SFE staff have mishandled my DSA claim, what can I do?

Hello,

What recourse do I have available to me for my current situation? I will explain below.

On the 14th of November I had an email confirmation from my needs assessment centre saying that my final report had been sent to my funding body (SFE) and my university (Plymouth).

On the 21st of November I made two phone calls to SFE:

The first phone call was around 3pm, and I asked what the current work timeline was looking like. I got told that SFE were working on an 8 working day timeline and I should expect my entitlement (DSA2) letter on either Friday the 24th or is the post is slow I would definitely have it by Monday the 27th. I mentioned my intention to purchase a laptop (covered in my needs assessment) over the open market instead of through the assistive technology supplier; but that I still would require the funding through SFE.

The SFE staff member I had on the phone seemed confused by my request and couldn't understand why I would want to purchase a laptop through the open market instead of through the assistive technology supplier. So I explained that I could find better equipment much cheaper elsewhere.

I even double checked that I had the procedure correct with the lady on the phone; that I would be liable for the first £200 contribution, SFE would then fund up to the cost of the laptop I would have recieved from the assistive technology supplier and I would then be further liable for any costs after that in order to complete the purchase.

I ended the conversation quite confused because the SFE staff member also seemed quite unknowledgeable of the system, even when I (as a student) tried to explain what I had read in the DSA guideline PDF... Where it explicitly describes this very scenario (it displays 3 difference scenarios and how each works) of a student who wishes to still recieve funding through SFE but wishes to upgrade through the open market.

Because of this confusion (I have Aspergers) I phoned back a second time around 6pm on the same day. This time the SFE staff member was far more knowledgeable and explained the process to me, where in by upon receipt of my entitlement (DSA2) letter, which I should have recieved on the 24th (or 27th at the latest) I would then have to contact the assistive technology supplier and let them know of my intention to purchase from the open market instead. Which would prompt them to contact SFE and update my assessment quotes.

I was advised I could purchase my laptop as soon as I had my entitlement (DSA2) letter, so long as it met the specification criteria, which again was outlined in the DSA guideline PDF. The laptop I wish to purchase nearly triples the benchmark requirement for the software I will be receiving so no issues there, I have done my research.


This is where the problems begin.

I checked my emails the morning of the 24th and found that at 11:07pm the night before, that SFE had sent me an email stating:

-----

Dear Mr Bulled,

We are writing to advise that your Needs Assessment Report has been
received.

Your report is being reviewed and we will release your DSA entitlement
letter confirming the support agreed within the next 10 working days.

Yours sincerely,


Andy Sutton | On Behalf of the DSA Team
Student Loans Company
Memphis Building, Lingfield Point, Darlington DL1 1RW

-----

I didn't understand why I would receive such an email and what alarmed me most was that I would have to wait a further 2 weeks, when multiple people at SFE had already confirmed that I should be receiving that letter that very same day. This is considering I had applied for DSA in July and it would already be half way through my first year of university before I would be in receipt of my support anyway, yet another delay was unacceptable...

So I phoned SFE and got told that the reason I had received that email was because someone at SFE had removed the laptop from my claim and that it would need to be reassessed and new quotes would be need to be sent out and agreed upon.

That was not what I said! I have read the guidelines PDF very closely multiple times and it even explicitly states my scenario within the document!

What happens now? What can I do? I have left an email with the DSA team but they are telling me they have a 5 working day turnaround right now. I have tried talking to SFE again but nobody there can do anything or tell me anything more because apparently it is in the hands of DSA now.

I even found a number direct to the DSA team, that students aren't supposed to have access too, and tried phoning them myself. To which I had a very angry person on the other end of the phone asking me how I got this number!

What can I do? I am lost.

Thanks.

Hi Catherine,

Thank you for those 24 words, they are very helpful.

If you had read my post, granted it is some 800+ words long, I have already stated I have done what you advised.

I refuse to believe it is the only thing I can do in my situation. I am not just impatient and wanting to hurry the process alone, I am a victim of someone botching my claim!

Imagine if I had a physical disability which prevented me from attending, or required a note taker or other such support. As things stand right now, I won't be receiving my support, due to continued delays and mishandling of my claim, until mid January. That is 6 months after I applied.

Is there not some sort of emergency contact number where I can talk to somebody directly? Leaving disabled students out in the cold like this is disgraceful.

Thanks again