweaks to provide updates automatically 🤣

The school should not be refusing to change DD and they shouldn’t be calling you in the change her. Point them in the direction of the government’s Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions statutory guidance. That is underpinned by the Children and Families Act 2014 and the Equality Act 2010.

Does DD have an EHCP? What about an intimate care plan?

@Emz73 it’s just so frustrating . It feels like all I’ve done this year is fight for my kids to get an acceptable level of care.

my boy can’t wipe his bum yet , the school refuse to help 🙈 so often he will come home stained and not clean. Its not for the lack of trying , he just physically can’t reach x

@inthequietofdawn

The School is saying they don’t have staff levels to change her. They then agreed to do it at lunch time but no other time. They’ve changed their minds so much regarding her , to then say they don’t know if she can go full time now until she’s actually 5 in May.

I’ve got backing from the continence team who have sent a letter saying she needs to be checked/changed hourly due to her ongoing issues. They are shocked with the schools attitude. They’ve also stated an intimate care plan needs to be in place but school want to wait until the first week of school to determine what care she needs.

Theres no EHCP and she’s only just been referred for an ASD assessment. She was in preschool but missed so much time due to ongoing ear infections and being very unwell with them. They fitted grommets which has made the issue worse and she’s on antibiotics every other day for the foreseeable. Her ear infections causes febrile convulsions ( usually during the night of the first sign of an ear infection) and she’s had sepsis twice from the ongoing issues. She has so much going on and the school just seem to want to pass the problem on while they are technically allowed until she’s 5.

she is under surgical team for Hernias, continence team for her issues there, ENT for the glue ear, chronic infections and hearing loss. Speech therapy as her speech is very limited .

am I right in thinking an EHCP can only be done after a diagnosis ? School mentioned first it would be an ILP rather than EHCP but said the assessment needs to be done first. I’ve looked into trying to do a private assessment .

You don’t need a diagnosis for an EHCP. EHCPs are based on needs rather than diagnosis. Request an EHCNA yourself now. On their website, IPSEA has a model letter you can use. You will have more than enough evidence to demonstrate the test for an EHCNA is met.

In the meantime, the school should absolutely be providing support and making an ILP. A diagnosis is not required for that either.

Lack of staffing is not a valid reason.

to then say they don’t know if she can go full time now until she’s actually 5 in May.
the school just seem to want to pass the problem on while they are technically allowed until she’s 5.

The school is trying to pull a fast one.

If you want DD to attend full time, she can unless the school is formally suspending her. If DD is 5 next May, you have the choice to send DD part time until the start of the 27/28 academic year as this is when she is compulsory school age, or not at all until the beginning of the summer term, (as it is the start of the term when DC are CSA or the beginning of the summer term whichever comes first) but 2.17 of the School Admissions Code (which you can see here) makes it clear it is the parents’ choice:

“Admission authorities must provide for the admission of all children in the September following their fourth birthday. The authority must make it clear in their arrangements that where they have offered a child a place at a school:
a) that child is entitled to a full-time place in the September following their fourth birthday;
b) the child’s parents can defer the date their child is admitted to the school until later in the school year but not beyond the point at which they reach compulsory school age and not beyond the beginning of the final term of the school year for which it was made; and
c) where the parents wish, children may attend part-time until later in the school year but not beyond the point at which they reach compulsory school age.”

You may also find the school suspension and exclusion guidance helpful here. Most of it applies to those below compulsory school aged. Where it doesn’t, it explicitly says so as stated on page 6.

Some bits you particularly might find helpful are:

“19. Suspending a pupil for a short period of time, such as half a day, is permissible but the formal suspension process must still be followed. Each disciplinary suspension and permanent exclusion must be confirmed to the parents in writing with notice of the reasons for the suspension or permanent exclusion.”

Of particular interest may be:

“20. Any exclusion of a pupil, even for short periods, must be formally recorded. It would also be unlawful to exclude a pupil simply because they have SEN or a disability that the school feels it is unable to meet…An informal or unofficial exclusion, such as sending a pupil home ‘to cool off’, is unlawful when it does not follow the formal school exclusion process and regardless of whether it occurs with the agreement of parents.”

Put everything in writing. Follow up all verbal conversations with emails so you have a paper trail as evidence.