Well done to the DLA

cord123

After being pursuaded by the health visitor to claim DLA benefits for our son who is blind in one eye I would like to say how quick and efficient my experience with them has been.

I got the form just before Christmas but held off filling it in as the health visitor was coming round to help me. I sent it off on the 17th Jan and last week I received a backdated payment in my account and a letter the day after to say he had been awarded mid level and to now see if I can apply for other benefits.

I was always against applying for this as there are many more children that I feel are worse off than my son, but the health visitor explained that it opens up doors in other ways ie. help at school etc.

It was quick and pain free and will now allow me to send him to nursery another day a week which he really enjoys.

I know many people have problems with the forms etc but please apply if you are entitled. My husband and I both work hard and this allows my son to benefit slightly from the taxes that we pay.

xxx

Valley's_girl

Hi Cord that is great news.
Best wishes
ally x

rogerblack

He presumably has extremely restricted vision in the other eye.

For the benefit of others - you're not entitled to DLA on the basis of having no sight in one eye.
The DLA process for sight-related conditions can be very fast, if you already have the appropriate paperwork - BD8, for example, as it's a very simple rubberstamping exercise by the DWP.

Unfortunately, they often rubberstamp other decisions with their different stamp, but that's a different topic.

cord123

Yes he does, both eyes were damaged. Sorry, i should have stated this!

We didnt have that form but we did have a lots of letter etc and wrote his consultants contact details etc.

TBH because he copes so well with it I do feel almost guilty claiming it after seeing very seriously ill children in GOSH but it will allow him more time in nursery which will help him even more.

Tahnk you for your comment Valleys girl xxx

margaretclare

Don't feel guilty about it. No one should feel guilty about claiming a disability-related benefit, whether DLA or AA, which is there to enhance quality of life. Good luck to both of you and your son.

Gingerbiscuit_2

It is good to hear when it works well! Always good to start having money to spend on special equipment when he needs it , especially when he starts school and needs more and more gadgets and gismos to help.

rotoguys

margaretclare wrote: »

Don't feel guilty about it. No one should feel guilty about claiming a disability-related benefit, whether DLA or AA, which is there to enhance quality of life. Good luck to both of you and your son.

I agree with you though guilt is always in my mind. It is hard sometimes to imagine how some people cope who have very severe disabilities yet only receive the same level of support as I do.

Then I look at myself and think that how can I be in the same category yet be able to have some reasonable level of life whereas they have very little.

Something wrong there, not everybody is as disabled as everyone else, yet financially they are treated the same.

Does it make me feel a fraud? - sometimes yes it does especially when I see others who have no life choices.

margaretclare

rotoguys wrote: »

I agree with you though guilt is always in my mind. It is hard sometimes to imagine how some people cope who have very severe disabilities yet only receive the same level of support as I do.

Then I look at myself and think that how can I be in the same category yet be able to have some reasonable level of life whereas they have very little.

Something wrong there, not everybody is as disabled as everyone else, yet financially they are treated the same.

Does it make me feel a fraud? - sometimes yes it does especially when I see others who have no life choices.

'Others who have no life choices' - well, I am very glad that these payments are now available and that there is help out there. There may not be enough, it may never be perfect, but I am reminded of my aunt, who contracted polio aged 21 in the epidemic of 1926 and never walked again. There was no help for her of any kind whatsoever - no life choices at all. She would be the first to say to the mother of this boy 'yes, go ahead and claim it, you're entitled to it'.

rotoguys

margaretclare wrote: »

'Others who have no life choices' - well, I am very glad that these payments are now available and that there is help out there. There may not be enough, it may never be perfect, but I am reminded of my aunt, who contracted polio aged 21 in the epidemic of 1926 and never walked again. There was no help for her of any kind whatsoever - no life choices at all. She would be the first to say to the mother of this boy 'yes, go ahead and claim it, you're entitled to it'.

With regards to you aunt, yes I remember well how those struck down with polio had to endure life in an iron lung.
Of course in her case, she would today have received the financial help that she needed, but yet there are those that live amongst us that have such minor disabilities by comparison yet receive exactly the same level of help as she would have had.

What's the answer? More degrees of separation of different levels of disability - no that would never work as most would be screaming that their disability is the worst that it could be, with few admitting that they are not as disabled as they would 'like' to be.

No the answer is much harsher tests to enable the very worst of cases to be properly identified. The level of financial help to be increased considerabaly all out of the savings to be made by cancelling all but the few that would be entitled.

As an example the definition of being unable to walk has reached ridiculous heights. For someone like myself who can only walk 10 maybe 20 yards before enduring pain is by comparison to your aunt fit and healthy!
Would I give up all of my entitlement so that your aunt could have received more - of course I would willingly.

I don't decry that the OP and her family have problems, but when you put their problems to the same test as your aunt's there is no comparison.

Maybe your excellent example should be held up by Government to show that DLA is not fit for purpose and that 'testing' should be more rigorous than it is now or could be under PIP.

SuziQ

My experience of DLA has also been very positive, getting the award within 3 weeks and backdated money very quickly. Reading how difficult the process is for others on here makes me realise how fortunate we have been.