Transcript Our health, our care, our say Individual Budgets and Direct Payments Janet Walden, John Crook and Helen Tomkys Social Care Directorate.

Our health, our care, our say
Individual Budgets and Direct
Payments
Janet Walden, John Crook and Helen Tomkys
Social Care Directorate
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Our vision as set out in ‘Independence, Well-being and
Choice’ and ‘Our Health, Our Care, Our Say’
To move to a system where people have to take what is
offered, to one where people have greater control over
identifying the type of support or help they want and more
choice about and influence over the services on offer
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What are we doing to deliver this?
• Increasing the take up of direct payments & extending
their accessibility
• Individual Budgets pilot project - bringing learning from In
Control and the direct payments experience to tackle any
barriers, share best practice and build momentum
• Encouraging the development of innovative services and
solutions
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Direct payments
OHOCOS made a commitment to:
‘launch a national campaign, working with a group of
stakeholders to increase awareness and improve
understanding of the benefits of direct payments’
• Direct payments have been available since 1997 but
take-up remains relatively low
• Fewer than 42,000 people are receiving direct payments
• Only £1 in every £100 of social care expenditure was
spent on direct payments in 2004-05
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What are we doing?
• Self-assessment and planning guide
• Launched on 21 December
• Draws on extensive research into the barriers to take-up
and aims to help local councils and their partners test
barriers to take-up and think through solutions
• Will inform a national ‘solution set’ to be launched in May
• Project not just about increasing numbers of direct
payments – to deliver on wider commitments in the
White Paper the focus must shift towards outcomes for
individuals
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Why are direct payments important?
They provide opportunities to:
• give people control now
• get systems in place for the future - one of deployment
options for individual budgets
• continue culture change among front-line staff so people
using services are not just offered but encouraged to
have a direct payment
• encourage Councils to explore systems to deliver greater
personalisation
• grow and develop new/ innovative systems of support
• for the Third Sector development in support, advocacy
and service delivery
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What is an Individual Budget
• Bringing together a variety of streams of support and/or
funding, from more than one agency
• Transparent allocation of resources – a clear cash or
notional sum to be spent by an individual on their
support
• A streamlined assessment process across agencies,
meaning less time spent giving information
• Giving individuals the ability to use the budget in a way
that best suits their own particular requirements
• Support from a broker or advocate, family or friends, as
the individual desires.
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Piloting Individual Budgets
• Individual Budgets being piloted in 13 local authorities across
England:
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Barking & Dagenham Gateshead
Manchester
•
•
Barnsley
Kensington & Chelsea Norfolk
Bath & NE Somerset Leicester
Oldham
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Coventry
Lincolnshire
West Sussex
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Essex
• Pilots cover older people, people with physical or sensory
disabilities, people with learning disabilities and people with mental
health needs.
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What next?
• Main evaluation report available spring 2008
• Focus of the evaluation
– Better outcomes for people
– Cost neutrality or better
– Is there a model of Individual Budgets that works for
different people?
• Before then – case studies and emerging findings
• Already have compelling stories about how individual budgets have
changed people’s lives
• However, it is important to look closely at the barriers to the
approach, and to ensure that everyone can benefit
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Direct payments and individual
budgets: Opportunities for the third
sector
Julia Winter
Director, Liberation Partnership
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• Self-directed support
• Peer support & brokerage
• Opportunities for third sector
providers
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