Personal Budgets

Introduction

NameAndrea Woodier

OrganisationLeicestershire County Council

Telephone number0116 2323232

E-mail address Andrea.woodier@leics.gov.uk

Purpose of presentation

“Definitive talk on Personal Budgets, with a particular focus on do’s and don'ts “

The Care Act (2014)The Care Act 2014 is a significant reform to Social Care, Changes start from April 2015 and then further reforms from April 2016.2015 at a glance A new national level of care & support needs across all CouncilsNew duties that entitle carers to an needs assessment in there own right & a personal budget Deferred payment arrangementDetailed guidance provided to support a person centred approach and to ensure individuals have choice & control over the support they receive

Purpose of the presentationWhat is a personal budget ?

Background to Personal budgets

Personal budgets within the Leicestershire care pathway

Thinking throughout the process

A walk through the pathway :First contact, Needs Assessment, Indicative budgets, Care & Support Planning, Personal Budget agreed

Personal Budget Options

Review

Carers Personal Budgets

Summary

Questions & discussion

What is a personal budget ?A personal budget is a statement that sets out the cost to the local authority of meeting an adult’s care & support needs. It includes:

The amount that the local authority must pay towards the care and support needs .

The amount that the adult must pay towards that cost themselves (on the basis of their financial assessment),

The budget is paid after it has been agreed what care and support is needed

Personal Budgets backgroundThe Care Act(2014) places personal budgets into law for the first time, making them the norm for people with care and support needs.

Personal budgets enable the person to: exercise greater choice take control over how their care and support needs are met live the life they want to lead

It is essential that people: are clear how their budget was calculated have confidence that the personal budget allocation is correct

and therefore sufficient to meet their care and support needs

Personal budgets within the care pathway

Throughout the process

First Contact

• The assessment process starts from when we start to gather information about an individual

• We have to consider if the individual would have substantial difficulty in being involved in the process and difficulty communicating

• Provide Advice & Information tailored to the individual and in a format that is accessible

Needs Assessment

• The purpose of needs assessment is to:- identify the person’s needs and how these impact on their wellbeing- Identify the outcomes that person wishes to achieve in their day to

day life • Should be a person centred approach and involving all relevant parties • The Assessment supports the eligibility determination • Carers are entitled to an assessment in own right from April 2015

Eligibility Decision

Individual with needs 1) Needs -The needs arise from or are related to a physical or mental impairment or illness 2)Outcomes - As a result of the needs, the adult is unable to achieve two or more of the national outcomes 3)Well being- As a consequence, there is or is likely to be a significant impact on the adult’s wellbeing

Carers eligibility 1)Needs-The needs arise as a consequence of providing necessary care to an adult 2)Outcomes-As a result of the carer’s needs, the carer is unable to achieve two or more of the national outcomes or, The carer’s physical: or mental health is, or is at risk of, deteriorating ,3)Wellbeing -As a consequence, there is or is likely to be a significant impact on the adult’s wellbeing

Indicative budget allocated

• Leicestershire County Council uses a Resource Allocation System to calculate an indicative budget for support planning

• This an indicative amount only for support planning, designed to be equitable and transparent for all, the final budget can be more or less

Care & support planning

• A personal support plan is where an individual decides how they would like to meet the needs and outcomes they have identified

• A support plan can be created in lots of different ways • We want people to be involved to ensure they live the life they want to • A worker from Adult Social Care can help and/or friends & family or those who

know you best • Consider the natural support around • Consider Community capacity • Its not a plan unless it has action in it !

Personal budget agreed

The final budget should be agreed at the end of the planning process

Sign off should take place if:

the plan is within the indicative budget (or justifiably above it)

the proposed use of the money is:• appropriate• legal • meets the eligible needs & outcomes identified during assessment

Use of a personal budget

Range of Personal Budget options

Review

• An opportunity to reflect on what is working , what is not working with the support plan and identify what might need to change

• To keep the support plan up to date and relevant to the person’s aspirations • To identify is needs have changed• To safeguard an individual • To set new goals (outcomes)• To check that the personal budget is set at the right amount • The review process should be person centred and outcomes focused

Key points-Carers personal budgets • The way that we are supporting carers in Leicestershire is changing from April

2015• The new Care Act aims to ensure that carers are better supported to continue in

their caring role across the country• Following an assessment of your need for care and support, a personal budget

may be made available to you.• The Carer Support Fund will be discontinued and new arrangements for carer

support introduced • Personal budgets will be either a one-off cash payment (normally once a year) If

the one-off annual payment is not sufficient to meet your identified needs, you will either be able to receive support through the personal budget of the person you care for, or will be able to access a separate personal budget solely for your own use.

• Support, information and advice from various sources including our voluntary sector partners will continue to be available to carers

Summary • A personal budget needs a support plan to

show how the money will be spent- good support planning is key

• A support worker, carer, family or friends can help prepare a support plan

• A personal budget is paid after after it has been agreed what care and support is needed

• It is the amount of money we provide to enable the individual to buy the care and support they need

• A personal budget includes an individuals assessed contribution

• A personal budget can be paid as a direct payment or the individual can ask the local authority to arrange the care and support

• A personal budget allows more choice and control and enable the individual to live the life they want to lead

Questions & discussion