The Ultimate Guide to Disability Benefits - Everything You Need to Know

It has now been 18 years since I had my accident and became disabled. I've gone from being a teenager to an adult, single to married, child-free to a parent and from a student to employed, to now running a business. I've lived with my parents, in student accommodation, on my own in London, with friends, with strangers and now with my family in Yorkshire. To say it's been a rollercoaster is probably an understatement. A lot has changed and through it all, my knowledge of how best to navigate life with a disability has too.  

The good news is, I've learnt a lot the hard way and as a result, I want to try and use it to help other people like me adjust to disability, and come to terms with their new life, in a way that's as straightforward and as stress-free as possible.

Disability benefits are a HUGE part of this. When I left the hospital, I was offered an OT assessment to see if hand rails, ramps etc. might help but other than this, the focus was on all the negative impacts and how to manage them vs. what the perks were, and what support was available to make life better, easier, more fun, more enjoyable and allow me to do more.  It felt like these were all hidden, to be hunted for months on end with no guarantee of eligibility, let alone receiving anything at the end.

Unfortunately, I didn't understand the process and possibly through luck I have managed to secure some support but have also had a lot taken away, most notably PIP.  It sounds straightforward, but for anyone who's experienced the application process, it involves years of stress, worry and admin which amounted to feeling 'not disabled enough' and in all honesty, a burden who had wasted government time and money.  That feeling is something I wouldn't wish on anyone and still lights a fire in my belly.  It's what led me to create this guide. I want to flip the narrative and help you to take control over applications and confidently approach them rather than stabbing in the dark and hoping for a positive result.  

Whilst I may have lost mine, I want to make sure our customers and community have all the tools to ensure they secure everything they are entitled to. So I've been quietly putting this together for the last year - a guide to the perks, the best bits, the best benefits and all the support that I wish I'd known about when I left the hospital.

Questions I always wanted answered - do I qualify for disability benefits? Can I get a blue badge? Do I need an adapted car? Can I get funding for an adapted car? Do I have to pay for it myself? How on earth do I hold down a job? Can I get disability support as a student?  And most importantly, if I can, HOW?

From Motability to PIP, Blue Badges and Access to Work, our brand new Guide to Disability Benefits goes through it all.  To give you not only a checklist of all the options, but a little black book of brilliant people and businesses whose sole purpose is to help disabled people secure benefits they are entitled to.  To understand what they could be eligible for but most importantly, how to apply in a way that secures support, swerves stress and results in the best life possible.

For every person who's Googled 'What disability benefits can I claim' or 'What disability benefits are there?' this is for you. I hope it helps.

With love,

Amelia x

To download the Cool Crutches Guide to Disability Benefits click here.