GOVERNMENT FUNDED COACHING

Accessible Support for All Through Government Funding

Clients based in the UK can benefit from support from the government to help fund coaching: Through education, health care (EHC) plan, the disabled students’ allowance (DSA) and Access to Work.

What is Access to Work?

Find out more about the UK government scheme

Access to Work is a UK government-funded scheme through the Department of Work & Pensions (DWP). If you have a disability or condition, such as ADHD, dyslexia, autism or anxiety* that makes it difficult for you to do your job, you can apply for funding to get support such as coaching.

* You do not need a formal diagnosis to qualify.

  • Executive function (job) coaching
  • Access to a support worker
  • Support, including counselling
  • Adaptations and equipment

  • Any one doing paid work, or just about to start (employed or self-employed)
  • Working in England, Wales or Scotland – Northern Ireland has its own system.

If you are a civil servant you will not be eligible. (Sorry we don’t make the rules)

We know that getting round to completing forms can be a challenge so if you contact us, we can complete the form together and you can get it submitted!

It is an on-line application form. You will need to hand:

  • Your personal details
  • Details about your disability/health condition and how it affects you
  • Your workplace address and postcode
  • The name of a workplace contact; their email address and work phone number
  • (Only if you’re self-employed) Your unique tax reference number

The government form is not as tricky as you might expect.

Here’s a video guide.


Please note: We are only able to accommodate Access to Work clients with 1:1 coaching services if their employer is happy to pay our invoices within our 14 day payment terms and claim back the costs from the Department for Work and Pensions.


Alternatively, you are able to sign up to our direct debit scheme and pay our invoices and claim the money back from the Department for Work and Pensions.

What is the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA)?

Find out more about the UK government scheme

Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) is support to cover the study-related costs you have because of a mental health problem, long term illness or any other disability.

This can be on its own or in addition to any student finance you get.

The type of support and how much you get depends on your individual needs – not your household income.

You do not need to pay back DSA.

You can get help with the costs of:

  • specialist equipment, for example a computer if you need one because of your disability
  • non-medical helpers, for example a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter or specialist note taker
  • extra travel to attend your course or placement because of your disability
  • other disability-related study support, for example having to print additional copies of documents for proof-reading
  • DSA does not cover disability-related costs you’d have if you were not attending a course, or costs that any student might have.

You can apply for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) if you live in England and have a disability that affects your ability to study, such as a:

  • specific learning difficulty, for example dyslexia or ADHD
  • mental health condition, for example anxiety or depression
  • physical disability, for example if you have to use crutches, a wheelchair or a special keyboard
  • sensory disability, for example if you’re visually impaired, deaf or have a hearing impairment
  • long-term health condition, for example cancer, chronic heart disease or HIV

You must also:

  • be an undergraduate or postgraduate student (including Open University or distance learning)
  • qualify for student finance from Student Finance England
  • be studying on a course that lasts at least a year

How you apply for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) depends on whether you’re studying full-time or part-time. Click here for more details on the gov.uk website

How long it takes

You’ll get confirmation of whether your application is successful within 6 weeks.

It can take up to 14 weeks to get your DSA support in place as this is done separately.

What is an EHC Plan?

Find out more about the UK government scheme.

An education, health and care (EHC) plan is for children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is available through special educational needs support.

EHC plans identify educational, health and social needs and set out the additional support to meet those needs.

This information is taken directly from the gov.uk website click here to access the site.


Requesting an EHC assessment

You can ask your local authority to carry out an assessment if you think your child needs an EHC plan.

A young person can request an assessment themselves if they’re aged 16 to 25.

A request can also be made by anyone else who thinks an assessment may be necessary, including doctors, health visitors, teachers, parents and family friends.

If they decide to carry out an assessment you may be asked for:

  • any reports from your child’s school, nursery or childminder
  • doctors’ assessments of your child
  • a letter from you about your child’s needs

The local authority will tell you within 16 weeks whether an EHC plan is going to be made for your child.

Creating an EHC plan

Your local authority will create a draft EHC plan and send you a copy.

You have 15 days to comment, including if you want to ask that your child goes to a specialist needs school or specialist college.

Your local authority has 20 weeks from the date they receive the request for the assessment to give you the final EHC plan.

Disagreeing with a decision

You can challenge your local authority about:

  • their decision to not carry out an assessment
  • their decision to not create an EHC plan
  • the special educational support in the EHC plan
  • the school named in the EHC plan

If you cannot resolve the problem with your local authority, you can appeal to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Tribunal.

Connections in Mind have helped a number of parents over the years to get funded coaching through an EHC plan. It is not a quick process and often requires a lot of persistence on the part of the parents.

We can provide:

  • details of our credentials
  • bespoke quotations for our service
  • case studies of how coaching has helped other students on EHC plan funding in the past

If you decide to take your case to tribunal we can also sign post you to external specialists who can help support you.

Please contact us for more information about how we can help.