National Personal Budget Survey results

A new social care survey of over 2,000 people released reveals that for a majority, personal budgets have a positive impact on people's lives, meaning they are supported with dignity and respect, stay independent, in control of their support and get that support when they need it.

The National Personal Budget Survey, carried out between January and April this year, also found that people are more likely to experience better outcomes if the personal budgets process keeps people fully informed, and in control of the personal budget and how it is spent; while supporting them without undue constraint and bureaucracy, and fully involving carers.

However, the survey results also found that councils need to provide better quality systems and processes if they are to help continue to transform the lives of older and disabled adults and achieve the best results.

Undertaken for The Think Local, Act Personal Partnership by In Control and the Centre for Disability Research at Lancaster University, the survey aimed to identify the outcomes and experiences of people using personal budgets - and those of their family carers - so the adult social care sector can build on the positives and better understand what improvements are needed.

It is the biggest survey of service users and carers undertaken in England to date, giving people a voice to share their views and experiences in their own words. The findings will help councils to re-shape their approach to social care, as informed by local people.

Other implications that can be drawn from the survey results include:

Personal budgets work better for older people than you might expect and direct payments work just as well for older people as everyone else.
The processes used for delivering personal budgets are more difficult than they need to be and that impacts badly on carers and on personal budget recipients.
More work needs to be done to make direct payments more accessible generally but especially to older people.
There is a need to simplify and clarify the rules and regulations surrounding personal budgets.

The current Coalition government has said it is committed to ensuring personal budgets are available to all recipients of ongoing state funded social care by 2013 as a response to rising public expectations of choice and quality and increasing demand.

Every year nearly one and a half million people in England look to their local authority for personal care and support due to their age or disability. Almost 6 million adults in the UK are believed to spend time caring for disabled or older family members.

The Think Local, Act Personal Partnership Chairs Miranda Wixon and Richard Jones said in a joint statement:

"There can now be no doubt that for the most people, personal budgets can and do work, particularly as direct payments and especially when implemented well by councils. At the same time, continuing and urgent action is needed to ensure all can benefit - wherever you live and whatever your needs - and that expensive and restrictive processes are streamlined to improve experiences and efficiencies.

"The right information, advice and support, alongside quality relationships and communication between people and social care staff through training and information sharing are crucial ingredients for making this happen. There is work still to be done on developing local provider markets, including very small voluntary and community sector organisations, user-led organisations and social enterprises, so people have a choice about how to manage and spend their budget.

"The current situation is very challenging, given significant financial pressures. However, this makes effective delivery of personal budgets even more important - use of resources must be optimised to improve outcomes, choice and control."

In Control Chief Executive Julie Stansfield said:

"These findings show the huge potential for personal budgets but they also signal a warning that they will only make a difference to people's lives if implemented by councils in the right way and if this doesn't simply become a 'box-ticking' exercise. The report shows a big gap in progress that authorities are making, and people's experiences of the processes and the support they receive from their council varies widely with many reporting 'difficulties'. With council's expected to have 100% of people on personal budgets by 2013 it's critical that they take the opportunity to review their progress to date, build on the positives, and identify ways to make improvements."

Chris Hatton, Professor of Psychology, Health and Social Care, Lancaster University, said:

"The results of this survey clearly show that councils can routinely deliver personal budgets that work well for everyone. If councils keep to the principles of self-directed support, people using personal budgets and their family carers report real positive changes in their lives. People also need supportive local communities, meaningful access to the full range of community facilities available to everyone else, and a range of local services that will deliver the support people want, when and where they want it."

The full report and a summary can be downloaded below.

More information on POET can be found here.

Downloads

11 comments for “National Personal Budget Survey results”

Les

posted 22 June 2011 at 08:47:15

Thanks for this update of info regarding personal budgets, by far the main issue we experience here in Lancs is the rigid line the SS take once the budget has been approved. It is as though they have given it to you, then look at every way they can claw it back when they audit. There is a total lack of flexibility allowed by the auditors, we have just had 6 of the people we manage for audited and have been told they are booking more hours that they were given. But the budget is not supposed to be given in hours, yet the support plans plainly state the number of hours the end user has been given. I have had to stop auditors from clawing back because the guidance states that clawback can only be used at the end of the year.

It would be helpful if the SS staff had some training on personal budgets using the national guidance rather than the guidance Lancashire have invented.
SUST

posted 22 June 2011 at 11:09:56

In 2010/11, SUST (a user controlled network of mental health service user trainers and consultants) was commissioned by the Yorkshire and Humber Joint Improvement Partnership to conduct research on the experience of mental health service users in receipt of personal budgets providing feedback to local authorities in the region. As part of this project, we conducted in-depth interviews with 5 service users, and 4 of these people reported extraordinary difficulties in their dealings with their Local Authority in relation to personal budgets and self-directed support in general - see http://yourvoicesheffield.org/etc1/?p=69
for further details. This certainly seems to chime with your report's finding that: "In terms of getting information and advice, older adults and younger adults with physical disabilities reported that the council made it easier to get information and advice than younger adults with learning disabilities and younger adults with mental health conditions."
John

posted 22 June 2011 at 12:34:29

Les says it all. He sums up very succinctly why no one should touch personal budgets with a bargepole.
My wife and I are getting on and we have strenuously refused to accept a personal budget.
Nothing we have read gives us any confidence that the system will end up as anything but a cost cutting excercise with no benefits to the recipients and a lot of drawbacks.
My questions are these:
Even without the overbearing attitudes of those employed to monitor what we spend the money on, why would anyone like us want to take on all the management responsibilities of running our own care package? We have retired. We have left all that behind us. We probably couldn't cope with it anyway and why should we have to.
Alternatively, why would we want pay for an unaccountable outside agency that is probably a private for profit company to manage our package for us when we already have a Social Services Department doing the job now?
I am not an expert but I suspect that when the idea was first dreamt up it came with the caveat that adequate resources must be provided and the whole system should be properly managed in accordance with specified protocols.
Unfortunately, we are in an environment of severe cuts and I very much doubt that the system is properly resourced, being properly managed or run in accordance with the original ideas or protocols in any authority's area.
stuart

posted 23 June 2011 at 13:03:27

i can understand the frustration and worries about Personal budgets but in my experience the benefits far outweigh them.

I'm looking for some information and recent reports on young disabled people (18 - 25yrs)and PB's - can anyone give me a wee pointer?
philip hamer

posted 28 June 2011 at 23:08:11

reading gthrow ther comments .and just also going throw the prosses of geting a personal buget,
I also have found in aplying the same mastakes were made as 1 regards i was alocated hours ? 2/realised throw reding up on what can a personal buget can be user for .(which was not what i seed on the can when i receved it,
As it seems the main thing is to get a proper assesment from the begining and not just for the assesor to tik the boxix.as a lot of what the user douse in there daliy life can be missed i found.and if the assesor askes say a simpel question such has can you tell me what you do whith your self say in a avarage week .and then the assesor can get a better idia of what can be included in the plan .
its so simpel but can pick up on such a lot fron the user or ther family or such.
and most certanly i have found the perso doing assesments not throw now foult of ther own i might add.simply bieng given poor training ,and this needs to be looked at i feel especialy were mental health is concerned.and moor user group aditing and imput most certanly needs to be included i feel.such as local mental health forums and such with users of such group being traing in the ways of assesment and throw to aditing deliverance,and feel this will make for one up take a great deal better especialy in my feaild of mental healt.
hope this help i some way
phil hamer
service user salford
siobhan gannon

posted 14 July 2011 at 16:39:40

I am a stoke survivor since July 2010, live in Manchester, have only been informed on this issue by chance June 2011, l am 47 was refused DLA due to the fact l can walk 50mtrs. I have now applied to the scheme and am awaiting an assesment are there any more young (not old !!!) stroke survivors out there not being told what help is at hand......
Ian

posted 18 July 2011 at 11:57:52

I would like to correct John's comment that 'private for profit' providers are unaccountable - on the contrary, we are highly accountable. Social Services are audited by the Care Quality Commission, we on the other hand are audited by CQC and by SS. Further, in common with many providers, client funds are held in a separate bank account, independently audited every 6 months and 'ring-fenced' from the general business account.
Toni

posted 18 July 2011 at 19:11:42

This site has been created for people to share their experiences of having a personal budget, rating services and sharing their experiences.

www.personalisedopinions.com
Gram

posted 20 July 2011 at 21:24:41

Well, it's confirmed my instincts, not to proceed with applying for a personal budget. Though it's months since I last heard from 'Personalisation' or 'In control'. It seems a very demanding system ideal for those with a very clear idea of what they're going to do, and I'm sure it works for those fortunate enough to have lots of people and trustworthy contacts. That's not really me. Nothing personal folks, but it's not a solution for me, at this time. I've had to struggle painfully for what sickness disability type allowance I have from the DWP, and I don't want to enter into a foray of 'auditors' asking I account for every day of the week, and then have the DWP asking for their ESA payment back. I hope I got the jist of people's feedback.

Good luck with it all.
Kate

posted 26 July 2011 at 05:29:45

I am unable to get a personal budget as I live on the isle of wight I am classed as substantial needs to get a personal budget on the island you have to be critical(they are only giving PBs to Critical) I have a appealed they lost it so will appeal again
this has taken over a year so far my personal care is not being met dignity none to embarrassed to mention what i am unable to do for my self
Caroline

posted 09 August 2011 at 12:52:32

Hello Kate
The Fair Access to Care Services (FACS) process enables councils to make a decision about who is eligible for care services in their area. The FACS banding is split into 4 groups low, moderate, substantial and critical and councils can decide which bandings they would like to use. Most councils will provide to people with substantial and critical needs although with the comprehensive spending review some are providing to those with just critical needs. The question is always posed that if you only support those with the more critical needs how many more people will become critical as a result of not putting in lower level support? It sounds like the Fair Access to Care eligibility criteria is being provided to those with just critical needs on the Isle of Wight – is this the case? If so it may be worth looking into how they are working with people on a preventative level to prevent them becoming ‘critical’. Therefore a personal budget is the way the option of support is deployed – the way they will deliver to those with critical needs.It may also be worth you having a conversation with one of the In Control team about your own individual circumstances and if we can make any suggestions to you.