Disability Living Allowance
Please note, this page is printable by selecting the normal print options on your computer.
The Disability Living Allowance is paid to carers of people under the age of 65 years who need care and supervision.
Within the criteria, children under the age of 16 years “must need substantially more attention or supervision than a child of the same age normally needs”.
Application for the allowance is made by completing the necessary application form available from the Disability Living Allowance Unit (DLA Unit) or the nearest Disability Benefit Centre. It is wise to contact the DLA Helpline direct on 03457 12456 (local rates) to get these forms, and if the application is successful the allowance will be paid from the date of the first contact.
The form is not particularly geared towards diabetes therefore it is suggested that a “care diary” (a record of everything that is done in relation to caring and monitoring your child’s diabetes over a 5-7 day period) is kept. This, along with any other supporting information from your paediatrician or diabetes specialist nurse, can be sent with the application.
Each application is assessed on the individual care needs. This means that the allowance will not automatically be awarded and therefore it is important to put down detailed answers of how much care and supervision your child needs. Remember to include other medical conditions on your reporting.
The Diabetes Specialist Nurse will be able to help and advise when completing the DLA forms.
The DLA will usually be awarded for a set period of time, i.e. one or two years or maybe up to a certain age. This time limit is set because it is assumed that in time your child will gradually learn to manage his / her own diabetes, thus reducing the level of care and supervision provided by the parent or carer. Six months before the end of the awarded period set, further forms will be sent out by the DLA.
There is a right of appeal. There is a three month period in which to launch a request for an appeal.