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Money matters - benefits and allowances

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Caring for a child or young person with a special educational need or disability can involve extra or unexpected costs. There are various sources of financial support available to help with these costs, details of which can be found in the sections below.

For general information,visit the government's Help if you have a disabled child website.

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Benefits

You may be able to receive help with your living and housing costs through Welfare benefits if you are disabled, have a long–term illness, have caring responsibilities or are frail because of your age.

Your entitlement to benefits depends on you meeting the rules and guidelines for each of the benefits you claim. Most low income benefits such as income support are means tested, in other words, the amount of income support you receive will depend on any other income or savings you may have.

Your entitlement to some disability benefits such as Attendance Allowance and Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payments depends on your care requirements and are not means tested.

The Department for Work and Pensions will be able to tell you if you are entitled to individual benefits. For more information visit the Carers and disability benefits government website.

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for children

If your child or young person has a special need or a disability then they may be entitled to Disability Living Allowance (DLA). This is a tax-free benefit which can help with the extra costs of looking after a child who:

  • is under 16
  • has difficulties walking or needs more looking after than a child of the same age who doesn’t have a disability

The DLA rate depends on the level of help your child/young person needs. They may need an assessment to work out whether they are entitled to DLA and how much they will receive.

More detailed information, as well as the DLA claim form, can be found on the Government’s DLA webpages.

As parents/carers, you might also qualify for Carer’s Allowance if you spend at least 35 hours a week caring for a child who gets the middle or highest care rate of DLA (for more information please see our ‘Carer’s Allowance’ section).

DLA can only be claimed for children/young people under the age of 16 years; those over the age of 16 must apply for a Personal Independence Payment (PIP) instead (please see our section on ‘Personal Independence Payment’).

Personal Independence Payment

Young people who have received the Disability Living Allowance (DLA), and who turned 16 years of age on or after 7th October 2013, will be able to claim a Personal Independence Payment (PIP), which is the new financial benefit that is replacing the DLA for individuals aged 16 to 64 years.

Parents should be sent a letter before their young person turns 16 years of age. This letter will explain what will happen to the young person’s DLA, as well as how and when they will be able to claim the PIP.

An online PIP checker is also available, to find out what will happen to the DLA once a young person turns 16.

Please note: a young person’s DLA will end if they decide not to apply for PIP. An application still needs to be made even if the young person has been granted an indefinite or lifetime DLA Award. The DLA will continue to be awarded for at least 28 days after a decision has been made about the PIP claim.

Children and young people who have been awarded DLA under the rules for people who are terminally ill usually will not be affected by PIP.

Carer's allowance

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Child Tax Credits

You might be entitled to additional tax credits if you care for a child/young person who is disabled. Information on tax credits can be found on the Government’s Tax Credits web pages.

Where do I go for benefits advice in Camden?

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Disabled Student's Allowance

Students living in England who are accessing higher education can apply for a Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) if they have a:-

  • Disability
  • Long-term health condition
  • Mental health condition
  • Specific learning difficulty, such as dyslexia.

The amount of support received through the DSA depends on individual needs rather than on income. The DSA is paid in addition to other sources of student finance, and does not have to be repaid.

The DSA can help with numerous costs, such as:-

  • Specialist equipment (e.g. computer software)
  • Non-medical support, such as a note-taker or a reader
  • Additional travel costs incurred due to a disability
  • Other costs related to a disability, such as photocopying.

Further details of the DSA can be found on the Government’s DSA webpages.

Disabled Facilities Grant

If you have a disabled child/young person then you may be entitled to a grant to help to pay for changes to your home. These changes could include:-

  • Widening doors and installing ramps
  • Improving access to rooms and facilities – for examples stair lifts or a downstairs bathroom
  • Providing a heating system suitable for their needs
  • Adapting heating or lighting controls to make them easier to use.

A Disabled Facilities Grant will not affect any other benefits which you receive.

Further details, including the application process, can be found on the Government’s Disabled Facilities Grant webpages.

General money advice

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