Disability living allowance
If the child placed with you for adoption gets disability living allowance (DLA) (or the Scottish replacement to DLA for children, child disability payment, once it is introduced – see here), s/he continues to receive it when s/he comes to live with you, provided s/he continues to satisfy the normal conditions of entitlement. If the child has been in local authority accommodation (eg, in a residential unit) before coming to live with you, the DLA care component may have stopped being paid. Inform the Disability Benefit Centre (see Appendix 1) that the child is now living with you and the care component should be paid again. When a child under 16 gets DLA, an adult is appointed to act on her/his behalf. This person receives payment of the child’s DLA. The appointee is usually the child’s parent. When a child comes to live with you, you can apply to become the appointee by writing to the Disability Benefit Centre, giving the child’s name, date of birth and reference number if you have it (you will find it on any letters from the Disability Benefit Centre). Also provide your details (name, address, date of birth and national insurance number) and explain the circumstances.