Person Centred Planning
What Is Person Centred Planning?
'Person centred' means doing things in a way that the person wants and which helps them to be part of their community. If someone is in the centre of something, they are the most important person.
Person centred planning means putting the person at the centre of planning for their lives.
Person centred planning is about:
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Listening to and learning about what people want from their lives.
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Helping people to think about what they want now and in the future.
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Family, friends, professionals and services working together with the person to make this happen.
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Person centred planning takes into consideration all the person’s needs – it is a holistic approach.
This type of planning replaces Individual Service Planning (ISP) and other forms of planning for people.
Person Centred Approaches:
Person centred approaches are exactly that: the planning of services based around an individual rather than the individual having to fit into existing services. Person centred approaches are ways of making sure that services do a better job of listening to what people who use them really want, and then making sure it happens.
The key factors in person centred planning/approaches are:
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Self-advocacy: Supporting people to take control over their lives and to make informed choices.
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Listening to people and supporting them to explain their views and achieve their goals.
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Getting to know individuals properly.
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Working with people’s strengths and abilities instead of focusing upon what they can’t do.
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Being more creative and flexible.
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Making links with all the people/organisations that the person needs to support him/her.
Person centred planning has 5 key features:
1. The person is at the centre (that means they are the most important person)
This means that other people cannot be more powerful or make decisions about the person’s life that they do not agree with.
Some ways of making sure this happens are:
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The person chooses who is involved and who to invite to meetings.
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The person is asked what they want.
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The person chooses where and when meetings are held.
2. Family members and friends are partners in planning
Person centred planning is about supporting people to be part of their community. Friends, family and other people in our community are important people in our lives. Their views and ideas can help people to develop their plans.
3. The plan shows what is important to the person (now or for the future). It shows their strengths and what support they need.
Person centred planning is a way of understanding more about a person and their life. As people plan together, important things can happen:
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Supporters may change what they think about a person and what they can do.
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People make friends and build relationships with each other.
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People involved are able to work better together to make things happen.
4. The plan helps the person to be part of their community and helps the community to welcome them.
It is not just about services. It shows what is possible, not just what is on offer!
5. Things do not just stop when the first plan is written.
Everyone involved keeps on listening, learning and making things happen. Putting the plan into action helps the person to achieve what they want out of life. A person centred plan will change – it will develop as the person develops. People change as their experiences change. The support and help they need may also change. A person-centred plan is never “finished”.
The genuine involvement of people (whether they have a learning difficulty or disability, are physically disabled, young people, or older people etc…) is needed in the planning, development and delivery of services to ensure that those services are truly person-centred.
