A guide to Personal Budgets

Transcription

1 A guide to Personal Budgets Easy read format June 2013

2 Personal Budgets - more information These organisations can tell you more about self-directing your support and Personal Budgets: Cornwall Council Disability Cornwall Age UK Cornwall Get a plan in Cornwall getaplanincornwall@hotmail.co.uk

3 A guide to January 2013 Personal Budgets Easy read format This booklet has information about: Page 1. What is a Personal Budget? 1 2. Getting started 3 3. Managing your budget - your choices 5 4. Planning your support 6 5. Help with employing a Personal Assistant 8 6. Making sure things are going well 9 7. Tell us what you think At a glance - your steps towards a Personal Budget 11

4 1. What is a Personal Budget? If your assessment from Adult Care and Support shows that you have eligible social care needs, we will give you a Personal Budget, to help you live at home. Your needs To see if you are eligible, we will assess each of your social care needs as low, moderate, substantial or critical. At the moment, the Council can only give Personal Budgets to people with substantial or critical care needs, to live at home. A Personal Budget is money you can use to organise and buy your own care and support. Adult Care and Support can still organise services for you if you prefer. 1

5 It will give you more choice and control over the support you get. You can choose When and how you get support And who will provide it You are in charge of your Personal Budget because you know best. If you are already getting services from Adult Care and Support, you can change your arrangements to a Personal Budget. You can ask your worker about this at any time. 2

6 2. Getting started If you are new to Adult Care and Support and need help to keep your independence and wellbeing, contact our Access Team on We will talk over your situation with you, and ask you some questions. If we think your social care needs are substantial or critical, we will ask a member of staff to visit you to carry out a needs assessment. We may also tell you about other organisations that can help. The person who visits you will talk with you about your social care needs, your independence and wellbeing. They will listen carefully to what you say. 3

7 If you have substantial or critical social care needs, we will tell you how much money you are likely to have to buy your care and support. This is called your Indicative Budget. You may need to pay something towards your support. Another member of staff will contact you to look at what money you have coming in and out. They will tell you if you need to pay something towards your support. They use rules from the Department of Health to work this out. 4

8 3. Managing your Personal Budget - your choices Your next step will be to create a Support Plan. This will show: What support you want to buy with your Indicative Budget How the support will meet your eligible social care needs Who will provide your support You can choose whichever suits you best. You can also think about the different ways to manage a Personal Budget. If your budget is paid direct to you, you can buy and arrange your own support, or ask someone else or another agency to manage your payment for you If you ask the Council to look after it, we arrange and pay for support on your behalf Or you can have a mixture of both. 5

9 4. Planning your support Here are some examples of what people use their budgets for: Employing a Personal Assistant Practical help at home or in the community Help to go to a local club or sports group You can come up with ideas of your own. 7 You cannot use your budget for: Everyday expenses like food, rent or mortgage Household bills Equipment and services that the Health Service should provide Gambling or buying lottery tickets Anything which is against the law 6

10 3 Once you have created your Support Plan, Adult Care and Support will need to discuss and agree this with you. Then we will tell you the final amount of money you will get for your care and support. We call this your Personal Budget. 7

11 5. Help with employing a Personal Assistant If your budget is paid directly to you, you can use it to employ a Personal Assistant. This will mean you have the responsibility of becoming an employer, but there is help available to do this. The Direct Payments Advice Team can help you to employ someone or directpaymentsadvice team@ cornwall.gov.uk You can also get lots of help, information and practical advice from: Disability Cornwall , Age UK Cornwall Get a Plan in Cornwall

12 6. Making sure things are going well Shortly after your Personal Budget has started, a member of staff will check with you that everything is going well, and your support plan is working for you. If your budget is paid direct, you will need to show us how you have used it to meet your eligible social care needs. We will plan regular reviews with you. But you can ask for a review at any time if you need to change your support. Just contact the Council on and ask for your worker. 9

13 7. Tell us what you think We want your Personal Budget to work for you. Let us know we d love to hear from you! We also want to hear if things are not going well, or if you have a complaint. This will give us the chance to put things right. To let us know what you think - good or bad - contact: or acs.feedback@cornwall.gov.uk 10

14 8. At a glance - your steps towards a Personal Budget Talk to the Access Team Assessment completed with you Low or moderate social care needs. We will help you find other support. Indicative Budget Substantial or critical social care needs 11 Working out how much you need to contribute - financial assessment. Create Support Plan - what? how? who? Think about options and getting advice from our Direct Payments Advice Team, if you are interested in employing a Personal Assistant.

15 3 Adult Care and Support agree Support Plan and letter confirms arrangement Receive Personal Budget Arrange support Review - Adult Care and Support check all is going well

16 Co-produced November 2012 by Cornwall Council, with help from customers and stakeholders. A big thank you to everyone who helped! If you would like this information in another format or language please contact: Cornwall Council County Hall, Treyew Road Truro TR1 3AY Telephone: enquiries@cornwall.gov.uk Printed on recycled paper /13