The personal budget makes no real difference to safeguarding. Many very vulnerable people have universal benefits with an appointee or not so the safeguarding issues are no greater with a personal budget. With people remaining close to their famil...

Self-directed support is not meant to replace the natural help you get from your family or community. People who love each other offer support because they love someone. It can often cause conflicts paying for a family member. However, there are...

Many people who need support have often spent their days at day centres. But more and more people now have jobs. There are specialist organisations that support people to find and keep a job. These days, getting a job can mean that you are better ...

First, contact your local authority, ask for their social services department and ask for an assessment. They can tell you if you qualify for support. They use Government guidance called Fair Access to Care to decide. If you are eligible, you fill...

Each local authority has "personalisation" targets to meet, to ensure that all people eligible for social care support know their personal budget which means the amount of cash you are eligible for your support. Some local authorities have a spe...

Some people can plan and organise their own support without any help. Others may want help.

The personal budget is knowing how much money is spent on your support, you don't have to take the cash and take responsibility for your care if you don't want you. There are many ways to self-direct your support without having the whole responsi...

Yes, councils insist that you have a separate account (so they can check that the money is used for your support). Some local authorities also require you to keep a record of how the money is being spent.

A criminal records bureau (CRB) check tells you about someone's criminal history. If you want to employ your own staff, it is sensible to know if someone has a criminal history.

There is no new money to go into personal budgets. The amount of money available is the same as is available now and it comes from that money which social services are already spending on social care.