dla dilemma

hibees1875_2

perhaps if half as many people claimed DLA then we might have an NHS that wasnt in debt and also be able to pay less taxes, which would mean we would have more of our own money to use to help our kids/families with their difficulties. to run a call centre with around 10 staff members costs 200,000 a year to run - minimum - if less staff were needed to process DLA and other benefits (including tax credits etc then imagine the money that could be saved! this would be extra money for support staff in schools to help children, to provide more community resources etc etc.... or am i being a bit idealistic?

katze

A couple of other points that haven't already been mentioned.

DLA is the key that unlocks many other benefits. If your son does want to lead an independent life, in his own home, working, he will probably need some help. He may wish to have a professional person help him with these things instead of his mother.

Having the DLA box 'ticked' will allow him access to Working Tax Credits for Disabled People. Depending on the type of job he is capable of performing and the maximum income available longterm from such a career, this may be an essential benefit to help him pay for what will, in essence be a more costly life of independence than his peers.

You also need to think about what would happen if you were not around. Although I am sure you have made sufficient arrangements for him should the worst happen to you and your husband, do you really want your son to have to go through the process himself?

Best of luck.

hibees1875_2

bambam, claim DLA, please do. try for it. if you get rejected then appeal. life is not a rehersal and you need to make the most of it for you and your son and whole family.
if dla will make life that little bit less complicated and bring a better quality of life to you and your son then it can help avoid a range of other complications and actually be cost effective in the long run.

god did you see the time of my previous post... i didnt sleep all night so i dont think i made sense. hopefully this post does.
good luck all... have we all opened todays window in the advent calender? and who got the choccy? hehe

specsappeal

hi all,
just wanted to say that my son (now 13) is dyxpraxic and has been getting DLA since he was 5. The DLA has enabled me to get him a laptop (finds it very hard to grip pens etc) and i use it to make his life easier. I bought him a playstation with it (suggested by therapists to help with hand eye co ordination). He has bad concentration and loses alot of stuff (cant remember where he puts things etc) so part of it goes on replacements. The money enables my boy to do everything a boy his age should do but just in a different way.

bambam_2

hibees1875 wrote:

perhaps if half as many people claimed DLA then we might have an NHS that wasnt in debt and also be able to pay less taxes, which would mean we would have more of our own money to use to help our kids/families with their difficulties. to run a call centre with around 10 staff members costs 200,000 a year to run - minimum - if less staff were needed to process DLA and other benefits (including tax credits etc then imagine the money that could be saved! this would be extra money for support staff in schools to help children, to provide more community resources etc etc.... or am i being a bit idealistic?

This is the sort of thing that I wonder about as well. If my son was getting the help he needs through the school I wouldn't even consider claiming because I wouldn't have all the outlays for personal therapist etc.

I see from some of the other threads on this board that DLA is getting harder to get so maybe the government feel the same. However I wouldn't hold my breath for them to redirect any savings into health or education.

mandy22

I was so glad to read this, I have claimed DLA since my son was 2 years old, he is now 7 years old and has just been diagnosed with Dyspraxia, I can stop feeling so guilty and carry on with his extra support and like you, keep him supplied with laptop, playstation and other necessary items that we just buy and don't think about! Maybe you would like to keep in touch and offer advice on Dyspraxia for me, there are no local support groups in my area!

space_rider

mandy22 wrote: »

I was so glad to read this, I have claimed DLA since my son was 2 years old, he is now 7 years old and has just been diagnosed with Dyspraxia, I can stop feeling so guilty and carry on with his extra support and like you, keep him supplied with laptop, playstation and other necessary items that we just buy and don't think about! Maybe you would like to keep in touch and offer advice on Dyspraxia for me, there are no local support groups in my area!

My daughter is 9 and she has a genetic syndrome. She doesn`t have normal thumbs and because of this she can`t grip a pencil properly and write for as long as other children. School have provided a lap top for her to use when her thumbs get tired. I can`t remember where exactly they got the funding from but I think it`s something to do with a disability grant. She will always have a lap top through to senior school. She did have a pc from the age of around 6. She also has a lap top at home and lots of other things that are good for her co ordination.

SuziQ

Bambam I had to be nagged for some time to reapply for DLA for my youngest with Autism (he was awarded DLA when younger before he was diagnosed but I didn't reapply when they reviewed him as I felt very much as you do.) I am so glad now that I did as it enables me to do things for him I wouldn't otherwise be able to do. I used the leaflet from cerebra to fill out the forms as I couldn't get an 'expert' to help me,and although I have completed the forms for other people it is so different doing it for your own child as you want to be so positive about everything! The guide from cerebra-who support brain damaged children and their families-seemed to fit the problems I had with my son so well and really helped me to word things
http://www.cerebra.org.uk/Resources/Cerebra/Parent%20Support/dla_guide_nov07.pdf


Have a read and see what you think.


ETS-Apologies to how 1,I completely missed your post detailing Cerebra already!

rachel6188

bambam,
how did the claim go??
i myself get dla high care and mobility but my circumstances are different...iv got problems from scarred tissue (had bowel obstructions and got t have a hystorectomy at some point in the future) im on morphine for the pain
my thoughts are my life has been turned upside down...its unfair but there is nothing i can do...no treatrment.
xx

jaynemaria

Its really interesting seeing this. My son is a bright intelligent 12 year old but has severe dyslexia, and have to help him with all homework and scribe his work for him too, but never have thought of applying for him until reading this.
He hasnt been statmented because his SENCO says they would laugh at her because he is so intelligent in other ways, so this may go against him.
It would be great to get some extra money for him to be able to have voice activated software in his computer etc to be able to do his work.
May just have to look into this