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Residents to get more choice and control to support their care needs
8 September 2010
Press release number:PR1145
Residents receiving care and support services will have more
choice and say over the support they are given as the council rolls
out its personal budgets scheme.
From November this year, the Council will offer anyone newly
assessed as needing care services the opportunity to have a
personal budget, where they can have more choice and control over
how their care needs are met. Current service users will be
given this option when their service needs are reviewed.
Personal budgets offer individuals the opportunity to replace
traditional services with more individual options such as swapping
day centre visits for trips to the swimming pool or homecare visits
for help with shopping or visiting the post office.
The Council's Cabinet agreed the principle of the scheme on
Tuesday 7 September and authorised the Director of Adult Social
Services to offer personal budgets from November.
Cllr John Fairley-Churchill, Cabinet Member for Adult Social
Services, said,
"I am pleased we will be rolling out personal budgets from
November as it gives people the choice to have more say in how they
are cared for. Having choices over the best support for you
increases people's independence and will makes sure that they get
the care that best suits their needs."
Budgets are calculated on a points based system from a Self
Assessment Questionnaire which eligible residents will be asked to
complete to allocate their individual budgets. Services users will
be able to choose between commissioning their own service to meet
their needs or choosing council commissioned care. It is also
possible to combine these options.
When choosing their own service, residents are told their
personal budget amount including their contributions, and with help
from support planners or brokers, they decide how their needs are
met, who will provide the service and how much it will
cost.
Some existing services provided will continue to be provided in
the same way as they would not be appropriate to replace. This
includes community meals, services that are provided for free or
compulsory or a service which is entirely self contained, for
example, extra care flats or residential care.
A personal budget can be managed by the council on behalf of the
resident or managed by the person or their financial
representative.
The roll out of personal budgets and progress on personalisation
forms part of the Council's Transforming Social Care Agenda, in
line with the Government's Transformation for Adult Social Care
programme introduced in 2007.
