Rethink personalisation

FAQ

1. What is personalisation?

   Personalisation is a way of making sure that individuals have more choice and control over the services that they receive. Buying your services with a...

2. How do I get a budget?

   When you meet with your Care Co-ordinator ask if you are eligible for a personal budget. 

   In some areas the NHS has set up pilot Personal Health Budgets, and you can ask your CPN about these. 

   It is important to remember that eligibility is usually for people who have substantial and critical needs and that the Personal Budget is means tested.

3. I've been offered a direct payment; do I have to accept one?

   You don’t have to hold any money yourself.  If your local authority is personalising the services that you use, it can mean that the services have to let you and the funders know how they spent money on supporting you. You might want to comment on how they are meeting your needs, and even ask for something different – but you don’t have to.

4. I have been told that I’m not eligible for a personal budget, what happens now?

   Funders understand that people who are not eligible for a personal budget will still need support to stay well. 

   As Social Services departments put their personalisation plans into practice you will find that they are still funding some services for people who don’t get a personal budget. Of course, you can also pay for some personalised services yourself.

5. What if I don’t want a personal budget?

   You don’t have to have a personalised budget as you can choose to receive services in the traditional way.  But you may notice that the services that you use offer you more choice in how things are done, and they will be able to show you how the money that is given to them is spent on services for you.

6. How do I do a self assessment?

   You need to do a self assessment, so that your funders can work out how much budget to offer you. 

   Sometimes your Care Co-ordinator will help you and sometimes you may do the assessment with a Support Broker.  They will probably have some questions to prompt you to think about your needs, wants, desires and goals. It is a good idea to take your time in thinking about all aspects of your life so that you don’t miss something that might be important to you. 

   When you have finished looking at your needs, funders can use your self assessment to produce and estimate of how much budget you need.

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Real stories

Meet Dawn

Sometimes Dawn finds it difficult to motivate herself, so she used her personal budget to hire a personal assistant.

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