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Who can apply for access to work?
Access to work is a government funded initiative that provides help for people with disabilities
to actually perform functions as anybody else might
The access to work program applies to anybody in employment
You dont have to be on a contract of employment in order to apply for access to work, so in my case I applied as a self employed person
How do you apply and how long does it take?
Make an initial phone call, and its simple from there on
I would say it's very easy to apply
the people who answered the phone were very helpful, they understood what it was that I was asking for,
which was an application form
it was a very simple form, they are very helpful on the phone, and actually everything was pretty well done for me
and all the way through they said can we help you with this, do you want it in this format, that format
They were very aware of my personal needs and it wasn't bureaucratic I think the most bureaucratic thing i had to do
was, you know, write my national issuance number
Its not frightening, once you've made that initial phone call
its all plain sailing really, and very quick
I was quite amazed at how quick the whole process was, and how easy.
It was a simple phone call, it was a discussion
over the phone about what I did
and then I had to fill out a form but it was a very simple procedure
and when i spoke to people on the telephone initially
they were very professional
They went through all sorts of questions with me and actually explained what would happen
next, how long it would take and in fact the approval came quite quickly.
When I initially made the phone call to Access to Work
I had to go to through an application form over the telephone
and just answer a few basic questions about my disability, the difficulties I find at work,
and just basic questions on that and in a few days I got quite a swift response.
I think the initial contact was via email, but it was perfectly OK for me to call up the main call centre
and they would answer my questions over the phone.
What support can I get?
Access to Work provided me with screen magnification software
(which also talks sometimes)
and they have provided me with a video magnifier
and also a support worker.
I get my transport costs paid for me
and I've got some adaptive technology to help me do my job better
The equipment I have is not complicated
its voice recognition software which allows me to dictate text rather than type
access to work provides interpreters for me
and also a communication support worker
The help I got from access to work was they sent round a support worker now and again
and she really helped me out with my daily routine
I've had an exceptional level of support
from Access to Work. I had help with adaptations to my vehicle
and in fact a couple of wheelchairs along the ride as well
To be told the level of support I can have is a support worker, transport, travel for them
to come with me when i'm using my trips to attend weekly meetings in London
It made recommendations for me
and in the recommendations, i had
text-to-speech software so that i could have documents read aloud to me [computer text-to-speech]
If I can hear my work read, I can recognise
the mistakes that I might have made
Its also given me mind-mapping software to organise my thoughts and processes
I have lots of ideas, but they are a bit jumbled
and this helps me to put things into order and into perspective
It helps me to save things so that I dont forget
and puts them into a constructive order for me
They also gave me voice-activated software so that i could speak to my computer
and I didnt have to worry about the spelling problem
I've also been provided with a support worker, to help with my organisation and proofreading
so I dont feel like its
something I'm putting on my colleagues all the time.
That was a bit embarrasing really, because I'm sure they've got enough of their own work to do without having to cope with me.
How do I know what support I need?
after i made contact with Access to Work
I was given a workplace assessment.
When I got in contact with them they said that someone would come and see me,
have a look at my work station, and just
try and find out a bit more about my disability and the type of work I do.
by doing that they really seem to understand
what type of difficulty I would have in the workplace
what type of
adaptions or ways of working
can help me in order to acheive the best of my abilities
We would always prefer to see the real situation in which work is done
and that means visiting
people at home as well as at work
Our only criteria for success in an assessment is that somebody's life is enhanced by that
process, and they are better off after it than they were before
We would always want people to know that an assessment is about empowering them,
as they are.
To be everything they wish to be, and everything they can be
The assessment was quite interesting because I had never used any adaptive technology in my life
Going through that process was really good and they were able to help me, give me some good ideas,
a few tips here and there, that I hadn't thought of
that I was able to bring back and incorporate into what I'm doing in my workplace
What are employer's responsibilities?
Access to work has made it possible for me
to take the measures that i have done to make sure my employees
all have the facilities and the help they need to do their job. Thats what they're paid for.
It's incredibly inefficient
for them to go off sick with minor problems like back pain or stress
if its something that we could easily avoid by making this available to them
and the access to work is
an angel in disguise that gives us the help to do it
By actually providing this to the employees
not only you are
providing an environment, a caring environment, you're actually making them more efficient
So as time goes on, they will eventually become an incredibly valuable member of your company
and they are the ones who tend to stay with the company longest, and are more loyal
Who did we talk to?
I thought I'd qualify for access to work because I'm deaf
I suffer from mild cerebral palsy, I have done since birth
I'm partially sighted
I was diagnosed with asperger's syndrome at the age of 3
I have motor nerve damage in my
shoulders, my left arm, my left leg
I have some post-viral fatigue, and I have some congnitive symptoms which are very much like
severe dyslexia
I'm a dyslexic person and dyslexia comes into the disability discrimination act
and Access to Work help dyslexic people
I have a very rare condition called Moebius syndrome and only about 200 people in the country have it
I have a disability called spinal muscular atrophy
which basically means that I have an overall weakness of muscles.
I have cerebral palsy and dyslexia