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News

PRO disability and social services celebrate success

A special conference last week heard how clients of the Borough of Poole’s Social Services were benefiting from the system of direct payments which allows them to purchase their own care from providers of their choice.

The direct payment project is operated in partnership with PRO Disability and has been running for 18 months. It was recently independently evaluated and found to provide an effective service for clients.

The conference enabled professionals from the social care field from across the country, together with users of the service, to share experiences and learn from good practice.

Conference delegates heard how, once an individual’s needs have been assessed as eligible by social services, they receive regular payments to buy their own care. In some cases this could involve recruiting one or more specialist personal assistants to help them with their care.

Once they know how much they will receive, clients are supported by the independent disability rights organisation PRO Disability to help them select the most appropriate package of care and deal with any employment or contractual matters.

Professor Peter Beresford of Brunel University , who led the evaluation team, said: "Poole has devised a direct payments scheme that is creative and flexible, driven by a determination to maximise choice for service users. We have been most impressed by the direct payments service being developed by Poole. We urge them not to lose the spirit of ambition, flexibility and creativity that has marked it to date."

Councillor Mary Hillman, who chairs the Direct Payments Working Party, said: "We are extremely pleased that the report recognises the strong partnership between PRO Disability and the Borough of Poole. This scheme lets social service clients manage the money to meet their needs, giving them much more choice and flexibility. This approach promotes independent living and in many cases, can be literally life changing."

Neil Smurthwaite, Principal Officer, Quality Assurance, Borough of Poole, tel: 01202 261130.