Self directed support and the social work role Why you became a social worker.... What you expect form your social worker...

The General Social Care Council states that: Social work is committed to enabling every child and adult to fulfil their potential, achieve and maintain independence and self-direction, make choices, take control of their own lives and support arrangements, and exercise their civil and human rights. It looks at people’s lives and circumstances in the round, and works with them to personalise social care responses to fit their own individual situations. Its approaches and working methods aim to promote empowerment and creativity. General Social Care Council (2008): Social Work at its Best: A Statement of Social Work Roles and Tasks for the 21 st Century, available at Self directed support and the social work role A social worker is a qualified professional, subject to registration as such by the General Social Care Council, and thereby to the GSCC Social Care Code of Practice

Self directed support and the social work role The social worker may be the best person to offer support at each of the 7 steps but that could spread a valuable resource too thinly.. The local authority has to have an involvement at key points in the self directed support Process.

Conditional Resource Enhancement To be counted as an IB know how much money they can have for their support Know the outcomes to be achieved be able to spend the money in ways and at times that make sense to them Self directed support and the social work role

Mary dew on her wealth Mark helped her Two very different tales about the social work role Self directed support and the social work role

A time of change

Self directed support and the social work role At last years 2009 Big Event We looked back at 2006 when 100 gathered to celebrate people 60 people with personal budgets (phase i). We celebrated 12k people with Personal Budgets, a 1000 people gathered at the 2009 Big Event. This year 2010 we have 2000 people celebrating (at least 46,000 across 75 LA areas).

Self directed support and the social work role Self directed support and personal budgets are here to stay... ‘This is an area of policy where there is actually quite a lot of shared agenda between the conservative opposition and the labour government. We all agree I think on the direction of travel. My only criticism of the govt isn’t the direction it’s the pace I am very clear this the right direction to be going in.’ ‘I want everybody here to understand that this a shared agenda the conservative government would move faster on this.’ ‘Its not an optional extra its absolutely central to what were about in govt..’ Mark Harper Shadow Minister for Disabled people

Self directed support and the social work role Social work practitioners are operating within context of constant change LA spending cuts Transformation grant £500 million Systems change Public Demands Debate about future funding of social care Local Authority Internal restructuring Public Expectations Law Commission Changes to Regulatory Bodies

Self directed support and the social work role Social work practitioners are operating within a Big System 1.5 million people use state funded social care Over £17 Billion Public Money 1.5 Million social care workers 25,000 Organisations Provide adult Social care

Self directed support and the social work role Public expectations of adult social care

The public would like: social services or public agencies to provide support for them to stay in their own home (90%), the choice to not live in a residential care home (87%). General Public's High Expectations of Adult Social Care:13 July 2006 psos MORI's recent research conducted on behalf of Disability Rights Commission Public expectations of adult social care There is a disconnect between what people want and what we end up with……

Has the IB process changed your view of what can be achieved in your life ? Self directed support and the social work role

Overall, people were more likely to report improvements in time spent with people they liked if they: ◆ had support from their family and/or friends to plan their Self-Directed Support ◆ did not have support from a social worker to plan their Self-Directed Support.

Self directed support and the social work role There are tension created in the social work role Gate keeper of the public purseAdvocate and champion Operating at speed assessing and screening for services: (Needs Day care) Creative planning and helping people find finding solutions: (Needs a friend) Protecting vulnerable people from harmPromoting choice and managing risks Providing and working to performance management indicators Knowledge of and links into community Tensions

Self directed support and the social work role Cambs,Worcs,North lanarks, Barnsley

Self directed support and the social work role

What would help Social Workers carry out their role in a transformed system ?

Closing thoughts Be clear about the conditionality Make the system accessible transparent, allow people to self direct Make sure the RAS ‘feels’ fair.. Free your social workers from gate keeping Support families. (0% RAS) Protect your social workers from assessment they have better things to do… See people as people (needs for friendship) Invest time in helping people plan Let people who can plan for themselves.. Be clear about decision making (capacity)