Help with benefits for people with learning disabilities
The Walsall Integrated Learning Disabilities team has a specialist Welfare Rights and Housing Advice service. This service supports service users and the integrated team with all aspects of welfare rights work. One of our main roles is the traditional benefits take up work, helping social care staff, service users and carers to apply for benefits and sometimes representing them at tribunal level.
As part of this service we can also help people with a learning disability to access money from a variety of other sources. These could be from the local authority, such as housing benefit or council tax benefit or the Department for Work and Pensions, in particular accessing community care grants. We can help people find out about other assistance, such as trust funds at Severn Trent and British Gas to help those who may be experiencing hardship.
We have a growing number of service users accessing the Independent Living Fund (ILF). This is a central government fund where people can get money to pay for their care. This allows them to decide who provides their care and when it is provided instead of us doing it for them. We work closely with service users, families and other team members to promote ILF.
Direct payments are also promoted to people with a learning disability and many people are benefiting from accessing both ILF and a direct payment.
We can also offer housing advice and guidance where supported living is being considered. We liaise with housing providers and work with private landlords to draw up appropriate tenancy agreements for people with a learning disability, particularly those who maybe moving from long term residential accommodation.
We also advise on housing issues such as disputes with neighbours, repairs and the right to repairs, termination of tenancies and any other housing related queries.
Contact us
Welfare Rights and Housing Advice Officer
Integrated Learning Disabilities Team
Broadway North Centre
Broadway North
Walsall WS1 2QA
Telephone 01922 649088
This page was last updated on 19 June 2009