Um, no. I believe that with DSA the comparison is always with costs
incurred by other students in the same position but without the disability.
This can produce a seeming anomaly: if the student lives within a distance
that other students might be expected to comfortably walk, then travel
should be paid; if the student lives at a distance when anyone would need
transport, then it doesn't. In practice, the costs associated with the
latter tend to be higher than the former. An exception can be successsfully
argued if students live in specially adapted accommodation or is receiving
particular treatment that would not be available to them if lived on campus.
This is simply how I have found various LEAs have interpreted the guidance
rather than decisions I make.
Regards, Bernard
Bernard Doherty
Assessor
East Anglia Regional ACCESS Centre
Anglia Polytechnic University
East Road
Cambridge CB1 1PT
01223 363271 x2534
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----- Original Message -----
From: "Smith, Tony" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2004 12:10 PM
Subject: Re: Petrol v taxi costs
I think that the answer is that you are sing the wrong comparator. You
should be comparing a person with a disability who is not attending the
course and one that is. The person that is not attending the course would
use their DLA to pay for costs of going shopping etc. The person that is
attending the course would have the costs of attending their course on top
of the other travel costs that someone who isn't on a course has.
Tony
-----Original Message-----
From: Discussion list for disabled students and their support staff.
[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Bernard Doherty
Sent: 11 November 2004 12:05
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Petrol v taxi costs
Ah, sorry, I wasn't being explicit enough, I think. The whole argument
always starts from 'in what way does this student face higher costs than
another who lived in the same place and attended the same course?' One
claim might be that the student cannot use public transport but through the
mobility scheme has received a vehicle and support with running costs. In
which case, the cost of each journey is likely to be less than the costs
faced by students paying for public transport; at any rate, the DSA should
always only be paying the difference, if any. I know in practice very few
LEAs deduct standard fares from their awards, but this is the consideration
they are supposed to make (so I believe).
Regards, Bernard
Bernard Doherty
Assessor
East Anglia Regional ACCESS Centre
Anglia Polytechnic University
East Road
Cambridge CB1 1PT
01223 363271 x2534
[log in to unmask]
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kate Goddard" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2004 11:53 AM
Subject: Re: Petrol v taxi costs
Just as Access to Work pays for travel to work on top of DLA, DSA travel
allowance can be used to pay for transport to and from education.
This was confirmed to us by DfES:
"It would be impractical to ask LEAs to investigate whether a student's DLA
mobility component was being used to cover travel costs to the HEI. We
would therefore recommend that DLA mobility component should, like the
notional travel element of the student loan, be disregarded when an LEA is
working out DSA travel costs."
But I know getting petrol costs met through the DSA can be very difficult,
even if it is cheaper than taxis!
Kate
-----Original Message-----
From: Discussion list for disabled students and their support staff.
[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Bernard Doherty
Sent: 11 November 2004 11:46
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Petrol v taxi costs
Is the student receiving premium (or any, for thart matter) mobility
allowance through the DLA? If so, I think an awards officer would feel that
the student was being paid twice for the same cause if a further allowance
was granted from the DSA.
Regards, Bernard
Bernard Doherty
Assessor
East Anglia Regional ACCESS Centre
Anglia Polytechnic University
East Road
Cambridge CB1 1PT
01223 363271 x2534
[log in to unmask]
----- Original Message -----
From: "Emma J Price" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2004 10:34 AM
Subject: Petrol v taxi costs
> Dear all
>
> Is there anything in the regs that states whether the DSA can fund the
> petrol costs for a student with an adapted vehicle to and from uni?
> The LEA have offered to pay taxis, but not petrol.
>
> Thanks
>
> Emma
>
> ----------------------
> Emma Price
> Disability Co-ordinator
> Equality and Diversity Department
> King's College London
>
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