• Registered Charity in England and Wales No. 1192653
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Disability Benefits Mentoring

Bringing you some DL-yay!!

A woman with long hair, a stripy top and jeans, looking like she has had a victory and is celebrating at something she is looking at on her laptop, which is on a coffee table in front of her

A WhatsApp group with Benefits

We get the feeling. You know it’s very likely that your child / children would be entitled to DLA or PIP but finding the time / motivation / brain power to fill the form in effectively feels like just ... too much.

Our mentoring project improves adopters’ access to DLA or PIP via the provision of Volunteer Mentors who will shepherd adopters through the application processes. The Adoption England funding covers our admin and staff costs. Having volunteer mentors means we can offer this service to adopters for free. 

Our mentoring project helps parents/carers of children who have experienced early trauma claim DLA or PIP. This funding can really help families meet their children’s needs and build in some respite time. Support is given by a squad of much-valued Volunteer Mentors, which means we can offer parents/carers this service for at no cost.

Mentors will use their experience of filling in their own forms to help other adopters reflect on their children’s needs, and their parenting/caring experiences, and most accurately and clearly represent them on benefit application forms.  

Mentors will provide guidance to up to four parents/carers at a time over video calls. A time-limited WhatsApp group chat will also enable parents/carers to ask questions as they fill out the forms.

Oh and that DL-yay? That’s the flash of joy when you spot a backpayment has just dropped into your bank account. Works just as well for PIP!

Speech bubble that says "So what's DLA & PIP" in it - with the speech bubble callout facing right

Is this right for you?

  • You’re happy to share details of your child’s needs/behaviour and family life with other parents/carers and a mentor (everything stays confidential, subject to our safeguarding policy),
  • You’d appreciate tailored help in how to fill those large open spaces on the benefit forms, and answer in ways that best represent your family’s needs. 
  • You’d benefit from the motivation of knowing that all group members are on the same timescale to finish and submit forms.
  • You’d enjoy being part of a WhatsApp group with up to three other parents/carers also filling their forms in. (It’s quite the bonding experience!)
  • You’re an adopter, special guardian, or kinship carer living in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland (Scotland has a different system).
Request to join a group

What’s in it for Volunteer Mentors?

  • Becoming part of the Belay Foundation team. We are staffed by a small group of adoptive parents bound by our common lived experience, and our commitment to supporting other adoptive, special guardian and kinship families. Compassion and collaboration are at the heart of our service. Training in group facilitation and safeguarding will be given, as well as the detail of the benefits application process. We also offer on-going support from our team, as well as a peer support group with other Mentors. 
  • Gaining experience of group facilitation and advice work, useful for job applications.  
  • Using your hard-won knowledge of this part of the benefit system, gained through your own DLA or PIP applications, to benefit other adopters, special guardians and kinship carers. If your family life is chaotic, this is one way to feel a genuine sense of achievement and structure (and frankly, distraction!).  
  • A strong sense of community. Belay’s Disability Benefits Mentoring WhatsApp groups will last for a few months, until each parent/carer has posted their application. Our experience has shown that some strong bonds often form during this process. Mentors’ advice will be highly valued by users.
Woman with a notepad and coffee at a table
Woman peering over calculator with a file of papers

What do we need from Volunteer Mentors?

  • At least three years’ experience of being an adopter, special guardian or kinship carer 
  • Previous experience of applying for DLA/PIP 
  • Good communication skills 
  • Empathy 
  • Time: 
    *To begin with, a half day to complete training and induction. 
    *For each DLA group you mentor (a process we estimate could take up to two months), it is likely to take around one day in total for you to run video calls, respond to messages, and deal with admin. PIP groups will take less time. 
    This can all be flexible to your availability; you can take breaks between groups. 
  • A DBS check (we’ll organise and pay for this), plus your social worker’s email address so we can check that you are an adopter, special guardian or kinship carer. 
  • We hope you’ll be able to be a mentor for at least six months (but also understand that circumstances can change, especially in our lives). 
Interested in becoming one of our Volunteer Mentors? Fill in this form and we’ll get back to you soon to arrange an initial chat. 
Mentor Registration Form

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