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Are You Off to University or Higher Education?

By Diana Perry, CEO.

When Joe was going off to University we were thinking of all the equipment we were going to have to buy for him, air-conditioning unit, humidifier, etc., as his room in the Halls of Residence would be very small and very hot.  We also had to liaise with the University Residence Department to ensure he was not going to be on the ground floor as this would not be safe and secure if he had his window open for the air-con unit.   We were advised about Disability Student Allowances (DSAs).  

We decided to apply for a grant to pay for the air-con unit and humidifier.  Joe & I then had to go to a local Assessment Centre for them to interview Joe to determine his needs.  The Interviewer took a complete history of how ED affects Joe and what affect it has on his academic life.  From this she determined that overheating causes lack of concentration and suggested Joe would need a digital voice recorder to record lectures and playback later in case his concentration waned during lectures.   He would also need his own laptop with assisted software programs to allow flexibility to move around environments that would be most suitable for him to allow him to continue working efficiently, together with a printer to allow him to photocopy from university library books as he may not be able to tolerate the temperatures in a library.  Plus, an air-con unit for his room and a humidifier.

Jack

The interview took a long time, nearly two hours, but was well worth it has he was granted the cost of all the equipment, together with general an allowance per annum for paper, printer ink, non-core books, etc.

“Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) is support to cover the study-related costs you have because of a mental health problem, long-term illness or any other disability.

This can be on its own or in addition to any student finance you get.

The type of support and how much you get depends on your individual needs – not your household income.”

What DSA can pay for

You can get help with the costs of:

  • specialist equipment, for example a computer if you need one because of your disability
  • non-medical helpers, for example a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter or specialist note taker
  • extra travel to attend your course or placement because of your disability
  • other disability-related study support, for example having to print additional copies of documents for proof-reading.

You can apply if you are doing an undergraduate or postgraduate course (including a distance-learning course) that is:

  • full-time and lasts at least one year
  • part-time, lasts at least one year and doesn’t take more than twice as long to complete as an equivalent full-time course.

Whichever route applies to you, apply as early as possible.  Don’t wait until you’ve been offered a place at university.  Make sure you send the form to the right address. Depending on your circumstances, this could be to Student Finance England, your local authority or the Open University (OU).

To find out more, and how to apply please visit – https://www.gov.uk/disabled-students-allowance-dsa

If you would like to talk more about this please call or email us info@edsociety.co.uk  or call: 01242 261332