- A child with a disability is a child with a special ability -

Disability Benefits

This is a general guide always check with the appropriate agency for up-to-date information

If you want advice about benefits, or advice and help with appeals contact your social worker, or local County Council's Social Care Department. The Social Care Department is independent of the DWP. You can also get advice and help from disabled organisations.

If you need help filling in the claim forms you can get help from your local social security office, Citizen advice bureau or your local Dial Office

Attendance allowance

Attendance allowance can be paid to a person with a disability who: -
Is aged 65 or over; and is not permanently in hospital or living in accommodation provided by or funded by a local authority; and
Has lived in the UK for 6 out of the last 12 months, actually lives in the UK when s/he claims and normally lives in the UK, unless s/he is terminally ill; and has care needs
Care needs

A person will have care needs if s/he needs help with ‘bodily functions’, for example, washing, dressing and going to the toilet. It can also include help which enables someone to take part in social activities; and/or
Needs supervision to stop her/himself being a danger to her/himself or others; and/or is terminally ill.

It does not matter if no one is providing the person with care, but s/he must show that s/he needs the care.
If you are not sure whether your care needs meet the entitlement conditions, you should consult an experienced adviser.

How much will the claimant get

Attendance allowance is paid at two rates the lower rate is paid to somebody who needs frequent care throughout the day or night. From 7 April 2003, the lower rate is £38.30 the higher rate is paid to someone who needs frequent care throughout the day and the night, or who is terminally ill. From 7 April 2003, the higher rate is £57.70

Attendance allowance will be paid as long as the person has care needs and may be awarded for a fixed or indefinite period.

It cannot be paid until the person has had care needs for six months. This time limit does not apply if the person is terminally ill. Attendance allowance will stop after four weeks in hospital.

How to claim attendance allowance

A person can claim attendance allowance by telephoning the Benefits Enquiry Line (BEL) and obtaining a claim pack by completing leaflet DS704, available from post offices and social security offices.

Some organisations are also authorised to hold packs, for example, Citizens’ Advice Bureaux. Or you can obtain a claim pack from the Web Site www.dwp.gov.uk.

Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit

Child Tax Credit is a means-tested allowance that is paid to parents and carers of children or some young people who are still in education. If you or your family have gross income of less than £50,000 a year and meet the other qualifying conditions, you will be eligible for some award.

In some circumstances, people with income over £50,000 may also be entitled to some award.

Working Tax Credit is a means-tested allowance for people who is in paid employment and who meet certain other conditions, based on income and circumstances?

If you are a member of a couple you will need to make a joint claim with your partner. If you and your partner have income below a certain level and meet certain other conditions, you may be entitled to Child Tax Credit and/or Working Tax Credit.

The amount you receive depends on how much money you have coming into your household each year.
If you have any savings, they will not affect your claim. However, if you receive interest from your savings this will be counted as income and may affect the amount you receive.
Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit are paid by the government but are processed by the Inland Revenue.

Who can get Child Tax Credit

Child Tax Credit can be paid if you or your partner are aged 16 or over; and
Are responsible for at least one child. This means a child aged under 16 or a qualifying young person up to the age of 19 who is in full-time education, or aged under 18 and finished full time education in the last 20 weeks and who has registered with the Careers service; and have gross income below £50,000 a year
Who can get Working Tax Credit

Working Tax Credit will be paid if you or your partner are aged 16 or over, working 16 hours or more a week and are responsible for a child or qualifying young person If you are a woman on maternity leave and would normally work 16 hours or more a week.

You can still claim Working Tax Credit or are aged 16 or over, working 16 hours or more a week and have a disability for which your are receiving a qualifying benefit; or are aged 50 or over, working 16 hours or more a week and have started work up to three months before you make a claim and, for the six months before starting that work have been receiving one of certain benefits; or are aged 25 or over and working 30 hours or more a week.

How much Child Tax Credit will you get

There is a maximum amount of Child Tax Credit you can get. The amount is made up of different elements which are a family element – which is paid to any family with responsibility for one or more children child element which is paid for each child or qualifying young person in the family.

Family element

If you are entitled to Child Tax Credit you will get the family element. There is an extra amount payable to families with a child under the age of one.

Child element

The rate of child element for each child depends on the circumstances of each child in the family. There are extra amounts for children who are disabled.
If your child is registered blind or entitled to disability living allowance, you will be eligible for the disabled child element. If your child is severely disabled and entitled to the highest rate care component of disability living allowance, you will be eligible for the severely disabled child entitlement.

Child Tax Credit is taken into account for housing benefit and council tax benefit and may reduce those benefits. If you are thinking about applying for Child Tax Credit and think it may affect your existing benefits, you should consult an experienced adviser, for example, at a Citizens Advice Bureau.

How much Working Tax Credit will you get

The maximum Working Tax Credit you can get is worked out by adding together various elements depending on your circumstances. The elements are a basic element. Paid to anyone entitled to Working Tax Credit
A second adult element a lone parent element a 30-hour element if you work 30 hours or more per week.

If you are part of a couple and have children, you can add your hours together to qualify for the 30 hour element provided one of you works at least 16 hours per week. Only one 30 hour element can be paid per couple even if you both work 30 hours a week or more disability element if you are disabled, receiving certain benefits and work at least 16 hours a week.

If you have a partner who is also disabled, you may qualify for two disability elements if you both work 16 hours or more a week a severe disability element. Couples may qualify for two severe disability elements if one of you works 16 hours or more a week and you are in receipt of certain benefits
A 50 plus element.

Disability living allowance

Disability living allowance can be paid to a person with a disability who: -
Claims before s/he is 65 and her/his care or mobility needs began before s/he was 65; and is not permanently in hospital or living in accommodation provided by or funded by a local authority; and has lived in the UK for six out of the last 12 months and actually lives in the UK when s/he claims and normally lives in the UK, unless s/he is terminally ill; and has care needs - see below; and/or has mobility needs

Disability living allowance can be paid for children under 16.

However, there are additional conditions concerning a child's care and mobility needs. A minimum age applies to help with mobility needs. You should consult an experienced adviser,

Care needs

A person will have cared needs if s/he: needs help with ‘bodily functions’, for example, eating, washing, dressing and going to the toilet. It can also include help which enables someone to take part in social activities; and/or needs supervision to stop being a danger to her/himself or others; and/or needs help in preparing and cooking a main meal, for example, s/he cannot cope with heavy pans or cannot light a cooker; and/or
Is terminally ill.

It does not matter if no one is providing the person with care, but s/he must show that s/he needs the care. If you are not sure whether your care needs meet the entitlement conditions, you should consult an experienced adviser.

A person will have mobility needs if s/he-cannot walk outdoors or go on an unfamiliar route without guidance or supervision from another person most of the time, for example, s/he is blind; or is unable to walk or has difficulty in walking.

This may mean using a wheelchair, walking very slowly, walking with a lot of pain or effort or being unable to walk very far; or has had both legs amputated or was born without legs or feet; or is blind and deaf and needs someone to help her/him out of doors; or/has severe learning difficulties and can behave very disruptively.

It does not matter if no one is providing the claimant with the guidance or supervision s/he needs.

How much will the claimant get

There are two components of disability living allowance. The care component is for care needs and the mobility component is for mobility needs. The claimant can receive one or both components.

The care component is paid at three rates the lower rate is paid for somebody who needs help with cooking a main meal or who needs care for a significant part of the day the middle rate is paid to someone who needs frequent care throughout the day or during the night.

The higher rate is paid to someone who needs frequent care throughout the day and during the night, or who is terminally ill. The mobility component is paid at two rates: - the lower rate is paid to someone who cannot walk outdoors without guidance or supervision the higher rate is paid to anyone else
Disability living allowance will be paid as long as the person has care/mobility needs and may be awarded for an indefinite period or a fixed period. It cannot be paid until the person has had care/mobility needs for three months and the needs must be expected to last for at least six months.

The time limits do not apply if the person is terminally ill and claims the care component. Disability living allowance is affected by going into hospital. Disability living allowance will usually stop after four weeks in hospital (twelve weeks if the person is under 16.

How to claim disability living allowance

A person can claim disability living allowance by: telephoning the Benefits Enquiry Line (BEL) obtaining a claim pack by completing leaflet DS704, available from post offices and social security offices. Some organisations are also authorised to hold claim packs, for example, Citizens’ Advice Bureaux. Downloading the form from the website www.dwp.gov.uk.

The claimant will need a health professional to complete part of the form. The claimant must provide her/his national insurance (NI) number or information, which will enable it to be identified. If s/he does not have a NI number, s/he should apply for one.
.
After the DWP receive the form, the claimant may have to have a medical examination. The claim form for disability living allowance is lengthy and you can get help with filling it in. You can use the forms completion service provided via the Benefits Enquiry Line

Direct payments

The alternative way to provide services and support If you would like to have more control over how your child’s services are provided, you could consider using direct payments.

You can receive money to buy services from an organization or employ a
Person instead of Social Services arranging the services for you.

For example you could employ a carer to provide short breaks or respite care for
Your child or you could use direct payments to purchase a nursery placement.

Could this be for you?

Who are Direct Payments paid to?

Parents of disabled children (aged 0-17 years other adults who have a parental responsibility for a disabled child, for example, grandparents
.
What can direct payments be used for?

Services, which offer your child stimulation, new experiences and independence. Short breaks / respite care Day care placement Assistance to attend an activity e.g. Youth club. Personal care

How do you get Direct Payments?

Contact your local Social Services to ask for an assessment.

The needs of your child and family will be assessed. Based on that assessment Social Services will decide if you meet their criteria for support services.

If you do, you will be offered support services or instead, be offered
Direct Payments to arrange and purchase your own services or a mixture
Of both.

What you need to consider

If you choose to employ a person to provide your child with support and
Help you will need to know the following

The person cannot be a close relative. You will need to satisfy Social Services that the person you wish to employ is suitable.
With the help of Social Services a number of checks, including a police check should be carried out to ensure the Safety of your child.

If you think your child’s needs can best be met by using direct payments to
Buy a place in a local service, such as a nursery or private residential unit, you Will need to satisfy Social Services that your child is being offered a service Which meets his/her needs and is safe.

Services, which are run by local authorities, are not covered by direct payments
So, while you can choose a direct payment to replace them you cannot
Buy more of them. Direct payments are an alternative way of receiving services you are assessed for. They do not count as income so they do not affect tax and benefits.

What help is available to you if you choose direct payments.

Help is available in an accompanying Information Pack.
The pack will help you through all the stages of employing a person to provide services for your child or will assist you in choosing a service most able to meet your child’s needs.

You can obtain an information pack

Help is also available from your local Social Services or through a specialist
Disability team, which carries out social work assessments on behalf of
Your local Social Services.

Income support

Income support is an income-related (means-tested) benefit paid to certain groups of people who do not have enough money to live on. This means that any money the claimant already has is taken into account in deciding how much income support s/he should get.

The money the claimant has coming in is known as her/his ‘income’. The claimant’s income is subtracted from a standard fixed income level, known as the ‘applicable amount’, and the difference between the two is the amount of income support payable. The applicable amount will vary for each person according to his or her circumstances. The capital that a person has is also taken into account.

Income support is a non-contributory benefit. This means that a person does not have to have paid any national insurance contributions in order to qualify for income support. The rates of income support are fixed each year by government and are usually increased every April.

Income support acts as a ‘passport’ to certain other help. A claimant and her/his dependants will automatically qualify for the following free school meals free prescriptions free dental care vouchers for spectacles
Free milk and vitamins for expectant mothers and children under 5, free vitamins for nursing mother’s maximum housing benefit maximum council tax benefit.
Who can claim
In order to claim income support a claimant must fit into the basic rules listed below. The basic rules for claiming are that the claimant must •be 18 or over and under 60; and be living in the UK during the claim; and not be working 16 hours a week or more (her/his partner must not be working 24 hours a week or more) or be claiming either type of jobseeker’s allowance (JSA) (her/his partner must not be claiming income-based jobseeker’s allowance
Have income and capital below a certain amount is a person who does not have to be ‘available for work’

A lone parent who makes a new claim for income support will be visited and asked to complete a maintenance form for child support unable to work because s/he is caring for a seriously disabled or ill person unable to work because of ill health or disability

Family premium

A claimant is entitled to the family premium if her/his family includes a child under 16, or a young person fewer than 19 and in full-time education. Some people may still be getting the higher rate of family premium for lone parents, but for new claimants the rate is the same whether or not they are in a couple

Entitlement to the family premium is not affected by any other premiums.
If you are a claimant who was a lone parent entitled to income-based jobseeker’s allowance or income support on 5 April 1998, and who is still a lone parent, you may be entitled to the higher rate of family premium under transitional protection.
You should consult an experienced adviser, for example, a Citizens Advice Bureau.

Disabled child premium

A claimant is entitled to a disabled child premium for each child who is in her/his family who is blind or who receives disability living allowance
Entitlement to the disabled child premium is not affected by any other premiums.
Disability premium

A claimant is entitled to the disability premium if s/he or her/his partner is under 60 and disabled. The disability condition will be met if a person is registered blind or receiving benefits for sickness or disability, or the disability element of Working Tax Credit.

The disability premium cannot be paid at the same time as any of the pensioner premiums. A person with a partner aged 60 or over will get one of these instead. There is one rate for a single person and a higher rate for couples
Carer’s premium

A claimant is entitled to the carer’s premium if s/he or her/his partner is entitled to carer's allowance. This applies even if s/he is entitled to carer's allowance but is receiving another benefit instead.

Entitlement continues until eight weeks after entitlement to carer's allowance stops or until eight weeks after the death of the person being cared for. If both members of a couple are entitled to carer's allowance, the claimant is entitled to two carer’s premiums.

Incapacity benefit

Incapacity benefit is paid to a person who: is aged below 60 for a woman, 65 for a man; and is incapable of work because of sickness or disability; and is not entitled to SSP - see above; and has paid sufficient national insurance contributions. However, a person whose incapacity for work began before the age of 20 (in some cases 25) may not have to meet the contribution conditions.
.
The contribution conditions for incapacity benefit are complicated. For some people the conditions are relaxed, and for other people they do not have to be met. If you are not sure whether you meet the conditions of entitlement for incapacity benefit you should consult an experienced adviser, for example.

There are three types of incapacity benefit: lower rate short-term, higher rate short-term and long-term incapacity benefit. Lower rate short-term incapacity benefit is paid for the first 196 days of sickness and an adult dependant addition can be paid.

Higher rate short-term incapacity benefit is paid from the 197th day of sickness to the 364th day. An adult dependant addition can be paid.
Long-term incapacity benefit is paid from the 365th day of sickness. Additions can be paid for an adult, children and age.

For the first 196 days the person will usually have to show s/he is incapable of work by sending in medical certificates. After 196 days the person will usually have to pass the personal capability assessment to show s/he is incapable of work (see below if a person is told s/he is capable of work

Most people will have to have a medical examination to decide if they pass the personal capability assessment. Some people with particular conditions or severe disabilities do not have to pass the personal capability assessment. The assessment looks at the person’s ability to perform a range of specified activities. If you have problems with the personal capability assessment, you should consult an experienced adviser,

How to claim incapacity benefit

A person who is not in paid work should claim incapacity benefit by sending form SC1 to the local social security office. This form is known as a self-certificate and is available from local social security offices, doctors’ surgeries and hospitals.

After the first week of incapacity for work, a doctor’s certificate should usually be sent. A person, who is in paid work, and whose employer notifies her/him that s/he is not entitled to statutory sick pay, should use form SSP1 that her/his employer should give her/him.

The claimant and any adult dependant included in the claim must provide her/his national insurance (NI) number or information, which will enable the number to be identified. If s/he does not have a NI number, s/he should apply for one.

In some areas, a claimant may also have to attend an interview.
If a person is not sure whether s/he meets the contribution conditions (see above) or s/he is on a low income, it is advisable to claim income support at the same time as incapacity benefit. S/he may be able to get income support instead of, or as well as, incapacity benefit.

A person is told s/he is capable of work

A person who applies for or who is receiving incapacity benefit may be told s/he is capable of work and her/his benefit may be refused or stopped. S/he can ask for the decision to be reconsidered or make an appeal.

The person should ask for the decision to be reconsidered or make an appeal within one month of the decision in order to receive the maximum backdated benefit. While s/he is waiting for the decision to be reconsidered or the appeal to be heard, s/he may be able to claim income support.

This page is just a general guide always check with the appropriate agency for up-to-date information

go to top

© copyright 2001- 2003 all rights reserved

to bookmark this site 'right click' on the link below http://www.special-abilities.net then choose 'add to favorites'
	Donate food by clicking here
Our web hosts are