Transcript Presentation heading goes here Sub heading goes here Date

Access to Work
Presentation by: Yvonne Baird
External Relations Team
4 October 12
What is Access to Work
• Is a National Programme delivered by Department for Work and Pensions
• Introduced in 1994 and has grown year on year since.
• Aims to assist disabled people who are in paid employment or with a job to start
• Gives practical support and help to meet additional costs with overcoming work
related obstacles resulting from disability.
• Can provide a grant towards these additional costs
• A flexible programme that focuses on the needs of the individual
2
Department for Work and Pensions
Some of the benefits of Access to Work
• Encourages greater independence
• Provides work for those who can
• Promotes work as being the best route to inclusion for disabled people
• Enables disabled people to work on a more equal basis with non disabled
colleagues
• Encourages employers to recruit and retain disabled people by offering practical
help
• Provides advice to disabled people and their employers
3
Department for Work and Pensions
A few facts and figures?
• Over 35,000 individuals were helped or supported by Access to Work in 2010 / 11
• Nearly 30% of the people helped during this time had sensory impairments
• Nearly 16% of the people helped during this time had a back or neck condition
• Over 500 people were supported with a mental health condition in the workplace.
4
Department for Work and Pensions
Access to Work
Eligibility
How To Apply
Types of Help
Department for Work and Pensions
Eligibility
To be eligible for help, a customer must:
• Have a disability or health condition that has a long term adverse affect on their
ability to carry out their job
• Be over 16 years old
• Be in, or about to start, paid employment (including self employment)
• Live and work in Great Britain
• Not be claiming Incapacity Benefit or ESA once they are in work (with the exception
of higher permitted work)
6
Department for Work and Pensions
How To Apply
• Applications are made by the disabled employee not the employer
• Applications are taken over the telephone in the majority of cases. Alternative
arrangements can be made for applicants whose disability prevents them from
using the telephone
• The applicant rings one of our contact centres and is connected with our Customer
Service Team who will check eligibility and fill out the application form for the
applicant
• The form is then sent to the applicant for them to check, sign and return. The
application then becomes active and is allocated to an Access to Work adviser who
will then process the case to an outcome
7
Department for Work and Pensions
Types Of Help
There are seven main elements within Access to Work:
• Special Aids and Equipment (SAE)
• Adaptations to Premises and equipment (APE)
• Travel to Work (TtW)
• Travel in Work (TiW)
• Support Worker (SW)
• Communication Support at Interview (CSI)
• Mental Health Support Service (MHSS)
8
Department for Work and Pensions
Mental Health Support Service
Support is available from Access to Work for people with mental health conditions and
are either:
• Going into work
• Absent from work as a result of a mental health condition
• Finding work difficult as a result of a mental health condition
The support available from Access to Work includes:
• An assessment of needs
• A personalised support plan with detailed steps designed to keep a person in, or
help them to return to work
• Signposting to relevant intervention and support services
This service is provided for Access to Work by Remploy
9
Department for Work and Pensions
Access to Work
Cost Sharing
Financial Support
Department for Work and Pensions
Access to Work Grants
Access to Work does not provide the support itself, but the grant with which to
procure the support that is needed
The level of grant will depend on:
• Whether the applicant is employed or self employed
• How long they have been in their job
• The type of help required
• The size of company they work for
11
Department for Work and Pensions
Access to Work Grants
Access to Work will pay grants of up to 100% for:
• Unemployed people starting a job
• All self employed people
• People who have been in their jobs for less than six weeks when they first apply for
Access to Work
And in all cases for:
• Support Workers
• Additional Travel to Work and Travel in Work costs
• Communication Support at Interview
12
Department for Work and Pensions
Cost Sharing
• Cost sharing is applied in some cases and this is a mandatory contribution towards
the cost of adjustments. This contribution is sought from a source other than
Access to Work (principally from the employer) – not the applicant
• Applies to applicants who are employed and have been in their job for more than
six weeks when they apply for Access to Work
• It applies only to Special Aids and Equipment (SAE) and Adaptations to Premises
and Equipment (APE)
• It does not apply to self employed applicants
13
Department for Work and Pensions
Cost Sharing
• The amount of the threshold is determined by the number of employees employed
by the organisation for whom the applicant is working:
•
•
•
•
0 – 9 attract no cost share
10 – 49 - £300 Threshold and 20% of the costs thereafter
50 – 249 - £500 Threshold and 20% of the costs thereafter
Over 250 - £1000 Threshold and 20% of the costs thereafter
– The threshold amount is applied once on a case in a 3 year period. This means that if an
applicant’s circumstances change within this period and further adjustments are required,
the initial threshold amount will not be applied again.
• Costs above £10,000 will normally be met by Access to Work
• If there is a general business benefit a contribution will be sought in addition to any
compulsory cost share
14
Department for Work and Pensions
Access to Work
Case Studies
Contact Details
Department for Work and Pensions
Access to Work Customer Journey
David Alldred – Pharmacy Lecturer,
University of Leeds. (SAE & SW)
1. David has worked at the University
of Leeds since 2004. When he
started at the University, he was a
research clinical pharmacist before
becoming a lecturer in pharmacy.
2. David found that he was having
great difficulties in work with many
of his tasks which was attributed to
pain he was experiencing in his
joints. This was attributed to RSI
before a diagnosis was reached
confirming
he
had
Joint
Hypermobility Syndrome.
3. David contacted Access to Work to
see if there was any help available
for him to allow him to keep his job.
4. An application was taken over the
phone and a completed form was
then sent to David for him to check
and sign the same day
5. When David returned the signed
application form, he was contacted
by an Access to Work adviser who
spoke to David about the difficulties
he was experiencing. David had
explained how he was finding it
difficult to complete simple tasks
such as using his keyboard and
mouse due to the pain and also his
mobility was affected.
6. Due to the technical difficulties
David was experiencing, the
adviser discussed with David the
option of having an assessment
completed at his workplace which
David agreed to.
6. The Access to Work adviser then
contacted David’s employer to
explain the next steps and gain their
co-operation to allow an assessor
to visit the site as well as discussing
the implications of Access to Work
cost sharing.
7. Following the conversation with the
employer, the assessment was
agreed and took place the next
week where the assessor was able
to recommend various adjustments
that would ease the pain David was
experiencing. The assessor was
also able to recommend some
specialised equipment and software
to further reduce David’s pain and
discomfort.
8. The Access to Work adviser
received a report produced by the
assessor which gave details of the
recommendations and quotes for
additional equipment. The adviser
was then able to put together an
offer of support for David which
allowed his employer to claim some
of the cost of the adjustments back
from Access to Work.
9. This was not the end of the journey
for David as when his condition
deteriorated, he contacted Access
to Work again to explain how things
had changed. At This time, the
adviser was able to recommend
that David utilises a support worker
to act as a conduit for some of his
tasks. The support worker is fully
funded by Access to Work and
continues to be in place following
the original decision in March 2009
Department
for Work
and Pensions
David’s assistive technology took 38 working days from receipt of application to support in place. Support Worker funding
was made available
1 working
day following
the decision by the adviser to provide support. Funding for David’s support worker was put in place for the mandatory 3 years and is reviewed annually.
Access to Work Customer Journey
Nicola Mattocks – Administrator,
Ammanford Junior Gateway (SAE)
1. Nicola is registered blind due to
numerous conditions which have
contributed to the deterioration of
her vision. Nicola was claiming ESA
but was determined that her
disability would not be a barrier to
her finding work.
4. An application was taken over the
phone and a completed form was
then sent. Nicola had stressed to
Access to Work that she would not
be able to start the role until she
had
been
assessed
and
adjustments had been made.
2. Through her determination, Nicola
was able to secure a job as an
administrator for a charity. Nicola
was successful in getting this job
because of her abilities and she
was able to inform her employer
that she would be eligible for
Access to Work support.
5. The application was made on 2nd
Jan ’12 and Nicola was due to start
work on 1st Feb 12. Nicola returned
the form promptly and was then
contacted by an Access to Work
adviser who went through the
appraisal process with her. Nicola
would be responsible for data input
and general administrative duties in
her role which would have been
extremely difficult with her limited
vision.
3. Nicola had used Access to Work in
a previous role so she knew about
the programme and was able to
make an application immediately
upon acceptance of the job
6. The adviser and Nicola agreed to
having an assessment completed to
determine what changes would be
needed to allow Nicola to take up
her new role without her disability
being a barrier.
6. The Access to Work adviser then
contacted Nicola’s employer to
discuss
the
option
of
an
assessment and to explain that as
Nicola was new to the role, the cost
of any additional adjustment due to
Nicola’s disability would be covered
in full by Access to Work
7. Following the conversation with the
employer, the assessment was
agreed and took place the next
week where the assessor was able
to recommend various adjustments
that included a cctv magnifier,
specialist software, high visibility
keyboard and a larger monitor
8. The Access to Work adviser
received a report produced by the
assessor which gave details of the
recommendations and quotes for
additional equipment. The adviser
was then able to put together an
offer of support for Nicola which
allowed her employer to make the
required changes and claim back
the costs.
9. The support that was required for
Nicola to start in this role was in
place by 25th January 2012, less
than 4 weeks after the initial
application was made and a week
before the start date Nicola had for
the job. Nicola was quoted as
saying
the
programme
was
“absolutely marvellous” and she
was so proud to be back in paid
employment after 16 months of
claiming ESA.
Department for Work and Pensions
Access to Work Customer Journey
Michael Ryan – Customer Care Manager
Support, NatWest (TtW)
6. The adviser asked Mike to gather 3
comparable quotes for the journey
with a view to awarding a grant
which would allow him to use the
most cost effective quote.
1. Mike has been blind since birth and
has been independent for as long
as he can remember. Mike has
worked for NatWest in central
London since 1973. In this time, he
has been using a combination of 3
buses to get to and from work
independently each day.
4. Mike said he didn’t want to
“surrender to his disabilities” so he
kept avoiding contacting Access to
Work until he was eventually
convinced by his colleague. Mike
applied via telephone and was able
to complete the application entirely
this way which he appreciated.
7. The Access to Work adviser then
contacted Mike’s employer to
explain that we intended to support
Mike on his journey’s to and from
work. The adviser also asked the
employer whether they would be
willing to contribute towards the
cost of the support. At the time they
were unable to contribute.
2. Mike had developed arthritis a
number of years ago which caused
him significant pain when walking
and moving. He explained that he
had to learn a new route to work
due to the pain of walking and
climbing
steps.
Mike
was
unfortunately hit by a car along this
route which has slowed him down
further due to anxiety which in turn
exasperates the pain in his joints.
5. Mike was contacted by an Access
to Work adviser who appraised the
case with him and determined that
there was a genuine requirement
for some travel support to allow
Mike to get to and from work safely
and free from pain. The adviser
went through various options on
travel including paying for someone
to accompany Mike. While this
would ensure his safety, it would
not reduce the pain factor of the
journey so funding towards taxis
was agreed.
8. Mike was able to provide the
quotes and the adviser then set up
a 3 year period of support which
would allow Mike to use taxis
during this time to get to and from
work. The total value of the support
for this period is £47,124.00. The
support allows Mike to get to work
everyday without any difficulties or
pain. During the 3 year period of
support, Mike is contacted by an
adviser annually to check the level
of support correctly caters for his
needs in a review.
3. Mike contacted Access to Work
after asked to do so by a colleague
9. The support was able to be
available immediately upon the
completion of the appraisal process
and this was confirmed in writing to
Mike and his employer. Mike has
been using this support since June
2011 and has stated that as well as
being able to get to and from work,
his quality of life has improved
because he is not as drained or
tired from the effort he was putting
into his commute.
10.Mike’s support is in place for 3
years and will end in May 2014.
Before this is allowed to lapse,
Access to Work will contact Mike to
check whether he still requires
support and initiate a renewal
application with him at least 1
month before the end date. Mike
has quoted: “If anyone suggests to
you that you should contact Access
to Work, you should do so as soon
as possible. I wish that I had done
so earlier as it would have made
my life so much better a lot sooner”
Department for Work and Pensions
Mike’s initial application was signed and returned on 12th May and support was in place 6th June. (17 working days) Support was put in place the same day the adviser
had received the required information from Mike. Support is in place for 3 years with annual reviews planned to ensure the correct level of support is in place.
Further Information
This presentation is intended to be a general guide to the principles underpinning the
Access to Work programme and is not a full and authoritative statement of the law
General information about Access to Work can be found on the internet at
www.direct.gov.uk
You can contact the Customer Service Team with any questions on:
020 8426 3110
You can email the team at: [email protected]
Presented by: Yvonne Baird
01786 432631
19
Department for Work and Pensions