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How to get disability equipment and assistive technology
This information applies to England and Wales.
There are various healthcare professionals you can talk to about equipment and assistive technology. This depends on:
- what help you need
- where you live and the services in your area
- the health and social services you use
- if you are in education or work
The process depends on:
- if the product is standard or needs to be tailored to you
- if it is available in your area
- how many teams are involved in your assessment
Skip to
- Who you can talk to
- Personal budgets
- Non-standard equipment
- Paying for equipment
- If you're in education or work
- Preparing for your meeting
- Keep records
- Challenging recommendations about NHS disability equipment
- Find out what equipment is available
- Your local authority can provide some equipment
- Talk to your healthcare professional again
- Explaining your needs
- Making a plan with your healthcare professional
- Trying equipment
- Explain why equipment is not working
- Asking for equipment
- If your health professional does not change their recommendation
- Complaints about healthcare professionals or health services
- If you’ve not been able to change a decision
- Fundraising for equipment
Warning Your right to ask
You might think that you will not receive the equipment you want. Remember you are the expert on your body or condition. It is your right to ask for what you need.
Who you can talk to
Talk to your GP first if you do not know what you need or do not use other healthcare services. They will help you work out who to speak to. They can refer you to other healthcare professionals.
If your GP is not aware of the referral process, ask to speak with another GP at the surgery. If this does not work, try searching what services are available in your area and contacting them directly.
Search local health services in England (NHS England)
Occupational Therapists (OT)
OTs can help you assess your needs and find out if a piece of equipment or assistive technology is right for you. Ask for an OT assessment through your GP or apply for a needs assessment.
Getting a social care needs assessment
Physiotherapists
Physios can help you assess equipment to help with mobility. Depending on where you live, you may be able to make an appointment yourself or you may need a referral from your GP.
Communication and assistive technology team
Some NHS Trusts and local authorities have a Communication and Assistive Technology team of specialists you can talk to about your needs. They can help with equipment like speech and hearing aids, personal alarms, phones, computers and software. If there's no team in your area, you may be able to speak with a technology expert through a local charity.
Community nurses
Nurses can help you assess your needs at home and get medical equipment like oxygen tanks, bins for used needles and catheters. They can also arrange repeat prescriptions for when items run out or need changing.
Dieticians
Dieticians can help you with any equipment related to eating, drinking and food preparation.
Sensory impairment teams
Many local authorities commission a sensory impairment service for people who experience sight or hearing loss.
Speech and language therapists (SLTs)
SLTs can talk to you about equipment and assistive technology relating to communication. This includes items like speaking aids and software.
Social workers
You can ask your social worker about equipment and assistive technology. They will help you find out who you need to talk to. If you do not have a social worker, you can apply for a needs assessment through your local authority. Or ask for a referral from another professional like your GP or OT.
Getting a social care needs assessment
Community rehabilitation services
If you've been in hospital or need rehab at home, your local community service can help you with equipment and assistive technology.
Orthotics and prosthetics departments
Orthotics and prosthetics teams at hospitals can give you equipment to wear that helps with mobility, or to recover or avoid injury. Talk to your local department about equipment like insoles, braces, splints, footwear, spinal jackets and specialist prosthetics.
Wheelchair services
You can get a referral from your GP or physiotherapist to your local NHS wheelchair service. They can help you with wheelchairs and mobility scooters.
Going private
If you do not get the referral you want through the NHS, you could pay to see a private healthcare professional to discuss your needs.
Find professionals through their governing bodies, such as:
Chartered Society of Physiotherapists
British Association of Prosthetists and Orthotists
Find a speech and language therapist (ASTLIP)
Warning NHS only covers what you need
The NHS can only meet your essential needs. They may not be able to give you the equipment you want. They might also start with basic equipment and only adjust their recommendation if it does not meet your needs.
Personal budgets
A personal budget is money from your local authority or the NHS that helps to fund your care and support.
You might be eligible for a personal budget if you:
- are disabled or care for a disabled person and
- have needs that are not met
Non-standard equipment
If you think the standard NHS equipment will not meet your needs, ask if you can apply for a personal health budget.
Personal health budgets
Sometimes you can use a personal health budget to pay for specialist equipment that’s not available from an NHS trust or local authority, such as:
- a device with communication apps
- hearing aids with more functionality so you can do your job
Personal wheelchair budget
The process is different for wheelchair users. You may be referred for a personal wheelchair budget if standard NHS wheelchairs do not meet your needs.
For example, all the NHS wheelchair models are heavier than your wheelchair. You need a lighter one because yours causes you pain and you cannot lift it into the car.
Paying for equipment
Most disabled people who need equipment to help them to live more independently can get it from their local authority.
Paying for disability equipment and assistive technology
As a last resort, you could look into raising the funds yourself, but get advice about the effect on your benefits.
Warning When you do not pay for your care and equipment
Local authorities cannot charge for some types of care and support. This includes:
- care for up to 6 weeks after you leave hospital (known as intermediate care or reablement)
- community equipment, such as aids and minor adaptations costing up to £1,000
- section 117 aftercare if you have been kept in hospital under the Mental Health Act
Aids and minor adaptations can include:
- grab rails
- a ramp into your home
- equipment like a walking stick or crutches
If you're in education or work
If you need equipment or assistive technology to help you in school and college, you can speak with a Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) or disability adviser. They can help you apply for an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
As a student, you can speak with your tutor about Disabled Students' Allowance to help get what you need and cover the cost.
At work, you can speak with your employer about Access to Work. You may be able to get a grant to help cover the cost of what you need.
Preparing for your meeting
You may not have much time to explain your needs to a healthcare professional like a doctor, OT or specialist. There are some things you can prepare to help you make the most of your time and receive the best support possible.
Explain your needs in writing
Before your phone call or meeting, write down:
- the task you want to do and why it is difficult
- things you have tried and why they do not work
- how you think the equipment or assistive technology will help you
This will be helpful if you have to speak with healthcare professionals who have not met you yet.
Finding the right equipment and assistive technology
Make a list of questions
Have a list of questions ready. You may want to ask them:
- what their role is and what team or service they work with
- their work mobile number, office number and email address
- what happens after your first meeting
- what the process is
- when you can expect to hear from them
- what you should do if you do not hear from them
- to give you a call in a week to update you
Keep records
Keep all the information about your case. Ask for copies of your assessments and discharge notes.
Make notes at every appointment, such as:
- dates you tried to contact them
- emails you sent
- their responses or emails they did not respond to
- notes on visits or appointments
- things you discussed and outcomes or actions you agreed
You can ask a family member, friend or advocate to help with this.
You can also ask for a copy of your health records from the service providing the equipment.
You may be able to use these if you need to complain.
Ask them to explain again if you do not understand something.
The process varies depending on what you need. It may take you longer to receive more complex equipment and technology. Some departments may also have a waiting list. You can call or email your healthcare professional to ask for an update.
Warning Hospital admissions can hold up referrals
Your community services and referrals may be put on hold when you are in hospital. Speak with your medical staff if you're worried about this.
You can ask for an OT assessment before you leave hospital without needing to see your GP. There may be a waiting list. Your community team will be different to the one you have in hospital.
Challenging recommendations about NHS disability equipment
The NHS looks at the simplest and most cost-effective products first and what’s available in your area. They may not be able to offer the exact piece of equipment or technology you want.
If your doctor, occupational therapist or specialist’s recommendations do not work for you, here’s how you can get the equipment you need.
Find out what equipment is available
Find out what equipment is on offer from your:
- local NHS trust or local integrated care board (ICB) in England
- Local Health Board in Wales
Knowing what equipment is available to you through the NHS can help you suggest alternatives.
Your local authority can provide some equipment
If your NHS cannot give you the equipment or a personal health budget, find out if you can get equipment through your local authority social care services.
Talk to your healthcare professional again
You are an expert in your body or condition. But sometimes it can feel hard when you disagree with your doctor, OT or specialist.
You know what you need. Your healthcare professional is there to help you find the right support. They should listen to you and your experience. They must put you at the centre of your care and support.
If you feel your healthcare professional has not done that, talk to them about your needs again. Ask for more information about:
- the process
- what you should expect and when things will be done
- what equipment is available to you
- getting equipment that’s not available as standard
You might want to take a family member, partner or friend for support and confidence.
You can also get support from the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS).
Find an advocate
An advocate is someone who helps you to say how things affect you and speak up for what you need.
Advocacy services are usually free.
Advocacy (Disability Rights UK)
Someone to speak up for you: advocate (NHS)
It is a good idea to mention you have an advocate, so they are included in meetings and emails.
Local independent organisations may also be able to provide you with an advocate.
Explaining your needs
Before talking to your healthcare professional, it can help to prepare what you want to say.
Write down:
- what you want help with
- why the recommended equipment will not meet those needs
- what equipment you think will help and why
- what equipment you’ve tried and why it does not help
It can also help to ask other doctors, OTs or specialists you’ve worked with to:
- make recommendations
- share existing reports and recommendations across your healthcare services
They can give advice that helps inform new recommendations. This can be useful when moving to adult services or a new area.
Making a plan with your healthcare professional
Your doctor, OT or specialist should work with you to set goals for what you want to do.
For example, being able to travel and move around without support so you can be more independent.
Ask your healthcare professional to make a plan with you. You can use the plan to discuss any recommendations that do not help you achieve your goals.
If you feel equipment is missing from the recommendations, ask why it is not included and explain why you think it should be. There will be some equipment the NHS cannot provide. But you can apply to your local authority for equipment and home adaptations too.
Trying equipment
Your healthcare professional may ask you to try out some basic equipment at home and any other places you’ll use it first. Then they’ll adjust their recommendations based on your feedback.
You should get a follow-up appointment. If you do not, you can ask for a review if the equipment does not meet your needs.
Sometimes trying equipment can help you show that it does not meet your needs.
Explain why equipment is not working
It’s important to say if equipment is not working for you. Explain what the problems are and why it’s not suitable for your needs.
For example, you could try saying:
You gave me this equipment to help with getting around the house. I am unable to do that because the equipment causes me pain. It takes me an unreasonable amount of time to get from A to B.
This is affecting my mental health and wellbeing because I’m frustrated, tired and feel isolated.
I’ve not been able to meet my goal set out in my plan and I need a different piece of equipment. Please find an alternative that we can look at together.
Try to be clear about why equipment is not meeting your needs, such as making pain worse or creating more barriers.
Some people say they feel guilty or ungrateful asking to change equipment the NHS has given them. But disability equipment is there to help you. If it’s not doing that, it’s OK to ask healthcare professionals to support you with this.
Asking for equipment
If there’s equipment you know will meet your needs, ask your healthcare professional for it. You will need to explain why you think the equipment will meet your needs better than their recommendation.
If your health professional does not change their recommendation
Healthcare professionals must explain why they cannot change a recommendation or agree to equipment you think will help. If you do not understand an answer, ask them to explain again.
You could also try asking:
- What does that mean for me?
- Why is the equipment not available?
- Why am I not able to get the equipment? How can we change that decision?
- What other ways are available to me to get the equipment?
You could also ask a family member, friend or professional advocate to go with you. They can take notes or advocate for you.
If your healthcare professional does not know the answers, they should find out for you. Your healthcare professional should make sure you get the equipment you need.
Complaints about healthcare professionals or health services
There are a few things you can do if you’re:
- having problems with the person handling your care
- struggling to change their recommendation or decision
Talk to a support service
First, get advice from a support service.
Show them the records you have.
You can ask for support from:
- the NHS Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
- an independent NHS Complaints Advocacy Service
They can give you advice and come to appointments with you. Your local authority can tell you who your NHS advocacy service provider is.
Find your local authority (GOV.UK)
Your local Healthwatch or Citizens Advice can also give you information about making a complaint.
NHS and social care complaints (Citizens Advice)
Meet your healthcare professional to complain
Tell them what you expected to happen and what you understood the outcomes would be. Explain why this has not happened and why you’re not happy with the service. Ask if you can work together to find a solution that will meet your needs.
Speak to your healthcare professional’s manager
If you’re still having problems, try speaking to their manager about the service or the problems you’re having.
For example, it could be that they:
- are not listening to you
- cannot offer the equipment you need
- are not helping you get the equipment, such as applying for a personal health budget
- do not have enough knowledge about your condition or available equipment
Contact the service on the phone or by email. Ask to speak to a manager about an issue or the person managing your care.
If you feel the problem is with the person and not the service, ask to see a different healthcare professional, such as another OT or specialist.
Follow the complaints procedure
If you’re still not getting the support you need, follow the formal complaints procedure. Every NHS trust must publish their complaints procedure.
Your rights under the NHS constitution (GOV.UK)
If the local authority is funding your equipment, you will need to follow the local authority’s complaints process.
Find your local authority (GOV.UK)
Keep a record
It can help to keep a record of your contact with your healthcare professional, such as:
- dates you tried to contact them
- emails you sent
- their responses or emails they did not respond to
- notes on visits or appointments
- things you discussed and outcomes or actions you agreed
You can ask a family member, friend or advocate to help with this.
You can also ask for a copy of your health records from the service providing the equipment. You may be able to use these when you complain. Contact the service to ask what you need to do to get your records. You may need to ask in writing.
If you’ve not been able to change a decision
If your complaint is unsuccessful and you still feel that you’re not being listened to, you could try going to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.
If you want advice on whether you can take legal action against a decision, you could try visiting your local Law Centre.
Fundraising for equipment
Some equipment or assistive technology may not be covered by the NHS, social care or benefits payments. You could try to get the equipment through grants or charitable funding instead.
Last reviewed by Scope on: 07/11/2024
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