1. Choice &
control
Personal Budgets – National and
Islington Context

2. What are personal budgets?
A personal budget is a sum of money identified by the Local Authority or CCG to deliver services for a particular person.
In health they are often referred to as a Personal Health Budget
An Integrated Personal Budget includes funding from more than one agency – education, health and/or social care
In Islington we tend to refer to everything as a Personal Budget to avoid confusion

3. Who can have a personal budget?
CYP with disabilities
CYP with an EHCP
Those accessing targeted short breaks
CYP with Continuing Care needs
CYP with SEND accessing home to school transport
CYP with palliative care needs
CYP with a wheelchair
Children Looked After and Care Leavers with mental health needs

4. What is the aim of personal budgets?
Personal Budgets are one part of a wider movement towards personalisation in health and social care
The aim is that those with more complex needs are able to have more choice and control over their care
The conversation is changing from ‘what are your needs and how do we meet them?’ to ‘ what outcomes are we aiming for and how can we work together to help you achieve them?’

5. How are personal budgets delivered?
Personal Budgets can be delivered in 4 ways:
Notional budget
Third Party-managed budget
Direct Payment
Combination of the above
Most common are notional budgets and Direct Payments

6. Direct payments
A Direct Payment is one way of delivering a Personal Budget
The money that has been agreed for the care and support will be paid either into a separate bank account, or onto a pre-paid card
A person cannot have a Direct Payment if they:
Are subject to a drug or alcohol treatment programme
Have a gambling addiction
Have a youth rehabilitation order
Have been assessed as lacking capacity following a Mental Capacity Assessment
Have previously misused money from a DP

7. What can a personal budget be spent on?
Your Personal Budget can be spent on anything that meets the goals that have been agreed between you and relevant professionals who are supporting you.
These goals will be set out in your support/care plan or EHCP
Personal Budgets cannot be spent on:
Anything illegal
Alcohol or tobacco
Paying off debts
Paying for household bills
A range of health services (Primary Care services, urgent and emergency care, prescriptions and vaccinations, dentistry, surgery, anything NICE has said cannot be prescribed on the NHS)

8. Refusing a personal budget
The Local Authority or CCG may refuse to give someone a Personal Budget if:
It goes against the rules about what a Personal Budget can be spent on
It does not meet an agreed outcome
It does not provide good value for money/it is more than what the Local Authority or NHS would have spent on services for a person
There is significant risk that it will cause harm (and that risk cannot be managed)

9. Choice and control
Choice and Control is a specific project in Islington developing the use of Personal Budgets to support:
Children Looked After with social/emotional mental health and wellbeing needs who should be accessing support for this need but aren’t
Care Leavers who are NEET/at risk of becoming NEET
Part of a wider national pilot
Building on learning from health and social care Personal Budgets

10. Useful information Choice and Control Local Offer – Personal Budgets
Katy Briggs
Local Offer – Personal Budgets