Dear All, please help! I ha ve tried and tried to ring DIAL over the last week. I just went to thir offices in Southend to be told that they no longer exist and go to themCAB. I went to the CAnB to speak to this useless fat old lump who only wanted to get rid of me. Mashed kept saying that ‘we don’t fill forms in, we don’t have the time’. Can somebody fill it in in pencil and we can check it? She said I can have a drop in appointment for ten minute for an initial assessment. She had never heard of ATOS and, kept on about DLA. I am going tomorrow for a ten minute assessment. Is there anywhere else I cannot get help with this form? Pat
Pat
This particular form is soul destroying, I don’t know what to recommend by way of getting assistance, the cab are just over-run with it all, so the person you spoke to is probably correct in saying that they really can’t spend lengthy amounts of time on very lengthy and complex forms. It will take you a long time to complete it and you will see that there is a deadline. I’ve just google’d “guide to completing the ESA50” there were lots of results. Try that to begin with, you can pick out the advice that best fit’s you. If it’s not the ESA50 form you have then substitute your search for the correct form number.
I don’t envy you, I do hope you will be okay with it.
Good luck.
Bill.
How about your local MS Society? Ring the helpline number and see if there is someone who can help. Give your gp surgery a ring, ours has someone employed to help with benefits. The only reason I know this is that it was on the display screen that turns round a continuous message the last time I was at the surgery. I cant believe they are unique, not being the most up to date of places.
There is help available, it is just finding it that is the problem.
Regards
Hi Pat,
The ESA50 is a lousy form and I can understand you wanting to get some help filling it in.
However I firmly believe that you can do it 100x better yourself. Plan to do it over a number of days and just do a bit at a time. Don’t worry about spelling or handwriting – so long as you get your meaning across it doesn’t matter if your writing skills are poor. There is a pdf version of the form (just Google esa50 pdf) that you can fill in on the computer and then just print off and post in the normal way. This will solve any writing/spelling problems.
If you have a friend or family member who can help you – so much the better. I find that I will gloss over things that someone else will point out are problems.
Bill suggested finding some good resources by using Google. My recommendation would be www.benefitsandwork.co.uk It costs £20.00 to join but their guide to the ESA50 is very good.
I think the key is not to panic. You can describe your difficulties far better than an advice worker who met you 10 minutes ago. Write each answers in “Word” – sleep on it and review what you have put before you commit it to the form.
I can understand CAB not being very helpful about filling in this form. A DLA form can take more than 2 hours and is nowhere near as long as this. But you will be able to do it yourself if you read one of the many guides and take it steady
Good Luck
Jane
The Benfitsandwork site is very good and has guides to filling out the forms. It costs about £20 a year and is well worth it in my opinion.
If the form is for ESA you can also download it from the directgov site and fill it in and print it off, which is great if your writing is anything like mine.
Good luck,
Mags xx
Have you got a Neuro support centre. They employ people who are trained in filling in forms. Chis
Hey Pat
As has been recommended here get the ESA50 pdf and join the Benefits and Work website.
What you must do is back the form up with medical evidence. There is a box to tick on the form that indicates you will be sending medical evidence with the form. Make an appointment to see your MS nurse as soon as you can. Beofre you see the MS nurse have the for filled in and get her to write a medical report based on the descriptors that you have used to fill in the form. Ideally the report should have a separate paragraph for every descriptor you have filled in. It should be accurate and unambigious so that they have no chance of lowering the points uyou should be awarded for that particular descriptor.
Please remembr to send the form to Atos at least recorded delivery and of you can also send a copy of the report to the decision maker at your local Benefit Delivery Centre. IF you need hep please holler as I have been through the mill with this myself and I know how stressful it can be. If I can help anypne NOT go through the same sh!te that I had to then I will help in any way I can.
Andy
Free download is ms essentials booklet 29 - an ESA help and guidelines booklet with descriptors and scoring details. People don’t make enough use of the resources freely available via our own MS Society. It’s worth a look. Roger
Pat, do you have a welfare rights organisation who can help you with it? They helped me and my son when he had to fill it in (he cannot read nor write and I have writing issues due to ms).
They have helped lots of people complete them.
Good luck,
bren
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