{"id":602,"date":"2025-04-27T14:00:36","date_gmt":"2025-04-27T14:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pharosstory.com\/?p=602"},"modified":"2025-05-02T02:35:04","modified_gmt":"2025-05-02T02:35:04","slug":"i-was-made-to-pay-10-to-prove-i-didnt-have-a-hand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pharosstory.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/27\/i-was-made-to-pay-10-to-prove-i-didnt-have-a-hand\/","title":{"rendered":"I was made to pay \u00a310 to prove I didn\u2019t have a hand"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\"Emily\t<\/div>
The questioning felt strange (Picture: Emily Tisshaw)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I stared at my computer screen in confusion at two little words: \u2018Supporting evidence\u2019. <\/p>\n

It was 2017 and I was almost done filling out the paperwork for my first Personal Independence Payment<\/a> (PIP) assessment when I hit this roadblock. <\/p>\n

Did \u2018supporting evidence\u2019 of my disability<\/a> mean I had to take a photo of it? Or would they already know about it from the years my mum claimed Disability Living Allowance<\/a> (DLA) for me as a child?  <\/p>\n

I decided to phone<\/a> the helpline to ask them, and after 20 minutes of listening to the tinny holding jingle on the phone, I was put through to an operator. <\/p>\n

She started off by asking me, \u2018What is your disability?\u2019 I told her I was born without a left hand. <\/p>\n

\u2018Is it a congenital condition?\u2019 I responded yes. <\/p>\n

\u2018Have you made a claim with us before?\u2019 I hadn\u2019t. <\/p>\n

The questioning felt strange. After years of being stared at by strangers and ostracised for my very obvious physical disability<\/a>, I now felt I had to prove it. She said that the correct evidence to support my claim would have to come in the form of a doctor’s note, not a photograph.   <\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Emily\t<\/div>
I fought to be invisible, to walk down the street and not have a person shoot me a confused look (Picture: Emily Tisshaw)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When I hung up the phone, I was frustrated. I’d never had to fight so hard to be seen as disabled before. <\/p>\n

In fact, it was always the opposite. I fought to be invisible, to walk down the street and not have a person shoot me a confused look, or ask \u2018what\u2019s happened to your arm?\u2019 <\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until filling out this form \u2013 aged 23 \u2013 that I truly realised the reality of the UK\u2019s benefits system<\/a>, where even lifelong, visible disabilities are subject to bureaucratic hoops.  <\/p>\n

My mum told me she has memories of filling in countless forms for DLA on multiple occasions when I was a child. She made yearly applications as the allowance would only be awarded for a set amount of time and then would have to re-apply \u2013 but she doesn\u2019t recall needing to provide a doctor’s note.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\"Emily\t<\/div>
At school, I had a non-slip mat on my desk to keep my workbooks still as I wrote (Picture: Emily Tisshaw)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My disability meant that I\u2019ve always utilised adaptations. I remember the various gadgets<\/a> I grew up with; a one-handed fork we called my \u2018Knork\u2019, elastic laces in my shoes, Velcro, and poppers instead of zips. At school, I had a non-slip mat on my desk to keep my workbooks still as I wrote, and a slanted board that I used to help with my writing posture.<\/p>\n

To me, these things were normal. They were things I didn\u2019t think about the cost of, or how much longer it\u2019d take me to do them, because I always had a family, and a community, willing to support me and go at my pace. <\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until I spent significant time away from home \u2013 in work, house sharing, and learning to drive \u2013 that I began to notice the extra help I truly needed. <\/p>\n

After years of adults rushing to my side to support my different needs with things such as carrying my shopping bags, opening stiff tins and chopping garlic for me, I wanted to be able to do these things more independently. <\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\tWhat is PIP?\t\t\t<\/h2>\n
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Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is a benefit for people who need help taking part in everyday life or who find it difficult to get around.<\/p>\n

PIP can help with living costs if you have both:<\/p>\n