Access to Work - practical help at work

Access to Work (NI) can help people with disabilities who wish to take up employment or who are in work and experience difficulty related to their disability. It can also help employers who wish to recruit or retain people with disabilities in employment.

COVID-19 update

Face to face appointments about Access to Work (NI) have been temporarily suspended. The programme works with a number of key stakeholders who support those taking part in Access to Work (NI). Therefore the level of support available may change due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

How Access to Work (NI) can help

Access to Work (NI) helps with the practical problems caused by disability. It offers advice and help in a flexible way that can be tailored to suit the needs of an individual in a particular job or getting to and from work.

It can also help towards the additional approved costs that arise. Personal and Business benefit are taken into account in all cases.

Access to Work (NI) can help towards the cost of:

communication support for deaf people or people who have a hearing impairment and need a communicator in the workplace or at interview
provision of special aids and equipment to suit particular work needs arising from disability
adaptations to premises and equipment in the workplace to help an employee with disabilities
support if practical help is needed because of a disability, either at work or getting to and from work
support when a person with a disability incurs extra costs in travelling to and from work because of disability
support to assist employers where other additional costs arise because of disability - for example, extra 'in-work' travel costs, or provision of disability awareness training

Apply to Access to Work (NI)

For more information and to apply for help through this programme, contact the Department for Communities:

HealthandWorkSupportCo-ordination@communities-ni.gov.uk
or you can also contact a work coach in your local Jobs and Benefits office

If you use sign language

You can use British Sign Language (BSL) or Irish Sign Language (ISL) to contact Access to Work (NI). To use the video relay service:

check that you can use the BSL video relay service
check that you can use the ISL video relay service
contact Access to Work (NI) using BSL via the video relay service
contact Access to Work using ISL video relay service

The application must be made by the person with the disability. A work coach can contact your local Access to Work team for you or give you their contact details. An Access to Work adviser will usually visit your place of work and advise on the most cost-effective solution.

Help will be approved for as long as it is needed up to a maximum of three years. After that, if support is still needed it will be considered under the rules of the programme in operation at that time.

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What to do next

Comments or queries about angling can be emailed to anglingcorrespondence@daera-ni.gov.uk

If you have a comment or query about benefits, you will need to contact the government department or agency which handles that benefit. Contacts for common benefits are listed below.

Employment and Support Allowance

Call 0800 587 1377

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Contact your local Jobs & Benefits office

Personal Independence Payment

Call 0800 587 0932

If your query is about another benefit, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

Comments or queries about the Blue Badge scheme can be emailed to bluebadges@infrastructure-ni.gov.uk or you can also call 0300 200 7818.

For queries or advice about careers, contact the Careers Service.

For queries or advice about Child Maintenance, contact the Child Maintenance Service.

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If you can’t find the information you’re looking for in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) section, then for queries about:

Restrictions or regulations — contact the Department of Health
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If your query is about another topic, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

For queries about your identity check, email nida@nidirect.gov.uk and for queries about your certificate, email covidcertni@hscni.net.

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For queries or advice about employment rights, contact the Labour Relations Agency.

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For queries about:

Car tax, vehicle registration and SORN
contact the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), Swansea
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contact the Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA), Northern Ireland

If your query is about another topic, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

For queries about your identity check, email nida@nidirect.gov.uk.

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If you wish to report a problem with a road or street you can do so online in this section.

If you wish to check on a problem or fault you have already reported, contact DfI Roads.

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Extra comments (optional)

Access to Work - practical help at work

COVID-19 update

How Access to Work (NI) can help

Apply to Access to Work (NI)

If you use sign language

Translation help

Help improve this page - send your feedback

Messages

What to do next

Carer's Allowance

Discretionary support / Short-term benefit advance

Disability Living Allowance

Employment and Support Allowance

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Personal Independence Payment