Access to Work for ADHD: What You NEED To Know When Given Your Funding
The government scheme, Access to Work (AtW) has become very popular recently which, in my opinion, has been both a good and bad thing.
Firstly, so many more ADHD business owners are gaining support in their business to be able to continue working whilst managing their ADHD - which is amazinggg!!
However, the unfortunate outcome of the Access to Work scheme is that I’m seeing increasingly more virtual assistant agencies and individuals wanting to work with clients with ADHD, with no prior experience or training.
In this blog post, I’m breaking down my opinions on Access to Work for ADHD and what you can do to ensure that you get the right support you need as an ADHD business owner.
What is Access to Work for ADHD?
Access to Work is a government grant that people who have either a mental or physical health condition can apply for to gain assistance to help them stay at work.
This funding can be used to access support such as a virtual assistant, a mental health provider, a coach, special equipment and more.
Your disability or health condition must affect your job or business every single day which makes ADHD business owners eligible. It’s also worth noting that you do not need an official diagnosis of ADHD to apply.
Check out our free mini-course on Access to Work for ADHD where I break down the application process!
Access to Work for ADHD: What You NEED To Know
The main reason I wanted to write this blog post is because as Access to Work’s popularity increases so do the amount of virtual assistants and agencies that are looking to this scheme to find clients.
In my opinion, many virtual assistant agencies are capitalising on people who are being provided the Access to Work funding but have little to no knowledge about how to work with ADHD individuals.
This can quickly lead to wasting your funding as well as feeling overwhelmed or simply put off working with a virtual assistant at all.
At The Virtual Assisters, we specifically work with ADHD business owners and entrepreneurs.
As the co-founder of The Virtual Assisters (Ella), I have first-hand experience with ADHD after being diagnosed a few years ago so I understand the struggles and complexities that come with running a business with ADHD.
Beth (our other co-founder) on the other hand, has years of experience working as a fully trained virtual assistant to ADHD business owners. Every ADHD business owner needs a Beth in their life, trust me!
At The Virtual Assisters, we specifically provide ADHD trained virtual assistants to all of our clients.
We teach our virtual assistants on specific ADHD tools, such as body doubling sessions, breaking down tasks into smaller and more manageable tasks and how to spot the symptoms of burnout and overwhelm.
Now don’t get me wrong, there are other virtual assistants and virtual assistant agencies outside of The Virtual Assisters that do have experience of working with ADHD individuals and are doing wonderful things to support ND business owners.
However, I think it’s so important to shed light on this topic so that ADHD business owners know what to look for when investing their money in a virtual assistant.
When selecting a virtual assistant for you, we suggest asking questions such as:
Do you have first-hand experience with ADHD in your personal life?
Have you worked with clients who have ADHD before?
What tools or techniques can you provide to help support a business owner with ADHD?
The government funding is provided to help support your business, not add more stress to it.
So going through the process of finding the right virtual assistant for you is so important.
Key Takeaways on Access to Work for ADHD
I just wanted to write this blog to let you guys know that you need to be cautious about agencies and virtual assistants that are going through the Access to Work scheme.
This government funding is such a great thing for ADHD business owners and when used correctly, that funding can really drive forward your business.
Have any questions regarding Access to Work for ADHD? Email us at hello@thevirtualassisters.co.uk
