Should I try for higher rate DLA?

[sphil]

Sorry - I know there are threads upon threads about DLA but am supposed to be cleaning house so haven't got time to look through them all.

DS2 is 8.5 and has severe ASD with SLD. He gets lower rate mobility and middle rate care, which was right when we last did a form back in 2007. however, he is becoming much more challenging as he gets older - not only is he physically stronger but also much more aware of what he wants and determined to get it. I would say that he needs more supervision now in some ways than he did when he was 4, simply because he is so much less passive and placid than he was then. it's often quite difficult to get him to dress/walk/get out of car etc, and although we manage it, it takes a lot longer and demands far more than it used to. But when I look at the criteria for higher rate care, it suggests that a child has to have 'extremely disruptive' behaviour most of the time - and we're not at that stage yet.

Would be grateful for any input - please say if you think I should be happy with what I've got - I won't be offended!!

I would say apply for it and make a really strong case - remember that the comparison is with fully NT 8.5 year old not with another ASD child who may be less affected - if the issues you describe are ongoing then you could describe it (at least for DLA purposes) as 'severely disruptive' - though appreciate it is not nice putting that on a form .

Does he have any night time care needs? That's what would qualify him for higher rate rather than middle rate care.

Yes you should,ds HFA receives HRC and LRM.
It is about wording it right on the forms.

My DS gets MRC which dropped down last time from HRC due to night time needs becoming less of a problem. It's not so much how much care they need between MRC and HRC, but how long. If someone needs to be awake often for an hour or more between 11.00pm and 7.00am many nights in the week you should have a go at reapplying.

Apply, I have higher rate and the advice I followed was to talk about the worst days not the best of you get what I mean x

Ds gets HRC and HRM and I think he deserves it tbh.Ds has moderate autism. I would agree that as a child gets older life gets far more challenging as they get bigger and stronger and more determined.Ds is far more challenging than he was at four not least because grabbing him and moving him away is no longer an option once he's a foot taller than I am and has the strength of an ox.

Look at Cerebra guide as i understand it the only difference between middle and high rate is night time needs. Cerebra guide says what the definition of nighttime is and how often you have to be up and between which hours to qualify for high rate which is very useful to assess if eligible. You should also be able to find the DLA officers guidance on eligibility online.

Hmm - thats difficult. The evenings are our busiest time with him, because he's not totally reliable yet toilet-wise and often needs to be cleaned up and his surroundings wiped down. He also wets the bed most nights and we often have to change his sheets before we go to bed. But between the hours of 11 and about 6 he is usually asleep - we probably have a disrupted night about once a fortnight, though we occasionally get a longer run of broken nights. Evenings are a bit of a nightmare, but nights not, as a rule - well apart from the bed changing, that is.

When we got HRC it was because DS would soil in the night up to age 9 or so (after the house turns in for the night, I think they say) and would wake and get very upset, we'd have to change him, clean him up and eventually settle him back to sleep. This would be most nights for over an hour a night. Once it became once or twice a week, the HRC was stopped.

I would love to apply for HRC and LRM, which I feel DS1 more than qualifies for (when he turns 5 later this year) but am really scared we'll lose the MRC we currently get (and CA too) which would be devastating. Seems like quite a gamble