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South Devon and Torbay Clinical Commissioning Group
South Devon Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Torbay and Southern Devon Health and Care Trust
Devon Partnership NHS Trust
Excellent, joined-up care for everyone

Developing the approach to personal budgets in Torbay

Project brief

Date:17th December 2014

Authors:Matt Gifford, Hannah Spencer, Rob Butler

Version Control

Ver. / Date / Changed By / Change / Section
1.1 / 17/12/14 / MG / Initial document / All
1.2 / 20/1/15 / MG / Updated draft / All
1.3 / 27/01/15 / MG / Title changed / cover
1.4 / 4/2/15 / MG / Adjustment to language – following feedback from ‘In Control’
Emphasised this relates to PBs for EHCPs / Background / Objectives / Benefits
Out of Scope
1.5 / 10/3/15 / MG / Project deliverables – “5 service options”
Minor amendments to text / All
1.6 / 9/4/15 / MG / Title amended / Cover
1.7 / 21/4/15 / MG / Objectives reworded / Objectives

Purpose (of this document)

This document has been produced to provide an overview of the scope, dependencies on other work and the anticipated benefits of this proposed pilot, in order to ensure management from education, health and social care (SEND Operational Leads) agree with the use of staff resource and the approach to service development.

What will the project deliver?

  • Guidance as to how a personal budget could be used to meet the needs of a child / young person with an education, Health and Care Plan.
  • Identify at least 5 services (options) to achieve outcomes differently using personal budgets in line with parents’ / young person’s wishes (within the pilot timescale).
  • Case study examples of how personal budgets have been used successfully to meet a young person’s agreed outcomes and to share this as good practice.
  • Specific recommendations for improvements to the EHCP process

Background

The SEND code of practice states that the LA’s approach to Personal Budgets should be developed in co-production with parents and young people.

Current situation

Social Care

Social Care in Children’s and Adults’ services offers personal budgets in Torbay for a range of short break services, including leisure activities, sitters, personal assistants, domiciliary care, domestic services, overnight stays, equipment etc

Health

Children’s Health contributes to personal budgets in the form of direct payments which are set up and managed by the Children’s Disability Service. Services include personal assistants to support medical needs and transport.

Education

There is no established pathway for the use of personal budgets within Education in Torbay. Theteam is currently working with partners to develop options for services that may be taken as a personal budget. The current intention is to discuss each person’s situation individually and to work out what options may be available.

In order to develop this approach it is proposed that selected families are approached to explore the option of accessing parts of the element 3 ‘top up’ funding as a personal budget and to discuss with their child’s schools any possibilities for the school or college releasing funding to also be used as a personal budget, to meet the needs of the child / young person.

Primary Objectives

  • Develop guidance as to how a personal budget could be used to meet the needs of a child / young person with an education, Health and Care Plan.
  • Identify at least 5 services (options) to achieve outcomes differently using personal budgets in line with parents’ / young person’s wishes (within the pilot timescale).
  • Case study examples of how personal budgets have been used successfully to meet a young person’s agreed outcomes and to share this as good practice.
  • Specific recommendations for improvements to the EHCP process

Secondary Objectives

  • To make recommendations forif / how the current EHCP process would need to change to accommodate the use of personal budgets
  • To improve the joint assessment process to identify whole life outcomes
  • To highlight opportunities to commission services for people with SEND services in Torbay
  • To provide families with more information about the support / activity options open to them; families will be able to share this information to support other parents and young people in thinking about the options of personal budgets, developing peer support.

Scope, Exclusions and Interfaces

In scope

  • Determining what support and activities are currently purchased using a personal budget in:
  • Social Care
  • Education
  • Health
  • Identifying support and activities to meet outcomes differently using personal budgetsto meet the needs of a person with an EHCP plan
  • Highlighting opportunities to improve all aspects of the EHCP statutory process (TSSP2), including:
  • Setting of ’whole life outcomes’
  • Person centred techniques
  • Cooperation between agencies
  • Evaluation of service options open to service users
  • Commissioning of Services

Out of scope

  • Reformatting the pre process – TSSP1
  • Reformatting the EHCP
  • Reformatting the Local Offer
  • Developing personal budgets where there is not an Education element

Interfaces

  • Any developments of Personal Budgets for EHCPs will be shared with the relevant Personal Budgets teams within Health and Social Care
  • Format of EHCP process documentation
  • It is expected that recommendations for changes in the documentation will be made, however this piece of work is not responsible for implementing any changes
  • Local Offer - It is expected that the findings of this pilot will be used to inform the approach to personal budgets which will be published on the local offer
  • Commissioning of services - gaps in service provision for people with SEND in Torbay may be identified which will be reported to the SEND Operational Leads group.

Assumptions

  • The recommendations from the pilot will be considered by the SEND Operational Leads. The SEND Operational Leads will decide whether to take on board the recommendations.

Benefits

  • The range of support and activities open to personal budget use will start to increase providing more options to families
  • Families will have more information about the options open to them
  • Staff will have more information regarding the services available allowing more effective planning
  • A more person centred approach should lead to more achievable outcomes

Initial Risk Assessment

  • Availability of staff resource to conduct the pilot - accepted
  • Possibility of outside pressures (e.g. changes in legislation) impacting on timescales required to complete work)

Draft Outline Project Plan (To be developed with resources and timescales)

1 / Meeting with In Control for Personal Budget approach advice
2 / Research Mott MacDonald / In Control publications on Personal Budgets
3 / Draft project brief agreed
4 / Sign off on brief by Operational Leads
5 / Investigate suitable opportunities for personal budget pilots
6 / Propose options to SEND Service Manager
7 / Meet with potential families and talk through options for plan
8 / Determine services currently available to purchase via a PB across education, health and social care
9 / Establish which funding streams which may be accessible
10 / Make links with professionals to identify any potential barriers (e.g. social care team if involved)
11 / Gain authorisation in principle for ‘go ahead’ with PB option
12 / Agree PB option with family
13 / Set up and implement PB service option
14 / Report on barriers encountered / good practice with recommendations for changes to Dorothy Hadleigh

Review and Reporting

  • Pilot to provide an update report to the SEND Operation Leads group on a half termly basis.
  • Pilot to report into SEND Service Manager via weekly SEND projects catch up meeting

Timing

  • Start date to follow SEND Operational Leads meeting on 29/1/15
  • Formal pilot approach to complete by Dec 15.