Self Directed Support

Up until recently, most funding for people with a learning difficulty (and other people) has been as part of a block. For example, Adult Social Services say to a day centre that they will pay for 50 places. Everyone’s funding is lumped together and people have less choice over their support and what they do. People have no control over their own funding. Choices have often been limited and care managers or providers (not the person) have had all the control.

Person-centred approaches mean that people using services have more control. Support should be based on individual needs and wants. People are not lumped together. This is happening across the Country - attitudes are slowly changing!

An Individual (or Personalised) Budget means that the person has control over her/his own funding and can decide what type of support to spend that money on.

This means that people can choose who they want to support them and how.

Direct Payments are a step towards full Self-Directed Support:

Direct Payments come just from the money that Adult Social Services would normally pay for your support.

Adult Social Services assess you to see if you have a need for community care services
(things that Adult Social Services pay for).

Then Adult Social Services arrange to make a cash payment directly to you so you can pay for your own support.
This is instead of a Care Manager managing your funding and support. This money is paid into your own separate bank account.
You can have support to use a Direct Payment. You do not have to manage the money on your own without support.

This can only be used for things that Adult Social Services would usually pay for like:

Day services
Learning services
Individual support
Personal care
Respite
Independent living
Support for work etc.

For more information about Direct Payments you can contact:

The Skillnet Group Direct Payments team: directpayments@skillnetgroup.co.uk or 07921 470035
Or Kent County Council Direct Payments Scheme: www.kentdp.co.uk or 01622 694640

Indirect Payments:

These are similar to a Direct Payment but the cash does not come directly to you. Your care manager still has the money but you tell her/him exactly what you want your funding to be spent on and what support you want.

Individual (Personalised) Budgets:

These go further than Direct or Indirect Payments and are made up from different funding sources.
The Government is piloting Individual Budgets at the moment. This means that they are testing it out in different areas to see how it works.

The income sources (places where the money comes from) included in this pilot are:

Council-provided Social Care services for adults (Adult Social Services money).
Supporting People funding
Independent Living Fund
Disabled Facilities Grant
Integrated Community Equipment Services
Access to Work

This means that instead of all those funding sources being separate, they are pooled together to make an individual budget for each person.

For more information about the Government’s Individual Budgets Programme go to: www.individualbudgets.csip.org.uk

In Control:

This is a national programme and is a tool for Self-Directed Support. Some Council areas have been piloting this project. This means trying it out. Kent is now part of the project too.

In Control starts with your Adult Services Department telling you how much your support costs and how much money you can have in your own budget. This is because there is only so much money to go round and the funding has to be fair for everyone’s needs.
Then you decide what you want to do and how you want to be supported. You put together your person centred plan.
Then you have the funding to pay for your own support.

There are different bands or levels of support.

In Control also looks at the support people get from your family and friends. This approach is about finding different ways of making sure you are part of your community and do not have to rely on specialist services.

The Skillnet Group has registered as a provider with In Control.

In Control

Thinking

For more information about In Control you can contact:

Voice 4 Kent
(They have been involved in the In-Control National Planning Group)
speakingup@voice4kent.co.uk or 01622 672295

Or the In Control website: www.in-control.org.uk

If you have any questions about Self-Directed Support or Personalised Budgets and how the Skillnet Group is supporting people to have more control over their support and funding please contact:

Jo Kidd: 07968 105862 or jo.kidd@skillnetgroup.co.uk