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What is the Disabled Students’ Allowance?
DSAs help pay for extra costs you may have to pay when studying on your course, as a direct result of your disability or specific learning difficulty.
What do the DSAs cover?
You will get enough money from the DSAs to cover the cost of equipment or support you need because of your disability. DSAs are not paid as a set amount, and are split into sections to cover different kinds of costs. The amount of DSAs you receive will depend on your DSA assessment. However, there is a limit to the amount of help you can get from the DSAs. The rates shown below are the maximum you can get if you are a full time undergraduate (rates are different for part time undergraduates). They are meant to support people with a high level of need, so most people will get less than the maximum.
The rates of allowances for full-time undergraduate students for 2008/2009 are:
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Specialist equipment allowance (to help you buy any items of equipment you may need) – up to £5,000 for the whole of your course.
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Non-medical helper’s allowance (for any helpers, such as readers, sign-language interpreters, note-takers and other non-medical assistants you need to benefit fully from your course) – up to £20,000 a year.
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General Disabled Students’ Allowance (for other disability-related spending such as book allowances or Braille paper) – up to £1,680 a year.
For postgraduate (full-time and part-time) students, there is one allowance to meet all costs of up to £10,000 a year. You can use this for specialist equipment, non-medical personal helpers, extra travel costs or other course-related costs. The amount of DSA you receive will depend on the DSA assessment.
Am I eligible?
If you have been resident in the UK for the past 3 years and are eligible for support with funding for your course, you may be eligible. If you are a part time student your course must last for at least one year and must not take more than twice as long to complete as an equivalent full time course. Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) are available as part of the NHS Bursary Scheme, for which NHS bursary degree and diploma students may be eligible. You can get more information about the NHS Bursary Scheme, and the DSAs this offers, in the Department of Health’s guide ‘Financial Help for Health Care Students’. You can get copies by phoning the Department of Health Publications Orderline on 08701 555 455 or from their website at www.dh.gov.uk
DSAs are not means tested or age-dependent and you can apply even if you have elected not to take a student loan (although you must still apply to the Student Loans Company). Your Funding Body (Local Education Authority / NHS / Open University) will be able to advise you if you are eligible for the DSA.
How do I show that I am eligible?
If you have a physical disability, a mental-health difficulty or a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia, you may qualify for DSAs.
You will need to satisfy your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) that the effects of your condition will mean that you will need to pay extra costs in attending your course. If you are disabled, or have mental-health difficulties, you will need to provide medical proof of your disability, such as a letter from your doctor or specialist. If you have more than one medical condition, you should provide evidence for all of them.
If you have a specific learning difficulty, your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) will need evidence of this from a suitably qualified person (such as an educational psychologist or specialist teacher). If your assessment was carried out before you were 16, your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) may ask for an update to see what the likely effect of your specific learning difficulty will have on the skills you need for higher education.
Your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) may ask you to have an independent assessment to establish your disability and eligibility for DSAs. The university or college disability adviser may be able to help you arrange an updated, or new, assessment. Your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) cannot meet the costs of diagnosing your disability for establishing your eligibility for DSAs. Ask your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) what evidence of your disability they will need before you send in your application. If you need a test to establish your eligibility for DSAs, but cannot afford the fee, you can apply to your university or college for help in meeting the costs through the Access to Learning Fund. The university or college disability adviser may be able to help you with this.
2009/2010 applicants
If you are entering higher education for the first time in 2009/10 and are applying to your Funding Body for financial support, you will find that the application form asks if you have a disability. You can apply on paper using form PN1 (form PR1 if you are a continuing student) or on-line here
Your Funding Body will need evidence of your disability or specific learning difficulty. The process of getting DSA support will be made quicker and easier if you can send evidence of your disability with the PN1 or PR1 application form.
Once your Funding Body has confirmed your eligibility for DSAs, they will then ask you to have a DSA assessment carried out at an assessment centre such as contact Associates.
When do I apply?
Apply as soon as you can before your course starts in order to receive payments promptly. However, you can apply for DSAs at any stage of your course.
How will payments be made?
If your application is successful, your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) will tell you the amount of help you can have from the DSA. The Student Loans Company will make DSA payments either to you, into your bank account, or directly to the supplier of equipment or services.
Can I receive equipment before my course begins?
Possibly. Once your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) has established that you are eligible for DSAs, it can pay for items of special equipment recommended in your DSA assessment report shortly before the start of your course so that you may use them from the very beginning of your studies. However, your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU) will ask for evidence that you have been accepted on your course before they will consider doing so. If you do not go on the course, you must return any equipment you have received to your supplier.
What happens to the equipment when my course ends?
All equipment bought with DSAs is, and will stay, your property. You may decide to offer the equipment either to your university or college or your Funding Body (SLC/LEA/NHS/OU), for other students to use. Or you can keep the equipment if you are intending to go onto a further course of study (for example, an ‘end-on’ or postgraduate course).
Contact us if you have any more questions on 01823 352749
