Support you can get in the UK

Some of what your family needs is already paid for by the government. Most parents are never told. Here is what exists, who it is for, and the first step.

Where you live in the UK changes some of this, but not all of it. The money side works much the same wherever you are, with two exceptions in Scotland that are called out on the entries themselves. School and NHS support is different: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each run their own, and what is below covers England. Every entry says which applies to it, so read that line before you act on one.

We do not run any of these programmes and we cannot get you a place on one. Who qualifies and what is available does change, so each one below shows when we last checked it and links to the official page.

Getting recognised

Blue Badge

What it gives you: A parking badge that lets you park closer to where you are going, including in places other drivers cannot. For a child whose difficulty is coping with the journey rather than walking it, this is often the thing that makes an ordinary trip possible.
Who it is for: A child under 3 qualifies if a medical condition means they always need bulky medical equipment with them. A child of 3 or over qualifies automatically if they get the higher rate of the mobility part of Disability Living Allowance. There is also a route that matters for a lot of neurodivergent young people: someone on Personal Independence Payment who scored 10 points for descriptor E under “planning and following journeys” qualifies, which covers overwhelming distress when travelling rather than difficulty walking. Councils run the scheme, so how you pay and how long it takes varies. Northern Ireland applies through a separate process.
What it costs: Up to £10 in England and £20 in Scotland. It is free in Wales. The official page does not give a figure for Northern Ireland.
How to start: Apply online through GOV.UK. Your council usually decides within 12 weeks.
What to take with you: A recent digital photo of your child’s head and shoulders. Proof of identity, such as a birth certificate or passport. Proof of address, such as a Council Tax bill. Proof of any benefit they get. Your National Insurance number, and the details of their current badge if you are reapplying.
Who runs it: Department for Transport, administered by local councils

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

Getting therapy and early support

Autism assessment for a child on the NHS

What it gives you: An assessment by an NHS autism team who can tell you whether your child is autistic. It is a diagnosis your child can use going forward, for school, for other services, and for understanding themselves.
Who it is for: This is England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their own health services and their routes are different. NHS.UK does not describe a way to refer your child yourself, direct to the autism team. Someone else usually starts it: your GP, your health visitor if your child is not yet at school, or the school if they are. A professional already treating your child for something else can also refer.
What it costs: The NHS pages we checked do not mention a fee.
How to start: Speak to your GP first. If your child is not yet school age you can go through your health visitor instead, and if they are at school the school may need to make the referral. If a referral is refused, NHS.UK suggests asking to speak to a different GP. Once your child has a referral, ask about Right to Choose: in England you can pick which NHS-funded service does the assessment, which sometimes means a shorter wait. We are not quoting a waiting time, because the NHS does not publish one for this.
Who runs it: NHS England

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

Money and equipment

Disability Living Allowance for children

Also called DLA

What it gives you: Tax-free money towards the extra cost of raising a disabled child, paid every four weeks. There are two parts and your child can get one or both. The care part is for a child who needs much more looking after than other children their age: £30.30, £76.70 or £114.60 a week. The mobility part is for a child who has difficulty getting about: £30.30 or £80 a week.
Who it is for: Your child needs to be under 16. At 16 they move to Personal Independence Payment instead. They need to have had these difficulties for at least three months already, and be expected to need help for at least six months more; that waiting period is dropped if your child is nearing the end of life. Where you live decides which form you fill in. In England and Wales it is DLA, from the Department for Work and Pensions. In Scotland, DLA for children no longer exists — you apply for Child Disability Payment from Social Security Scotland instead. In Northern Ireland it is the same DLA, run by the Disability and Carers Service. If your family is not British, the official page says you need the right to claim public funds under your immigration status, with exceptions for refugees and their dependants, and there are minimum periods you must have spent in the country.
What it costs: Free. It is a payment to you, not something you pay for.
How to start: In England or Wales, call the Disability Service Centre on 0800 121 4600 and ask for a claim form, or print one from the official page. Your claim is backdated to the day you first get in touch, as long as you return the form within six weeks. In Northern Ireland, call the Disability and Carers Service on 0800 587 0912 and ask for the DLA1 child form. In Scotland, this is the wrong form: apply for Child Disability Payment.
Who runs it: Department for Work and Pensions; in Northern Ireland, the Disability and Carers Service

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

Carer’s Allowance

What it gives you: £86.45 a week for you, not for your child, if you spend at least 35 hours a week caring for them. It is separate from your child’s own DLA and does not replace it. You also get National Insurance credits for every week you receive it, which protects your own State Pension later.
Who it is for: You need to be 16 or over and caring at least 35 hours a week, and your child needs to already be getting the middle or highest care rate of Disability Living Allowance, or of Child Disability Payment in Scotland. Your own earnings need to be £204 a week or less, after tax, National Insurance and expenses. That is a cliff rather than a slope: a penny over and you do not qualify at all, so it is worth checking the figure before any change in your hours. If you live in Scotland this is the wrong benefit — Carer’s Allowance has been replaced there by Carer Support Payment. In Northern Ireland it is the same benefit, run by the Disability and Carers Service. It can affect other benefits, yours and your child’s, and the official page suggests checking before you claim if you already get something else.
What it costs: Free to apply.
How to start: Apply online through GOV.UK, or by post if you cannot apply online. The helpline is 0800 731 0297. You can backdate a claim up to three months. In Northern Ireland, call 0800 587 0912 and ask for form DS700. In Scotland, apply for Carer Support Payment instead.
What to take with you: Your National Insurance number, and your partner’s if you have one. Your bank details. A recent payslip if you work, or your P45 if you have just stopped. Your course details if you are studying. For your child: their date of birth, address, and their DLA reference number.
Who runs it: Department for Work and Pensions; in Northern Ireland, the Disability and Carers Service

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

Disabled Facilities Grant

Also called DFG

What it gives you: A grant from your council to adapt your home around your child: widening doors, fitting ramps or grab rails, making a bathroom reachable, or a stairlift where that is what is needed. Up to £30,000 in England and up to £36,000 in Wales.
Who it is for: Someone living in the home needs to be disabled, and the official page names autism, learning disability and mental health conditions among those that qualify, alongside physical disability. You need to be the owner, tenant or landlord, and your child needs to be intending to go on living there, usually for five years. The council decides whether the work is necessary for your child and reasonable for the age and condition of your home. The grant is normally means-tested, but not for a child: the page says plainly that disabled children under 18 can get a grant without their parents’ income being taken into account. Northern Ireland works differently. It is not your council but the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, and you get in through your Health and Social Care Trust. The UK government’s page and Northern Ireland’s own page state different maximum amounts, so we are not printing a figure we cannot stand behind — ask your Trust for the current one.
What it costs: Free to apply, and the official page says it will not affect other benefits you get.
How to start: In England or Wales, contact your local council. In Northern Ireland, start with your local Health and Social Care Trust, or ask your GP or social worker how to be referred. An occupational therapist assessment is part of the process there.
Who runs it: Local councils, under the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act; in Northern Ireland, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

School

SEN support

What it gives you: Extra help your child’s school or nursery gives directly, without an EHC plan. It might be extra teaching, a specific learning programme, small-group work, or support with communication. Most children who need extra help get it this way and never need a plan.
Who it is for: England only. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their own systems. This is for any child at a mainstream school, nursery, playgroup or with a childminder who needs more support than the setting normally gives, but whose needs do not require an EHC plan.
What it costs: The official guidance does not mention a cost. This is part of what the school already does for your child, not something you buy.
How to start: Talk to your child’s teacher, or to the school’s SEN co-ordinator, known as the SENCO. If your child is not yet at school or nursery, talk to your local council instead.
Who runs it: Department for Education

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

Education, Health and Care plan

Also called EHC plan, EHCP

What it gives you: A written plan setting out what your child needs and the support your council, school and health services must provide to meet it. It covers education, health and social care together, for children and young people up to 25 whose needs go beyond what a school can offer through SEN support alone.
Who it is for: England only. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their own, different systems. You can ask your council for an assessment yourself, as a parent — you do not need the school to do it for you. A young person aged 16 to 25 can ask on their own behalf, and a teacher, doctor, health visitor or anyone else who thinks an assessment is needed can ask too.
What it costs: The official guidance does not mention a fee. Assessing your child is a duty your council has, not a service you apply to buy.
How to start: Write to your local council asking for an EHC needs assessment. They must tell you within 16 weeks whether they will make a plan, and if they do, they have 20 weeks from your request to give you the finished one.
Who runs it: Department for Education, under the Children and Families Act 2014

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

If you're told no

Appealing to the SEND Tribunal

Also called First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability)

What it gives you: An independent tribunal, separate from your council, that can overturn the council’s decision. You can appeal if it refuses to assess your child, refuses to issue an EHC plan after assessing, decides your child no longer needs a plan, or will not change the education parts of a plan you disagree with, including the school named in it.
Who it is for: England. The process is different in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. A parent, someone with parental responsibility, or a young person aged 16 to 25 appealing for themselves can bring an appeal.
What it costs: Free. There are no fees, unlike going to court. If you travel to a hearing you can claim your costs back, and so can any witnesses you bring.
How to start: In most cases you need a mediation certificate first, even if you decide not to go through mediation — the exception is an appeal only about which school your child should attend. The deadline is the part to watch: the tribunal must receive your appeal within two months of the date on the council’s decision letter, or one month from the date of your mediation certificate, whichever is later.
Who runs it: HM Courts & Tribunals Service, under the Children and Families Act 2014

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.

Disability discrimination claim against a school

Also called Equality Act 2010 claim

What it gives you: A way to challenge a school that has treated your child unfairly because of their disability — refusing reasonable adjustments, excluding them, or treating them worse than other pupils. The claim goes to the same SEND tribunal that hears EHC plan appeals, and the school or council must act on its decision within a set time.
Who it is for: England. A parent, or anyone with parental responsibility, can bring a claim. If what you are challenging is a state school refusing your child a place, this is not the route — that goes to an independent admissions appeal panel instead.
What it costs: Free. The official page says there is no cost to complain to the SEND tribunal.
How to start: Send your complaint to the tribunal within six months of the discrimination happening, or of the most recent incident if it has been going on for a while. Set out what happened, how it connects to your child’s disability, and what you would like put right.
Who runs it: HM Courts & Tribunals Service, under the Equality Act 2010

Read the official page

Checked 11 September 2026.