Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
This is a direct payment benefit to help people with disabilities. It is a non-means tested benefit, it is tax free and does not affect any other benefits you may be receiving. You are eligible if you are studying, working or unemployed. A disability leads to extra costs and this is the reason for this form of benefit, which is intended to help you pay for extra help and equipment. However, you are not legally bound to spend the benefit for that purpose.
To claim DLA you must be 'so severely disabled, either mentally or physically, that you require another person's frequent attention throughout the day in connection with your bodily functions'. Hearing, or lack of it, is a bodily function and therefore all deaf people and profoundly and severely deafened people can potentially claim this benefit.
There are two components to DLA, the care component (attention and supervision) and the mobility component(guidance and supervision). The care component is payable at three different rates and experience has shown that the lower rate of benefit (currently £17.10 a week) can be applicable to the deaf and deafened. A typical claimant would need to have up to 4 hours a day of help in communication. It has already been established that deaf people who use sign language (the Deaf) and who are unable to understand and follow a written or spoken instruction qualify for the lower rate mobility component. The blind deaf qualify for the higher rate almost without exception.
Like many aspects of social benefits, it is highly documented, bureaucratic and it can be difficult to comply with all the procedures. Do not be put off by this. Do not dismiss it out of hand because you have learnt to adapt to your disability and feel it is inappropriate. Help is at hand. There are two excellent sources of information with detailed guidance as to how to fill in forms and make one's application. The first is a publication entitled Disability Living Allowance (Deafened People Can Claim It) which is published by The LINK Centre , see here . The second is a multi-page Fact Sheet under the same title from the RNID, see here. Many applications are rejected in the first instance but there is an appeals procedure and often these initial decisions are reversed on appeal. You have one month to make any necessary appeal and how to go about it is explained in other publications from the two sources mentioned above.
You can also download a claims pack or fill in an online claims pack from the Department of Works and Pensions, see here