Doing DD's DLA form - am I on the right track

[Katymac]

So far I have answered 1 box:
DD cannot walk around outside by herself; she cannot see much at all and would be at risk of:

? Falling ? uneven surfaces, curbs, obstacles
? Getting lost
? At risk from being hit by vehicles, pedestrians, even over hanging tree branches or overgrown weeds
? She could also be in danger from becoming confused and unaware of where she was

The person who accompanies DD, supports her, navigates for her, describes the objects and people around her, protects her from danger and reassures her that she is safe.

How basic does it have to be?

Do I need to say what the risk is wrt vehicles?

Give examples if you can of things that have actually happened. ie she has almost fallen, tripped up etc.

Really?

We don't let her outside by herself (oops)

For example i stated at tribunal that ds could run into the road, because of his limited awareness of danger when he become overwhelmed.

They asked have you ever had to stop him from running in the road iyswim.

and yes you are on the right track, sounds good.

Blimey

Is this better:

DD cannot walk around outside by herself; she cannot see much at all and would be at risk of:

? Falling ? uneven surfaces, curbs, obstacles
? Getting lost because she can?t see her way
? At risk from being hit by vehicles, knocked by pedestrians, even over-hanging tree branches or overgrown weeds as they could knock her off-balance or trip her
? She could also be in danger from becoming confused and unaware of where she was
The person who accompanies DD, supports her, navigates for her, describes the objects and people around her, protects her from danger and reassures her that she is safe. She cannot recognise people by sight only by voice and this would also pose a risk.

You really need to make sure that you give the consequences of these things. Falling, whilst unpleasant, isn't inherently a problem. If you fall onto a sofa, what's the big deal?

So:

Falling - Due to her restricted vision, DD is unable to guage the depth of curbs, recognise and negotiate obstacles or adjust for uneven surfaces. If she was to walk unattended outside, DD1 would be at risk of falling, which given the nature of road surfaces and pavements, could result in serious injury.

Also, don't forget to write why she can't overcome these things by herself. So:

DD1 is at risk from being hit by vehicles because she cannot see them, and would not be able to judge the distance or speed of vehicles by their sound.

claw3 - did you get mobility at tribunal? What rate (thinking ahead to DD1's renewal...)

Perfect, you really have to spell it out for them.

Last go:

DD cannot walk around outside by herself; she cannot see much at all and would be at risk of:
? Falling - Due to her restricted vision, DD is unable to gauge the depth of curbs, recognise and negotiate obstacles or adjust for uneven surfaces. If she was to walk unattended outside, DD would be at risk of falling, which given the nature of road surfaces and pavements, could result in serious injury.
? Getting lost because she can?t see her way, she could also be in danger from becoming confused and unaware of where she was and the dangers which are present
? At risk from being hit by vehicles because she cannot see them, and would not be able to judge the distance or speed of vehicles by their sound.
? She could be knocked by pedestrians or walk into them because she can?t see
? Over-hanging tree branches, bins, street furniture, unexpected obstacles or overgrown weeds as they could knock her off-balance or trip her because she cannot see them.
The person who accompanies DD, supports her, navigates for her, describes the objects and people around her, protects her from danger and reassures her that she is safe. She cannot recognise people by sight only by voice and this would also pose a risk.

Lou - ds gets lower rate mobility. I asked for written reasons, i can dig out the reasons if you like and let you know exactly on what grounds he got it? (not tonight, but tomorow) if thats any help to you.

Next bit

Before DD lost her sight she used to walk part of the way to school, she visited her friend houses by herself, walked to the local village shop (about 1.7 miles away). However now she is unable to do these things as she cannot see, she is at risk in many ways (detailed as above) including stepping in deep puddles (we are in a very rural area), slipping in mud or dog dirt. Previously while out she has crossed over to avoid passing rotting deer corpses, and narrowly missed falling into ditches ? and this was when we could see.
We used to go to the shopping mall where I would sit & have a drink and read a book and she would go shopping, returning to meet me at set times; this is of course now impossible as she cannot be unaccompanied as she cannot see.

& do I mention her asthma too

She doesn't get up in the night because of her sight but if her asthma is bad she does and now we have to be careful when she gets up as they are disorientated at night & now she can't see so it makes it worse

Katy, i wouldnt word it that when she gets up you have to be careful. Im trying to think like a DLA officer.

If she is feeling unwell, you have to get up with her?

Also what happens if she needs the toilet during the night, do you have to accompany her?

How old is your dd? What happens when she is at school?

She is 12

Someone walks her to & from school

I have a bit to go in the extra information at the end

Part of the problem we are dealing with is that up until the end of February our daughter could see; she was, or appeared to be, a happy, outgoing, competent pre-teen. She attended Guides, went to church (by herself), went shopping (either by herself or with friends), read books (which she dearly misses), sailed and helped youngsters to sail (she was looking in to volunteering to help disabled children to sail), danced (competitively ? a finalist at Blackpool) and cooked.
Now she is one of the disabled children she wanted to help, she cannot leave the house by herself, read a book, or create a birthday card for a friend. Her cookery and dressmaking lessons are on hold as she cannot deal with all the new things she must relearn for this new situation she is in.
Over time it is possible, indeed probably, that many of the things she used to do she will be able to do again. However, just now, life is unbearably challenging for both her and us as her parents. The small independences she had earnt have been snatched away, new confining rules have been imposed, things which were second nature have suddenly become enormous hurdles to over come; silly things like:
? Setting the alarm clock or the video
? Finding the right channel on Sky
? Heating up milk in the microwave to make hot chocolate
? Deciding what clothes make up a ?cool? outfit and which hair and jewellery to accessorise it
? How to have a shower at the sailing club

Who guides her in school, that is going to be a question, how does she manage in school?

Think worst case scenario, dont write anything positive.

That would be the LSA that doesn't exist

Atm a little friend (well one of 4) guides her round

We have been award 25 hrs 121 but we aren't getting it

Part of the problem we are dealing with is that up until the end of February our daughter could see; she was, or appeared to be, a happy, outgoing, competent pre-teen. She attended Guides, went to church (by herself), went shopping (either by herself or with friends), read books (which she dearly misses), sailed and helped youngsters to sail (she was looking in to volunteering to help disabled children to sail), danced (competitively ? a finalist at Blackpool) and cooked.

she cannot leave the house by herself, read a book, or create a birthday card for a friend. She cannot attend her cookery and dressmaking lessons. she cannot deal with all the new things she must relearn for this new situation she is in. She cannot set the alarm clock, heat up milk etc, etc

Dont mention maybe's and probably. Just state what she cannot do.

It is so hard even just to talk/write about it

I have done enough for tonight - tomorrow is another day (as they say)

Definitely mentioned that she has been awarded 25 hours 1:1 and provide evidence of this.(doesnt matter that she doesnt get it, she NEEDS it and more)DLA wise i mean it doesnt matter. And that she doesnt manage the rest of the time in school and what the consequences are ie she has to rely on friends and the dangers etc, etc.

Filling out the DLA forms is hard work, as you have to be so negative about everything, its quite depressing and tiring.

Good luck Katy and goodnight.

katymac, that sound awful, tottally off topic mainly but i was going to mention

the jubileesailing trust

if she likes to sail and stuff they operate 2 tall ships specifically for disabled people to do working holidays on.

on topic

the more detial the better,

specific instances can be usefull but
saying she cant see is much different then saying she cant see clearly beyond 2 meters

be clear but consice and have more info then is generally asked

Thanks

I will probably re-visit this tomorrow as we are off to an event weekend with local charity for families with VI children

You are doing great. It might be worth knowing that the DLA process is completely dispassionate. They don't care about your bright, bubbly 12 year old who loved x & did y. All they care about is whether they can fit her into a box on their form. So you have to write for their criteria.

Low rate care: About an hour of care needs above and beyond what is normal for a child of her age.

Mid rate care: Either day or night needs with up to 20 minutes night waking (ish) and significant day needs.

High rate care: Significant needs during the day, PLUS either 1 night waking of 20+ minutes, or several night wakings, on at least 5 out of 7 nights each week (roughly).

Low rate mobility: needs guidance or assistance when in unfamiliar places outdoors.

High rate mobility: Either unable to walk, virtually unable to walk, or with severe LDs (with HR Care awarded) and severe behavioural problems.

I agree
However for me it is easier to write a 'story' then remove all the crappy bits & leave the facts

Who knows when it's all over & everything is back to normal I may be able to 'sell' the story in order to get a bit of perspective on the whole thing (by sell I don't mean receive money I mean publish)

And now it won't fit on the form

Damn

I have pages of this stuff

so if your child has mild aspergers, its not a condition relevant for any allowances is it?