What is Disability Access Fund (DAF)
The Disability Access Fund (DAF) is a funding for early years providers to support children with disabilities or special educational needs. It aids access to early years places by supporting providers in making reasonable adjustments to their settings.
Eligibility
Children will be eligible for the Disability Access Fund if they meet the following criteria:
- the child is in receipt of child disability living allowance (DLA) and;
- the child accesses a funded entitlement at the early years provider.
Entitlement
Providers taking children that are eligible for the Disability Access Fund will be entitled to receive a one-off payment each year the child remains eligible. The Disability Access Fund is not based on an hourly rate and is an additional entitlement.
Children do not have to take up the full 1140 hours of early education they are entitled to in order to receive the Disability Access Fund. Children in receipt of the Disability Access Fund will be eligible when they take-up any period of free entitlement.
Identifying eligible children and application
Early years providers are encouraged to speak to parents in order to find out which children are in receipt of Disability Living Allowance.
Parents of children in receipt of Disability Living Allowance are required to provide evidence and complete the declaration form (a copy of which should be kept by the provider).
Parents who attend more than one provider need to be aware that only one payment can be made and they must nominate which provider that should be.
Providers need to email earlyyearsfunding@bury.gov.uk with:
- Disability Living Allowance award letter.
How early years providers will receive DAF
- The full allocation will be made in one payment.
- The Disability Access Fund will not be offset against any other funding which the local authority may ordinarily be providing for children eligible for the Disability Access Fund.
- If a child eligible for the Disability Access Fund is splitting their funded entitlement across two or more providers, the local authority will ask parents to nominate the main provider. The Local Authority will then pay this provider the Disability Access Fund for the child.
- If a child receiving the Disability Access Fund moves from one provider to another, the new provider is not eligible to receive the Disability Access funding for this child for the same period already claimed by the previous provider. Disability Access funding received by the original setting will not be recouped by the local authority.
- Disability Access Fund requests will be processed on a monthly basis.
How to use DAF
It is the responsibility of the provider to identify what reasonable adjustments may be required to enable the child to have equal access to the provision in the same way as another child. This should include providing basic entry into the setting. Providers must use their own judgement and experience of the child and setting to make decisions around the spending of DAF. Providers should liaise with the child’s parents and engage with relevant professionals to ensure the DAF is spent appropriately. The DAF cannot be used towards childcare fees or providing more Funded hours.
Providers who have more than one child that will be eligible for DAF may use the money for all children as one pot of money to support an adjustment or purchase resources that will benefit more than one child.
Any resources purchased as part of DAF remain the property of the provider and the resources can be used to support current and future children to access the provision. However, if a child is moving onto another provider, you may decide to make arrangements for the transfer of any resources that will benefit the child’s access into the new provider. This will only be possible for non-static items and is at the discretion of the provider who purchased the equipment.
Resources can be shared with parents to be used at home during weekends and holidays if it is felt it will benefit the child. Providers are expected to spend the full allocation on the child, and if the equipment/adjustment is more than that amount, providers are expected to fund this gap.
Providers must keep receipts and proof of what the DAF has been spent on. Ofsted are interested in the quality of support for any children with SEND: ‘Inspectors will evaluate the impact of additional funding and any additional support and/or arrangements for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).