The Social Care Experts Blog: Direct payments Archives

Outcomes 1 Needs 0 - but assessments are getting better

By Adam McCulloch on October 20, 2009 1:12 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

by Simon Stevens

Last week I had my first proper outcome-based "review" now that I have reached my "maximum rehab potential" since the start of my Guillain Barré syndrome in January. I have always been nervous of reviews and I imagaine social workers can also be nervous when they have to work with a well known, empowered and rather vocal service user. With 17 years' experience behind me, I feel that the balance of power has started to shift in my favour.

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Service users help each other to produce personalised support

By Adam McCulloch on July 15, 2009 11:04 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

by Clare Evans

The success of personalisation depends on service users helping each other to escape dependency and move to independence

I have often been enthused by exciting articles on personalisation, but there is seldom mention of the models of long-term support that service users need in order to take advantage. Yet disabled people, keen to support their peers, have shown the effectiveness of centres for independent living in supporting less empowered service users to take control of their lives.

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'I feel embarrassed when I pay my personal assistants'

By Adam McCulloch on October 2, 2008 4:16 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Direct payment users treasure their relationships with their personal assistants, but can feel uncomfortable on pay day

By Simon Heng

One of the great things about being trained as a cognitive behavioural therapist is that I can now lead a guilt-free existence, which, as I was brought up in the faith which relies on guilt for its ongoing membership, I take as a personal achievement.

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Time for men to join the carer workforce

By Adam McCulloch on October 2, 2008 3:47 PM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

As more women enter the jobs market, the burden of care upon them can be reduced by helping more men become carers, write academics Hilary Land (far left) and Susan Himmelweit

Most care is still provided by family members, usually women, which may seem to the government to be a free source of care. In practice it is paid for by carers who have reduced opportunities to do other things with their lives.

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Direct payments, personalisation... who now cares for whom?

By Adam McCulloch on July 22, 2008 3:25 PM | 2 Comments | No TrackBacks

By Steve Arthington

Amid talk of choice and freedom, service users must remember they also gain more responsibility under personalised services

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Learning Disability Coalition launch: hobnobbing & name dropping

By Andrew Holman on July 3, 2008 10:10 AM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

by Andrew Holman

Last night's evening at Portcullis House, parliament's extension building along the road, was very pleasant, despite the purpose of the event. The Learning Disability Coalition was launching their report 'Tell it like it is', the results of a survey of people with a learning disability and their carers.

The report comes up with unsurprising results, very many people have experienced cuts across the board. There were however some positives, Direct Payments and Individual Budgets had done some good, along with free bus passes. The cuts to support for employment should worry the minister, given the central place jobs will have in Valuing People Now.

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The care workers who fail in their duty

By Adam McCulloch on June 23, 2008 2:39 PM | 3 Comments | No TrackBacks

By Simon Heng

I'm a service user because I'm physically disabled, paralysed from the neck downwards, the result of a tumour on my spinal cord, 14 years ago. I was one of the first people in my area to try direct payments and I'm one of its success stories.

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