Help with disability caused by cancer

Access to Work

Jobcentre Plus runs the Access to Work programme, which can help you if your cancer affects the way you do your job. It provides advice and support to people and their employers to help them overcome obstacles at work due to disability.

For example, you may get help to pay for equipment you need at work, adapting premises to meet your needs, or a support worker. It may also pay towards the cost of getting to work if you can’t use public transport.

There may be a local Access to Work contact centre near you. Or you or your employer can contact them through your local Jobcentre Plus office.

You’ll be sent an application form to complete. The Access to Work adviser will then talk to you and your employer to help you come to an arrangement about the best support for you.

If necessary, the adviser will arrange for specialist advice. Following this consultation, the adviser decides on a package of support, and gets approval of this from Jobcentre Plus. Both you and your employer will get a letter telling you about the support and grant available.

Your employer (or you, if you are self-employed) will need to arrange the support and buy any equipment needed. They can then claim reimbursement from Access to Work.

The amount of financial help you may get (the Access to Work Grant) varies, depending on how long you’ve been employed, whether you’re self-employed and what support you need.

Access to Work can pay up to 100% of the approved costs if you are unemployed and starting a new job, self-employed or working for an employer and have been in the job for less than six weeks.

They pay a proportion of the costs of support if you’re working for an employer, you’ve been in the job for six weeks or more and you need special equipment or adaptations to premises.

The exact financial arrangement and who pays for what is agreed between your employer and the Access to Work adviser. Access to Work will review your situation after one to three years.