Talk Money week – how we’re supporting families facing steep costs to raise a disabled child

We’re taking part in Talk Money Week again (a campaign led by Money Helper that encourages people to talk about money and financial wellbeing) to support families caring for disabled children who are living under high financial pressure, faced with high extra caring costs, and are able to work less than they want to.

The ‘Missing Out’ report 2024 by Policy in Practice estimates that £23 billion of financial support is unclaimed every year across the UK. And when adding disability benefits and discretionary support, this figure rises to £30 billion.

Financial support we offer

Knowing what services are available, and how to access them, can increase household income and boost financial confidence. We offer financial support to families through our services:

• Financial support workshops – help families explore what financial support is available and how to use the free online benefit checker tool.
• Our Discover more support search tool – shows all the organisations and charities that can help families with money and benefits.
• In our Interactive courses – families can learn how to use the GOV.UK website, check their benefits and manage bills online. Access these sessions at any time that works best.

How our ‘Checking benefits online’ workshop helped Sophie

Sophie lives in Leicester with her partner Richard and their children: twelve-year-old Dylan, six-year-old Jake, and two-year-old Daisy. Jake was diagnosed as autistic when he was five years old, and is on the pathway for an ADHD diagnosis.

”Raising a child with additional needs is more expensive. Jake’s conditions affect our family’s day-to-day financial situation.”

“Jake has a little sensory room under the stairs which he goes to when he needs to calm down. We also own a hot tub, which Jake uses to relax and calm down. We use more fuel as we must drive to multiple hospital appointments and he doesn’t cope well with public transport. All these costs add up.”

Sophie attended our ‘Check your benefits online’ workshop:

“It was easy to sign up and attend, and the information from the workshop was valuable and easy to understand. Raising a child with additional care needs, my life is very busy. Sometimes it’s hard to keep track of everything. Attending the workshop confirmed that I was receiving the correct benefits and getting everything I was entitled to.

“I would definitely recommend this workshop to others. It’s important to check you’re getting the right amount of financial support.”