Guardianship

anisty

Yes, any change from his usual routine can have this effect. Probably also he's picking up on conversations about the possibility of moving out of our house in future. This is something he says he wants to do but the thought of it will be very stressful.

He only says he wants to do it as he thinks it's a thing he 'should' do as he gets older.  He'd actually be very settled living with us for ever.  So that's a new seed planted for him.

I would like to see him try this cluster housing by the time he's 30 if there is a space for him - just to see if he can manage with others helping him and how much support he needs.

He can do a lot himself but task initiation is a huge issue and he does need prompted with ADL. I was really interested to see on another thread apps that could help with that.



**** The resources i posted in the parent section also talk about being a DWP appointee and, even though it talks about the process of getting a guardianship order, it is still well worth a listen for any parents of teenagers/ young adults  in England, Wales or in fact anywhere as there are lots of little nuggets in those talks *****

Shoolby

Hi Anisty

I am catching up with your posts now, sorry I should have been here earlier to support you.

S

anisty

Little update today - report from 2nd psychiatrist came back confirming lack of capacity.

We also got the MHOs report and the Summary of Application which will go to the court now.


Hopefully, the rest will be straightforward and the judge will grant the guardianship. It's for 3 years initially that we are applying for though on the 2nd psych report, she stated duration would be lifelong.


Interestingly, on one of the podcasts, it does say the main reason first applications are usually granted for 3 years is just to get guardians back to court. In an ideal world, the mho would keep close contact with the guardian right through but, with resources stretched, most guardians never see the mho again til the guardianship needs renewed!


Have you been through this, @Shoolby? Are you in Scotland too?

anisty

Just heard today that the hearing will be on 14th April. We don't need to attend.

L_Volunteer

Completely hear you @anisty, as a fellow autistic I also find any change from my usual routine can have a similar impact! How is he feeling at the moment?

Oh, there are (thankfully!) lots of apps that can help with that. Personally, I find Todoist really useful – particularly for managing executive functioning difficulties.

I am aware different apps work best for different people though. Hopefully, your son can find an app (or a few) that work best for him.

I have also tried Pomodoro/tomato technique apps but I find these types of apps best when I am struggling to focus, rather than planning, organising and alarming me for tasks.

Thanks again for continuing to keep us in the loop with how things are for you and your family (including, but not limited to, your son) and sharing resources with us to support other people.

How brilliant that you don’t need to attend. How are you feeling at the moment? Please don’t hesitate to let us know how the hearing goes and if there's anything else we can do to support you 

anisty

Thanks, @L_Volunteer - my poor boy has Covid!! It is the first time he has had it and he has been hit hard. We think he must have picked it up on the bus as no one at his activity groups has it, and nor do we.

So he has been off his activities all week and in his bedroom (which he likes!)

I'm feeling ok about everything.  I'd be surprised if it gets turned down with the reports that have been submitted but, even if it is, I do feel he is now known to Social Services and also his siblings and the social work dept do know our wishes in the event of our deaths.

It feels like we have much more of a plan now for his future, whereas up to this point he had very much still been living with us as a child in our home. We had thought about what a pickle he'd be in when we depart - but taken no action.


So it does feel better to have taken the right steps to make sure he is looked after whilst he needs to be, if we aren't around.

L_Volunteer

Oh no @anisty, not covid!! I really hope your boy is feeling better soon. Though, I guess it at least means he has been in his bedroom (which he likes!).

Really glad to hear you are feeling ok about everything at the moment. It sounds like a relief for others to know your wishes in the event of your deaths 

anisty

Hooray! Guardianship has been granted for a 3 year period.

No fees due to the court as all welfare guardianships qualify for full legal aid.


There will be a fee due to the solicitor. I will update to say what it is once the invoice appears.


Aside from the gp muck up, i have to say the process was straightforward and easy.


The solicitor did all the work. All we had to do was ensure our son was available for assessment (both assessments took place at our house so not even any travel for us)

Lou67

@anisty
I posted on your other thread but wanted to say again I’m so pleased for you, you have worked tirelessly on behalf of your son. It’s amazing hopefully now you can rest a bit.

Take care ❤️

anisty

A final conclusion to the process - solicitor's bill arrived. £480 including V.A.T.
That was the entire bill for everything from start to finish.

Started november 22. Concluded may 23. Quite a long process really looking back but it didn't really seem difficult at the time. 


I would definitely say it's an easy process for anyone embarking on it via a solicitor as it was all done for us. Apart from the initial approach to the solicitor, we havent left the house.

Even paid the bill by bank transfer. It was all done for us. Simples!

L_Volunteer

Really happy for you @anisty with guardianship being granted for 3 years and it was a fairly smooth process, which didn't really seem difficult at the time. I am hearing the solicitor made a huge difference in this process and how smooth it felt

surfygoose

My parents and two friends have power of attorney for me and look after all my finance and welfare. It was free because I’m on benefits. I only had to be able to understand that I trust those people and it was very simple for them to make the power of attorney and I didn’t have to do anything. They can make the choices about my care home and my money but if it’s something I can join in I can get asked as well on each choice because I can choose some things like which activities I enjoy. So if guardianship ever does not get renewed or something don’t worry because power of attorney is easy too. My social worker only asked me do I trust my parents and my two friends and I said yes and she asked did anyone bully me to make me say yes and I said no, no one had bullied me, then it was all fine and they filled out the paperwork. I just had to sign my name a few times on the papers but I was shown where to sign.

anisty

Hi, @surfygoose   Sorry, I haven't been on here in a while so only just saw your reply.


That's great your parents have Power of Attorney and it might be something we could look at for our son in future.


In fact - it is what we originally asked our solicitor about this time but it wasn't possible for our son because he lacks capacity.


He can sign his name - but he is so vulnerable that if we asked him to sign anything, he would!  He would not fully understand the implications of signing his freedoms away. And only those who understand what they are doing can ask someone else to hold Power of Attorney.



That is why we had to get the 2 independent assessments to see what our son can understand - and they both decided he did not have capacity to grant P of A.



I hope this response might help other parents with teenagers know what process they might need to go for as their teen becomes adult