Disabled Students' Allowances (DSAs)
DSAs help to fund extra costs you may have to pay in attending your course as a direct result of a disability or specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia.
DSAs are not means-tested.
You may be eligible for DSAs if you are attending;
- an eligible full-time undergraduate course and are personally eligible for maintenance support for that course; or
- an eligible part-time undergraduate course of between 1 and 6 years' duration and are personally eligible for part-time support for that course; or
- a post-graduate course of at least one year's duration and leading to a masters degree, doctorate, postgraduate diploma or certificate.
The allowances for full-time undergraduate courses 2008/09
The Specialist Equipment Allowance
- Up to a maximum of £5,030 for the whole course.
- Intended for major items of equipment such as a computer or special furniture.
The Non-Medical Helpers Allowance
- Up to a maximum of £20,000 per year (pro-rata for part-time students).
- To help pay for helpers e.g. notetakers or specialist tutors.
The General DSA
- Up to a maximum of £1,680 per year (pro-rata for part-time students).
- To cover any general costs incurred as a result of your disability whilst studying, e.g. books, tapes, photocopying, Braille paper. It can also be used in certain cases to top up the other two allowances.
Travel
- If you have to pay extra travel costs to attend your university or college because of your disability, you may be eligible for help with these costs from the DSAs. DSAs cannot be used to fund everyday travel costs which any student would expect to have.
The allowances for postgraduate courses 2008/09
There is one allowance to meet all costs up to £10,000 a year for both full-time and part-time postgraduate students. This can be used for specialist equipment, non-medical personal helpers, extra travel costs or other course-related costs.
The allowances for part-time courses 2008/09
The Specialist Equipment Allowance
- Up to a maximum of £5,030 for the whole course
- Intended for major items of equipment such as computer or special furniture
The Non-Medical Helpers Allowance
- Up to £15,000 per academic year depending on the intensity of the course.
For example, for a student studying:
50% of a full-time course - up to £7,500 per year; or
60% of a full-time course - up to £9,000 per year
- To help pay for helpers e.g. notetakers or specialist tutors.
The General DSA
- Up to £1260 per academic year depending on the intensity of the course.
For example, for a student studying:
50% of a full-time course - up to £630 per year; or
60% of a full-time course - up to £756 per year
- To cover any general costs incurred as a result of your disability whilst studying, e.g. books, tapes, photocopying, Braille paper. It can also be used in certain cases to top up the other two allowances.
How to apply
Full-time undergraduates
The first step is to make an application to us for loan/fee assistance.
This can be done either online or by completing an application form (PN1 for 1st years or PR1 for renewal students).
There is a question on the form relating to disability. If you indicate that you require further information regarding DSAs, an information pack will be sent out to you along with a DSA1 form.
Application forms for higher education support for full-time courses will be available from March 2008 from:-
Student Finance
3rd Floor, Howden House
1 Union Street
Sheffield S1 2SH
Telephone 0114 273 5635/273 5796
e-mail: studentfinance@sheffield.gov.uk
DSA1 forms can be downloaded.
Part-time and postgraduate students
Students need to complete a DSA1 form, which can be downloaded from the Student Finance Direct website. Alternatively, you can contact us to request a paper form. These will be available from March 2008.
Establishing your disability
We will require medical evidence of your disability. The medical evidence should explain how your disability would disadvantage you as a student. In the case of dyslexia, a psychologist's report will be required.
The cost of establishing a disability cannot be met from the DSAs.
Assessment of Needs
Once we have received satisfactory evidence of your disability/learning difficulty we will authorise you to arrange for an Assessment of Needs to be carried out. This will normally be carried out at a registered Access Centre. Your place of study should be able to put you in touch with your local centre.
The cost of your Assessment of Needs will be met from the DSAs.
The Assessment of Needs report will recommend any relevant support and equipment needed for your course. We will then consider if the recommended items can be funded from the DSAs. Payment for goods and services will normally be made direct to the supplier.
A copy of the booklet 'Bridging the Gap' gives further information about DSAs. This can be downloaded from the Student Finance Direct website, alternatively we can send one out to you.
Other useful websites
Our Targets in Relation to Processing of DSA Applications
We aim to inform you of a decision regarding your eligibility to DSAs within 15 working days of receiving your completed DSA1 form and relevant medical/psychological evidence.
Once your Assessment of Needs has been received from the Assessment Centre/institution, we aim to inform you of our decision within 10 working days.
In the academic year 2007/08 we met these targets in 95.2% and 95.9% of cases respectively, compared to 93% and 90% in the 2006/07 academic year.
If you have any comments on these targets or on any other aspect of the service, please contact us at studentfinance@sheffield.gov.uk.
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