DLA refused at renewal

[bladeboy]

Hi all, just want a bit of advice.

 

We have been receiving DLA on behalf of my autistic son for some years now and we have just completed the renewal pack.

 

They acknowledege receipt of the pack and then told us that they couldn't give a decision because they had written to my son's school and requested a report fom them. He has a full statement of special educational needs there.

 

Anyway, they have written back and turned down the claim! Couldn't believe it; especially when they suggested that he didn't need any additional help at all!!! Very angry now.

 

Anyway, what is the best way forward with this now?

 

We completed the form (bit confusing) to the best of our ability but did not put any aditional information in with it.

 

Is it now departmental policy for the DWP to turn claims down?

[mazbck]

That seems to be the norm these days with DLA renewals, Ive just gone through the same with our son.

 

You can ask for a reconsideration but you are best going straight for an appeal.

 

Contact your nearest welfare Benefits office as they will help put your case together and get extra reports from doctors and specialists on your behalf.

 

Get your MP involved as well, some may not be any good, but you may be lucky enough to have an MP that actually does work for their money.

 

If you have the HRM and have a car, contact motobility themselves and tell them you are going for appeal, and they will let you have the car for 6 months after the initial refusal.

[bladeboy]

Thanks very much. We don't actually get motability 'facility' since when we first applied the mobility component was turned down and we just accepted it?!

 

What is really annoying is that they state the refusal to renew was based on their one of their conclusions that our son doesn't required help getting around places he does not know well!!!!

 

He can't even walk to school unsupervised because he'll wander off into a world of his own! He has to to be accompanied at all times.

 

Is it worth writing to them and asking if it's ok to submit additional information? We found the forms difficult to complete and awkward.

[Bookworm]

How old is your son?

What rate was he awarded 1st time round?

 

You can ask them to reconsider, but it's unlikely it will make a difference.

 

After that, it's appeal to tribunal, where the results are overwhelmingly favourable to people who appeal.

 

I'm actually headed to bed right now, but please answer the questions and I'll pick up tomorrow.

 

In the meantime, if you search for my thread about my autistic son and DLA on here, you will see that it can be done. ;-)

[mazbck]

If you go for a reconsideration they will accept additional information but to be honest it would be better to go for the appeal, as it is then looked at by an indepentant panel of professionals rather than someone employed by the DWP who drives a desk.

 

Get all the additional info possible and get help from Welfare benefits or CAB, who will then submit that info to the tribunal service on your behalf.

 

We had our appeal 3 weeks ago and they reached a decision within 5 minutes of the meeting finishing.

[bladeboy]

Thanks guys, our son is 11 years old. We were initially awarded the 'middle rate' for care and awarded nothing for the mobility aspect.

 

Since his diagnosis, via the local child development centre, we have not bothered the GP with our son since we know what his problems are and that there's nothing the GP can do other than prescribe medication to help him sleep.

 

At this stage I have compiled a letter stating our intention to request formal reconsideration. In the letter I have requested full disclosure of 'written reasons for refusal' and any other relevant notes.

 

Is this approach wise or not?

 

Many thanks guys for all the help and support so far.

[Bookworm]

I doubt that they will give you the full reasons on request, I only got to see the evidence they had relied on when it went to tribunal, as they had to include it in their bundle to show what they based themselves on to decline it.

 

I can safely say that I believe that what swung it for me at tribunal was that I had filmed evidence showing my son in full meltdown in the moddle of the town centre. to this day, it remains one of the most distressing things I ever had to do, standing there filming whilst he was obviously distraught and then letting my husband lift him up and carry hm to the car etc... But it sent a very powerful message of "THAT's what autism looks like", more than a gazillion words had. I would recommend anyone with a "hidden" disability do the same, the impact is shocking. Even the DWP they sent was silent after that.

 

The other thing which was invaluable was the diary I kept. At one of the hearings, they felt there wasn't enough "official" evidence (like you, I feel what's the point of going to see the GPonce a year? what is he going to say? "Yep, still autistic. Next!" so they adjourned to get more evidence from school etc... and in the meantime asked me to keep a diary of T's days. SO I did, recording every instance of refusal to get up, of the times I had to go and pick him up from school, of incidents in town, of the time he nearly broke the window in my car by kicking it, etc... Because it was interwoven with my thoughts and comments on our daily lives, it gave them a window to see what it was like, really, for us.

 

Thirdly, I made sure I gave them all the relevant case law so as to refute in advance any reason to say no. If you can show precedent, it shoots down a lot of the arguments, as it gives them somethign to go on. I know for a fact because the chairman told me so, that the file I submitted blew them away.

 

Fourth, I got lots of testimonies from friends, relatives, TAs, Youth club leader etc... Since I had little medical evidence, I needed anecdotal evidence from people who knew what it was like to look after T, how his autism affects his daily functioning etc... This is after all a lot more relevant than a report that says "yep, he's autistic".

 

Preparation is everything. You look at their case and you make yours airtight. If the school report is vague, you cast doubts on it. In my case, the medical evidence the DWP had relied on was his school report from 5 yrs previous, and a phone call to someone at his current school (but they couldn't say who) who had confirmed T could walk and run! From that, the DWP's Dr concluded that my son was in line with his learning with other kids his age and had no mobility issues, so BAM. Declined.

 

Caveat: We were getting HRC for him and LRM. When it came to renewal, I fought to get him HRM as well as HRC, so my circumstances are a little different from yours. But bear in mind my son is highly functioning, very intelligent, yet he is now recieving high rates on both until he turns 16. (he's 13 now). So I know it can be done.

 

Ok, after this very long preamble, you might have gathered that you have a long haul ahead of you. Unfortuantely, that's the way it goes.

 

I want you to go to the NAS website and read up their very, very good helpsheets on DLA and high mobility, it will be invaluable.

The National Autistic Society - DLA: high rate mobility for children with an autism spectrum disorder

 

You might even want to print them for reference.

 

Get yourself a big old folder, and start compiling. Make sure you index things as you go along or you'll end up with a lot of paperwork and no way to retrieve things easily.

 

I downloaded a free diary software thing, and I wrote in it every day, recording the mundanity of our daily grind, even the little incidents that set him apart from other kids.

 

That should get you started, if yu need any other help, just say and I'll help any way I can.

[bladeboy]

Thnak you so, so much.

 

Have fired a letter off to the DLA agency today informing them that we'll be contesting their decision.

 

Will start compiling and keeping a diary.

 

Thanks again.

[bladeboy]

Sorry, forgot, can you provide a 'link' to the caselaw that you mention? Or tell me where we can find the material.

 

Many thanks again.

[Bookworm]

Oooh, I'll have to get back to you on that one. I have it all compiled in my paper file, so I'll have to dig around.

[ErikaPNP]

Here is a link to some case law on DLA to get you started whilst Bookie digs about for more.

 

You can also search here for more DLA case law; these link directly to the commisioners decisions and are downloadable in word format. (enter your search preferences to get specifics).

 

It's not all bad. You could be in it for the long haul, or maybe not. I appealed my child's claim. Within one week DLA revised the decision in her favour, and I didn't need to go to tribunal. My jaw almost hit the floor I was so shocked!

[Brown-Clegg-Cameron2010]

Here is a link to some case law on DLA to get you started whilst Bookie digs about for more.

 

You can also search here for more DLA case law; these link directly to the commisioners decisions and are downloadable in word format. (enter your search preferences to get specifics).

 

It's not all bad. You could be in it for the long haul, or maybe not. I appealed my child's claim. Within one week DLA revised the decision in her favour, and I didn't need to go to tribunal. My jaw almost hit the floor I was so shocked!

 

Good for you erica,

What i have read when you post replys to peoples comments you seem to know alot of how to word it, i think this is the awnser to the Q.

It's the way you word something.

[nomad58]

I have been assisting a mother of 2 children aged 11 & 15 both who suffer from ADHD & ODD. The15 yr old was awarded middle rate care at a tribunal in 2007 at its firstrenewal the award continued and expired on the 14th March this year.On completing the renewal application the decision maker decided the child no longer qualified for DLA. I sought a review of that decision informing the DWP that we were in the process of obtaining supporting evidence which might take us beyond the 28 day period but this would be forwarded as soon as we had it, I further requested a written statement of reasons along with any third party evidence they had used in making there decision to withdraw the award. In the written statement of reason they stated that the child did not need help with his bodilyfunctions and there was no evidence of behavioural or learning difficulties this statement was ludicrous to say the least especially as at the 2007 tribunal the DWP had obtained a medical report from the child’s consultant which clearly showed his prognosis both short term and long term. The evidence that the DWP relied on for withdrawal of the award was a school report that they had obtained. This is a standard form that the DWP send to the school and can be very misleading to the report writer on researching precedent case law I found two important rulings that had been given

 

BodilyFunctions:

 

CSDLA/133/2005(Whether Functions, Of The Brain Are Bodily Functions)

In this particular case the following was stated and found: Paragraph (26) of this Judgement states the following: As was common ground before us, we consider that prompting, and motivating are capable of constituting attention in connection with an impaired Bodily function

 

SchoolReports: CDLA/3779/2004 states that a child with a disability may not need supervision over and above that which is normally given to all other children while attending school but may need supervision beyond that needed by other children when outside the school environment in order to avoid substantial danger to themselves or others. Evidence from a school should therefore be considered along with all the other evidence concerning a child’s care needs in deciding whether the claimant can safely be left unsupervised and whether the child requires substantially more care from another person than children of their age would normally require.

 

We then sought a more accurate school report from the school and supporting evidencefrom the GP both which were freely given and clearly show that this child needs more help and supervision than a normal child of his age. The bad news is the review took place before we could submit this evidence and the original decision to withdraw the award was up held we have now sought a reconsideration including all the evidence we have obtained. I have also made an application for the 11yr old child and again they have attempted to use the same 2 reasons given in the case of the 15yr old child along with a school report only this time on seeking a review they have come unstuck because we have made them aware of the precedent case law and they have now requested a medical report from the child’s consultant before giving their decision on review.

 

I would advise any parent who has a child with ADHD or ODD and may have had an award with drawn or refused to either reapply or seek a written statement of reasons along with any third party evidence on which they rely because I have no doubt many claims are been refused because of a school report and please spread the word on this case in order that we can stop this unlawful approach to denying benefit by the DWP decision makers