Supreme Court to hear disability living allowance and hospital stays case next week

The Supreme Court will next week hear a family’s appeal against their son’s loss of disability living allowance (DLA) after he stayed in hospital for more than 84 days.

At issue in the case of Cameron Mathieson, a deceased child (by his father Craig Mathieson) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is whether the automatic suspension of the child’s DLA payments – through the operation of regulations 8 and 10 of the Social Security (Disability Living Allowance) Regulations 1991 – after 84 days breached his rights under Articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Cameron Mathieson was diagnosed with a number of severe medical conditions in early infancy and his complex bodily needs were met by his parents, who received the DLA at the highest level.

After he had spent over 84 days in hospital in 2010 the Department for Work & Pensions ceased to pay the DLA, until he was discharged in August 2011, although his parents continued to visit and care for him in hospital.

Cameron died on 12 October 2012. His claim that his rights under arts. 8 and 14 ECHR were breached by the withdrawal of DLA when he was in hospital was continued by his father after his death.

The case will be heard by Lady Hale, Lord Clarke, Lord Wilson, Lord Reed and Lord Hughes on 26 March.

The Contact a Family charity has previously suggested that hundreds of disadvantaged families with disabled children were affected by the regulations each year.

The charity’s research together with The Children’s Trust found that 97% of affected families provided more or the same level of care when their child goes into hospital than when their child is at home.