Disabled Students' Allowances (DSA)

Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs)

Administered by: Student Finance England, Student Finance Wales, Student Finance Northern Ireland and Student Awards Agency Scotland.

Eligibility: disabled full-time, part-time and/or postgraduate home students.

Type of Funding: non-means tested and non-repayable.

DSAs are intended to cover any additional study-related costs that disabled students incur because of their impairment. They cannot be used to cover a) any costs that a non-disabled student could also be reasonably expected to incur or b) any costs that a disabled student would incur whether they were a student or not.

There are four types of allowance included under DSAs;
 * 1) Specialist equipment allowance
 * 2) * For: computers, digital recorders and other equipment, as well as installation and training costs.
 * 3) * Maximum amount: £5,212 / degree
 * 4) Non-medical helper’s allowance
 * 5) * For: notetakers, sign language interpreters, readers and other non-medical assistants
 * 6) * Maximum amount: £20,725 / year
 * 7) General allowance
 * 8) * For: consumables (e.g. paper, printer ink, charges for photocopying/scanning). Can also be used to top up the above allowances if needed.
 * 9) * Maximum amount: £1,741
 * 10) Travel allowance (not available in Scotland)
 * 11) * For: additional travel costs
 * 12) * Maximum amount: none

In 2012/13;

56,600 full-time undergraduate students received £127.6m in DSA funding, 3000 part-time undergraduates received £7.3m and 4900 post-graduate students received £10.9m.