Individual Budgets Pilot Programme

Individual Budgets Pilot Programme

This Department of Health/Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP) programme is a cross-government initiative being led by the Department of Health working closely with the Depatment for Work and Pensions, Department for Communities and Local Government, and the Office for Disability Issues.

There are thirteen local authorities taking part in this pilot programme: Barnsley, Barking & Dagenham, Bath & NE Somerset, Coventry, Essex, Gateshead, Kensington & Chelsea, Leicester, Lincolnshire, Manchester, Norfolk, Oldham and West Sussex. It was started in 2006, and each authority has chosen which client groups it will include within their project so it is not learning disability specific but also covers older people, those with physical disabilities, sensory impairment, or mental health diagnoses, and those people at transition. The policy of providing an individual budget, or self-directed care, has featured in other cross-government proposals, eg the Pre-Budget report 2007.

The individual budget is designed to give people a clear, up-front idea about how much money there is available for their support. They make assessment quicker and easier so that people don't have to give your information time and again and they bring together different kinds of support or funding from more than one agency that lets people use the money in a way that best suits their own needs and situation.

Income streams that are included in these individual budgets are:

  • council provided social care for adults
  • Supporting People funding
  • Independent Living Fund
  • Disabled Facilities Grant
  • Integrated Community Equipment Services, and
  • Access to Work

The programme issues newsletters on their work, and there is an explanatory CSIP website with more details (see links below). Evaluation of the programme is being carried out by the Social Policy Research Unit at York, The Personal Social Services Research Unit at Kent, LSE and Manchester, and the Social Care Workforce Research Unit at King's College, London.

ARC is exploring the implications of individual budgets and self-directed care in a Special Interest Group for members.  Contact Jane Livingstone if you would like details of this group, by email or call 01246 555043.

ARC Cymru is hosting a blog for self-directed care in Wales.  Click here to link to their website. 

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