ext_42732 ([identity profile] elettaria.livejournal.com) wrote in [personal profile] mirrorshard 2009-02-26 03:35 pm (UTC)

It's always said that a very high proportion of people with disabilities are living in poverty, some say the majority.

The site may be a bit out of date, but Benefits Now (http://www.benefitsnow.co.uk/decisions/dladecision.asp) cites Higher Rate Care of Disability Living Allowance as £67 per week. There are three rates for the care component (and two for the mobility component), and in theory you qualify for higher rate care by needing frequent care throughout the day and night. In practice, you can be lucky to get lower rate care (£17/week) if your care needs are at that level, and I suspect that Higher Rate Care is only given out to people who need 24-hour care or near as damnit. Round here, it costs £13 per hour to get a carer from an agency.

Social Services are meant to provide necessary care, and provide it free of charge for people on a very low income, but in practice they rarely do anything of the sort. Their budget is extremely limited and their standards of living horrifyingly low. Being able to eat daily, or wash more than once a fortnight, is not something they consider necessary.

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