Disabled Students’ Allowances – How Much You Can Get
How much you get depends on your individual needs
The amount of help available through Disabled Students’ Allowances is based on an assessment of your individual needs – up to a maximum allowance. The different allowances have different limits. This page offers a guide to how much you can get if you are a student from England.
Working out Disabled Students’ Allowances
Disabled Students’ Allowances are aimed at helping people with a disability, mental health condition or specific learning difficulty to study on the same basis as other students. So how much you get depends on your individual needs – up to a maximum allowance.
When you apply, you will be asked to go for a needs assessment to establish exactly what support you require. This will be carried out by a person with specialist experience at an independent assessment centre, or at a centre within your college or university. The cost of the needs assessment may be met through your Disabled Students’ Allowances.
If you’re a part-time student, the amount you can get is also affected by the ‘intensity’ of your course – how much time you spend studying compared to a full-time student.
Household income is not taken into account when working out entitlement to Disabled Students’ Allowances. They’re paid on top of any help you get through the standard student finance package, and you don’t have to pay them back.
Allowances for full-time and part-time higher education students
The tables below show the maximum allowances for full-time and part-time higher education students (including Open University students and other distance learners).
Maximum allowances are meant to support the highest levels of need, so most people will get less.
On top of the allowances listed in this table, you can claim for ‘reasonable spending’ on extra travel costs for the academic year.
Maximums for full-time and part-time higher education students: 2009/2010
| Type of allowance | Full-time students | Part-time students |
|---|---|---|
| Specialist equipment | £5,161 for entire course | £5,161 for entire course |
| Non-medical helper | £20,520 a year | £15,390 a year (depends on intensity of course) |
| General Disabled Students’ Allowances | £1,724 a year | £1,293 a year (depends on intensity of course) |
Allowances for postgraduate students
Postgraduate students (including Open University students and other distance learners) can apply for a single allowance to cover all costs.
The maximum allowance for 2009/2010 is £10,260.
How they are paid
The money will either be paid into your bank account or directly to the supplier of the services - for example your university, college or equipment supplier.
Effect on other financial help
Disabled Students’ Allowances are not counted as income when working out your entitlement to benefits or tax credits.
If your circumstances change
If your disability becomes more severe during your course, you can apply to have another needs assessment. Contact the organisation which handled your application to arrange this.
You’ll still be entitled to Disabled Students’ Allowances if you transfer to another course. But if you need different equipment and you’ve already used up your equipment allowance, you will not be able to get any more through Disabled Students’ Allowances.
Applying for 2008/2009
This page contains information about the 2009/2010 academic year.
If you are applying for 2008/2009, you can find out about DSA rates in ‘Bridging the Gap: a guide to Disabled Students’ Allowances in higher education’. You can download a copy of this from the ‘Student finance forms and guides 2008/2009′ page.
Source: DirectGov
