Access to Work

[lil_miffy]

has anyone used the Access to work Scheme? I have a new job but wont be starting for at least a month and wondered if i should contact access to work now and get the forms even though i havnet recieved any written confimation of the job yet.
Also what type of things did you use access to work for?
My main thing will be to pay for taxis to and from work until i can drive. As i will be working on a adapted bus that goes to rural areas i wont need things like a special desk or chair etc but wondered what else might be an issue that could be solved with access to work.

[Stone]

I use Access to Work, they're great

You should start as early as possible - if you get the forms back to them within 6 weeks of starting work then everything they provide is free (employer pays and then has to claim it back - so not 100% free if you include office time but it's not too hard and you don't have to do it yourself). If you get them back after 6 weeks then AtW pay 80% and work pay 20%, that's why it's better to go in early!

What are you doing on the bus? You can use AtW for anything that will make it possible to you to do your job (but which your disability would otherwise make hard) - mine bought me an adapted keyboard/mouse and a bigger monitor but they kept suggesting chairs and desks and and...it all depends on what you need to make your life easier.

Hope that helps...

Stone

[Ruby]

Hi lil miffy
I used access to work and they were brilliant!! They paid for me to get my own office, electric desk, monitor raise, footstool, keyboard, mouse, writing slant, filing cabinet sndbookshelves that will help me improve my posture andhopefully reduce pain. I filled out the forms over the phone with office based in Glasgow, they were lovely. I was then allocated my own assesor type guy who is an angel and is very sympathetic towards hidden disabilities. He also gave me advise about motability ( not relevant now as dla didn't recognise I have mobility probs so I have given up driving) he also advised a funding request could be made to pay for taxis for me. A physio came to assess me at work to decide what support tools I needed, she was brilliant. Within 8 weeks or so everything was in place!! In fact the initial assessor guy is travelling from inverness to Aberdeen to come see my finished office himself also because I work for a small charity ATW paid 100 % of bills. I would highly recommend ATW Good luck x

[SAMMY]

Hey lovlies. Ruby? Did you get taxi fares paid? This is my biggest problem. I want to hear everyones experiences of Access to Work as I will be looking to them when I leave my present job to find another. I have not spoken to them about my present job and don't get help getting to work. I wonder if they can help to keep you in your present job? SAMMY

[Ruby]

Hey sammy I declined the offer. I need to be able to use buses to get around outside of work. It's
it's not often but I felt I had to keep doing it or I would become wary and start to rely on taxis. If I was you I would give them a phone there is no harm in asking

[SAMMY]

Well.......I've just found my JCP on line and asked what help they can offer in my present job so I will see what they have to say. SAMMY

[lil_miffy]

taxis to work is the most important thing for me at the moment because it will be a nightmare to get to work on public transport before i pass my driving test. i would probably have to get the train then a bus or one long bus journey and as il be workign evenings, getting back home might be really tough and paying my own taxi would be very expensive so i would need this to be set up as quickly as possible. Il give them a ring first thing in the morning. It would be the glasgow office for me too so its gret to hear a god story about them.

[Stone]

It would be the glasgow office for me too so its gret to hear a god story about them.

Aren't they the only office now? They dealt with me and I'm way down south (and yes, they were lovely)

Stone

[SAMMY]

Oh my god!! Beware! I was just about completing the online form for access to work and got timed out!!!! AAArrrgggg. I have to start all over again!!! SAMMY

[Stone]

Couldn't find a 'general' AtW thread so I thought I'd put this in here.

My new chair got delivered! Unfortunately all the controls are megastiff and I just subluxed my wrist trying to move the seat I swear you couldn't make it up...unfortunately not a lot I can do, I have the chair as specified by my (qualified physio) assessor so they think I'm fixed now

Stone

[pink]

Stone,
can you not contact them again to explain? when I got my new chair throuh atw it was on a temporary basis for 2 weeks to ensure it was the right chair for me, regardless of the physio opinion, and was told to get in touch if there were any problems with it.

[dragondee]

ATW were great.
The chair the lady recommended for me didn't work either.
i've got a different one thats works OK, but it is now starting to feel a bit hard to sit on all day.
Dragondee

[hannah]

I've just had a brilliant access to work assessment. Obviously they can't fund fixing the entire air con system, but he is going to look into getting me a cooled suit like astronaughts wear as layer one of a space suit
And getting many fire doors so that I can open them, make the kitchen accessible, etc.

OF course, if they can't fix the air con then I won't be doing any of the stuff in the A2W report cos I'll have to leave work anyway, but at least I will then have a lot of useful info for whatever job I try next.
The chap also gave me his email address asking me to contact direct if things didn't work too well, or if I needed support with regards to constructive dismissal or the like. Really good experience, and although he knew nothing about PoTS or EDS he asked all the right questions and believed everything I said and took it on board.

[pink]

Really pleased they could help so much Hannah as you seem to be going through a really really rough time at the moment.

[pretzel]

Stone, what chair have you been recommended? I've just had one sent via an AXA assessment and the guys are coming to show me how to use it and make sure its set up OK on thursday, thing is I've had a quick look over it and I think that the controls are too stiff for me too.