The Concept
DLA considers what support your child would need without:
- Medication
- Aids and adaptations
- Routines you've established
- Equipment
This matters because these supports mask the underlying need.
If melatonin helps your child sleep, the form wants to know what sleep would look like without it.
Why It Matters
You've worked hard to manage your child's needs. The supports you've put in place are working — which is why things might seem "okay."
But the support itself is the evidence of need.
Examples
With support:
"He takes melatonin and sleeps through most nights now."
Without support:
"Without melatonin, he would take 2-3 hours to fall asleep. Before we had melatonin, he was awake until midnight every night. We had to lie with him the entire time."
With support:
"She uses a visual timetable and manages transitions quite well."
Without support:
"Without the visual timetable, she would have meltdowns at every transition — 8-10 times per day, lasting 20-30 minutes each. We know this because when the timetable wasn't followed on a school trip, she had 6 meltdowns in one day."
Same-Age Comparison
DLA also considers how your child's needs compare to a same-age child without a disability.
How to describe it:
"A typical 8-year-old can get dressed in 10 minutes without help. Sophie needs 45 minutes with constant prompting."
"A same-age child would walk to the local shops (5 minutes away) independently. He cannot walk that far without sitting, and cannot be left unsupervised due to road safety."
If you have a same-age sibling, they're a natural comparison:
"His twin sister is ready in 10 minutes, no help. He needs 45 minutes with constant prompting."
What Aubis Does
Aubis DLA asks:
- What happens with current supports in place?
- What would happen without them?
- How does this compare to a same-age child?
It captures both the managed situation and the underlying need.
Aubis scribes. You decide.