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Useful resource for Asperger’s children & DLA
Not sure if this has featured before but I’ve just come across the following which is quite good and worth a look:
Thanks for this, I’ve passed it out around the office in the hope it’ll encourage my colleagues to complete forms themselves rather than giving me another referral/headache.
“Remember to think about the worst day you’ve spent with your child.”
Plenty of useful pointers but does seem to recommend putting down the “worst day” as if it is every day which is, at the very least, misleading
The ‘worst day’ myth seems unstoppable.
I deliver a small amout of DLA training locally and one of my slides (press cutting) is about a case that went to court (fraud charge) where the adviser allegedly told the claimant to base his responses on his ‘worst day’. The adviser was also called to give evidence about completing the form. It’s surprising how many mouths drop open once the worst day myth has been been put into context like that, together with the prospect of one’s client having to repay the money.
Advisers caught giving that advice should be sent to the gulag for ‘re-education’. One of the worst practices I’ve seen is advisers (a tiny minority of course) getting the punter to sign a blank DLA form and then the adviser completing it after the punter has gone home. I’ve done several tribunals where this has happened. On one occasion I managed to get the information on the claim form (it was a complete work of fiction) completely disregarded by the chair, much to the chagrin of a rather aggressive disability member who wanted to ask questions about what was said in it.
On the whole though, I do a lot of kids’ claims and appeals for aspergers and autism and the fact sheet is very good for those advisers/community workers without much experience in these areas.
[ Edited: 29 Mar 2012 at 04:59 pm by nevip ]Advisers caught giving that advice should be sent to the gulag for ‘re-education’. One of the worst practices I’ve seen is advisers (a tiny minority of course) getting the punter to sign a blank DLA form and then the adviser completing it after the punter has gone home. I’ve done several tribunals where this has happened. On one occasion I managed to get the information on the claim form (it was a complete work of fiction) completely disregarded by the chair, much to the chagrin of a rather aggressive disability member who wanted to ask questions about what was said in it.
On the whole though, I do a lot of kids’ claims and appeals for aspergers and autism and the fact sheet is very good for those advisers/community workers without much experience in these areas.
Some advisers even say “Welfare Rights told us to fill in the form as if every day is like the worst day.” Needless to say we don’t. It’s bad enough going to a tribunal with a client who has told a consistent story throughout then totally changes it at the hearing because they didn’t want to embarrass themselves in front of those “important people”.
One of the Aberdeen judges always asks appellants who filled in the form, were you present when the form was filled in, and did you have the opportunity to read the completed form?
Val
Hi Jane, I will extract it & email today!
On its way Dan
Stevegale Could you send me a copy of the press cutting or internet link for where to find it please.
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