Once you have attended your Study Needs Assessment, you will receive a DSA-2 entitlement letter within around 10 working days of the funding body receiving your Study Needs Assessment report. Take the time to read every page of your DSA-2 entitlement letter. See an example DSA-2 letter here.

It will tell you:

• What support and/or equipment you are entitled to from DSA, such as the Present Pal app

• Who the suppliers of the support and/or equipment are.

• How to access this support and/or equipment.

Your DSA-2 entitlement letter will be split into different sections. You may see all of these sections, or only a few. This is dependent on what type of support you are entitled to.

These sections cover:

• Specialist equipment allowance.

• Non-medical helper allowance.

• General allowance.

• Travel allowance.

If you are entitled to specialist equipment, for each item, you will be able to see:

• The item details, such as Present Pal for presentation support

• Who the supplier is.

• The supplier’s contact details.

• Your quote number.

• The amount that you will pay the supplier. This may be £200 if you are contributing towards the cost of a laptop.

• The amount that the funding body will pay the supplier.

See an example DSA-2 Letter Below

To access your specialist equipment:

1. Contact the supplier using their contact details.

2. Let them know that you would like to access your equipment and organise the £200 laptop contribution if required.

3. Provide them with your quote number and a copy of your DSA-2 entitlement letter.

4. The supplier will then arrange the delivery of your equipment. Your equipment includes insurance. As soon as you receive your equipment, you must familiarise yourself with the terms and conditions of this insurance.

Some universities might offer support to some students who are asked to pay £200 towards the cost of a laptop. ask your Disability Adviser for more information about whether the support is available, if you would qualify for support, and how to apply.

If you see Present Pal on your DSA-2 letter, find out how to get access below.

If you have been recommended specialist ergonomic equipment, you will undergo a separate assessment from your initial Study Needs Assessment, just to make sure the equipment recommended suits your individual needs.

A separate report will be sent to the funding body, and you will receive an updated DSA-2 entitlement letter with details on how to access this specialist ergonomic equipment.

You can request an ergonomic assessment for free or you may be referred for the assessment, with details provided in DSA-2 letter.

If you are entitled to non-medical help, for each item, you will see:

• The item details, such as a support worker. This may also include training for assistive software if applicable.

• Who the supplier is.

• The supplier’s contact details.

• The duration of this support.

• The amount that the funding body will pay the supplier.

To access your non-medical help:

1. Contact the supplier using their contact details to let them know that you would like to arrange your support.

2. Once the initial contact has been made, you can then discuss availability and any other arrangements needed to access your non-medical helper support.

3. If you are entitled to any non-medical helper support where the supplier is the University or College you attend, get in touch with or look out for emails from the Learning Support Team.

For each item of support, you will see:

• The item details, such as printing credit

• The amount of money that is available to you.

To access your support:

1. Purchase any items listed.

2. Submit your reimbursement claims along with copies of your receipts to the funding body.

3. The funding body will reimburse the amount directly to your bank account once the claim has been processed.

If you are entitled to help with printing and/or photocopying costs, you will need to submit your receipts of any printing and/or photocopying that you do to the funding body in order to be reimbursed for any costs. Your university or college library can issue you with a printout of your printing history, which can act as a receipt.

If you are entitled to help with travel costs, you will pay what the equivalent public transport cost of your journey is, and the funding body will pay the rest.

If you are using taxis, you will see:

• The travel agreed between, which will tell you the agreed journey between your home or accommodation and the University.

• The number of journeys per year (which may be single journeys or return journeys).

• The taxi cost.

• The equivalent public transport cost, which is the amount that you will pay.

• The amount that the funding body will pay towards the cost of the journey.

Depending on the number of journeys, or your funding body, you may need to do one of the following:

1. Contact a licensed local taxi firm asking them to set up an account with the funding body. They can then claim back the DSA contribution to the cost of the journeys directly from the funding body. You will need to arrange how to pay your contribution for each taxi journey directly to the taxi company.

2. Or, you may need to keep your receipts for each journey and send them to the funding body, who will reimburse you for the amount agreed for each journey.

If you are using your own vehicle, the funding body will pay a set cost per mile of your journey, which you will be reimbursed for minus the cost of the equivalent public transport journey. A detailed breakdown of the costs and how to claim back these costs will be specified on your DSA-2 entitlement letter.