Supporting People - Information For People Being Supported
The Supporting People programme identifies the following groups of people who may be vulnerable. However, it is accepted that in delivering services people may fit into a number of groups or have complex needs:
- Older people with specific support needs
- Older people with mental health problems/dementia
- Frail elderly
- People with mental health problems
- People with learning difficulties
- People with a physical or sensory impairment
- Single homeless with support needs
- People with alcohol problems
- People with drug problems
- Offenders or people at risk of offending
- Mentally disordered offenders
- Young people at risk
- Young people leaving care
- Women at risk or suffering domestic abuse
- People with HIV/AIDS
- Homeless families with support needs
- Refugees
- Teenage parents
- Rough sleepers
- Travellers
Services are provided by:
- Registered Social Landlords (Housing Associations) and their Agents
- Primary and Mental Health Care Trusts
- Private Landlords
- Sole Traders
- Voluntary and Charitable organisations
All service users must have specific identified support vulnerabilities and have had their needs assessed.
Making a complaint or commenting on the Support Service
If you are receiving services by Supporting People and are dissatisfied, you have the right to complain. In the first instance follow the complaints policy of the Support Provider who should have informed you of their Complaints procedure. You can ask a friend, relative, social worker (if you have one) or anyone you choose to help you with making a complaint.
If you feel you cannot make a complaint to your Provider, or are dissatisfied with the response you get from them you can contact the Supporting People team to discuss your concerns.
It may be that you want to comment positively on the service you receive and we are always pleased to receive positive comments from people receiving a support service.
Yours views are important to us.
We value your time and help and want to make sure that the service you receive is what you need and is of a good standard
Housing Related Support
The services provided in Poole vary depending on the needs of the Service User. Housing Related Support includes such things as:
- Advice and support to manage in independent accommodation
- Budgeting
- Nutrition and meal planning
- Advice for people to enable them to move to independent accommodation
- Advising and enabling people in relation to the safety and security of the accommodation.
Housing Related Support in not the same as care and is intended to fit alongside existing care services.
The tasks eligible for Supporting People funding are extensive but related purely to housing related support as opposed to care.
People who can access Housing Related Support Services
These services are available for vulnerable people, including:
- Older people
- Homeless people
- People with drug and alcohol problems
- People with a learning disability
- People with mental health problems
- Offenders and people at risk of re-offending
- Homeless people or young people at risk
- Refugees
- People with sensory loss or physical disabilities
- Young people leaving care services
How your service will be reviewed
The Supporting People Team review the quality of the support provided to ensure the service meets the minimum quality standards. If an organisation does not meet the required standard they will be asked to make changes to improve the service.
During a service review, the Supporting People Team will speak to referring agencies, staff and of course the people using the service to find out their support needs and the quality of the support provided.
Involvement by People being Supported
The Supporting People Team may wish to speak to the people using the service during the review process OR they may ask people to fill in a questionnaire. If a Supporting People Team visit a service they will be happy to meet and talk to people abut the support they are receiving.
Maybe you would like to be involved in the Supporting People programme by taking part in the Service User Forum? Please speak to your support provider who will pass your name to the Supporing People Team.
Accessing and Paying for Services
Services can be accessed via the Council's housing register, some Social Service and Health teams or direct from support providers. The Council can nominate into housing related support services and accommodation. All providers must have an agreed access route for service users in their contract with the council. People needing support are able to refer themselves for support or can be referred by others such as a social or housing worker.
Support is free to those in receipt of housing benefit or following a successful financial assessment under "Fairer Charging".
Support is provided often as a condition of tenancy, although many services are becoming more flexible and can "float" to where there is need. The sorts of supported accommodation which can be funded are:
- Sheltered Housing
- Hostels for the Homeless
- Independent Living Flats
- Shared Housing
Services are either:
- Short term, for up to 2 years and are supplied without reference to the person needing support's financial circumstances or
- Long term, where financial circumstances are taken into account.
Each user of a service, following a needs assessments, will benefit from a "Support Plan" which will:
- Set the type of support to be delivered
- How and by whom
- For how long and at what time(s)
All services are monitored and reviewed, or investigated if there are particular reasons at any point and have to achieve specific standard of quality and accreditation.
Users of services are able to make a formal complaint to their support provider if they are unhappy with their service. Complaints can also be made to the Supporting People team once the provider complaint procedure has been exhausted without satisfaction.
People being supported may also receive Social Services and Health assessed care or domestic care as well as Supporting People services.
Funded Tasks
Supporting People services aim to help people to establish themselves, or stay, in their own homes. This is known as housing related support. There are a large variety of tasks which are eligible for Supporting People funding, although it should be borne in mind that funding may not necessarily be available for all of them.
As an example, Supporting People providers can help with the following:
Income/Benefits
The person being supported can be helped with making a claim for housing benefit, DSS/JSA and other welfare benefits, ensuring they understand their entitlements with a view to managing their own claim.
Bills/Budgeting
Help can be given with a wide range of budgeting skills such as setting up regular rent and service charge payments; putting into place bill payment mechanisms; gaining agreement for rent and service charge arrears; formalising debt agreement with creditors; establishing a realistic budget and developing the ability to live within this budget. Also help can be provided to maintain payments to creditors; prevent debt accumulation; reduce debt to a manageable level and avoid accumulating debt. All with a view to enabling the person being supported to work out their own budget and manage their finances.
Personal Admin
We all know how much paperwork is involved with everyday living. Support with learning how to deal immediately with official correspondence whilst enabling the person being supported to seek help in dealing with admin can be another task of the support provider. This increases the ability to deal with routine admin, enabling the supported person to manage on their own admin in time.
Offending Behaviour
Where appropriate people using Supporting People services are helped to engage with the probation service and comply with statutory orders as well as assisting to address their offending behaviour.
Health
People being supporting may have a range of health needs. Assistance is available to establish access to required health service; ensuring continuing engagement with health service. Also help to ensure that both physical and mental health are being managed and maintained, that substance misuse is being managed or that abstinence remains stable. Support in these areas helps to sustain improvements to health as well as reducing lapses into substance misuse or lapses in mental health requiring hospitalisation.
Self Care
Some people requiring support may need guidance with self care. This can take the form of establishing and addressing immediate self care needs; creating the awareness of the importance of self care; enabling the person being supported to acquire identified self care skills whilst ensuring external services continued to provide support at the right level. Over time people being supported may maintain self care tasks without prompts or may reduce the need for external support for self care.
Legal
Assistance may be required with getting legal advice and representation; complying with court orders or resolving legal issues.
Education/Training/Work/Meaningful Day Time Activity
Support can be given to identify aspirations and areas of interest; enabling the person being support to identify and select options; establishing access to chosen options; sustaining engagement/attendance; reducing boredom or isolation; improving self confidence; improving life skills in chosen area; accessing skills training on literacy and numeracy; contributing to the establishment of social networks along with help in obtaining employment.
Managing Accommodation
Another key area in helping people to stay in their own homes is advice with managing accommodation issues. This can be done by raising awareness of tenancy obligations; assisting with the purchase of suitable furniture; help with sustaining tenancy with support; enabling the person requiring support to manage their own home; maintaining the safety and security of the accommodation; support to sustain the tenancy independently and proactively obtaining advice and assistance.
Social Networks and Relationships
Support can be provided to establish regular contact with their key worker/support service; encouraging the on going engagement with the support service; establishing and sustaining contact with external groups/services and with significant others; promoting the awareness of the need to change behaviour; highlighting the awareness of avoiding unhelpful social networks; encouraging positive social networks and relationships with significant others along with reducing the likelihood of involvement in conflict situations.
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