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Direct Payments
Lorraine9
Member Posts: 4 Listener
Hi - would be interested to hear from anyone else who has experience of managing their own Direct Payments and the issues of managing social care departments. We live in a borough with very poor to no activity provision for young people with learning disabilities and I have found my son (27) with some very good provision in the next borough. However I am not allowed to use his DP to provide a taxi to take him there despite statutory guidance.
"The Department of Health Care and Support Statutory guidance states in point 12.34 "The direct payment is designed to be used flexibly and innovatively and there should be no unreasonable restriction placed on the use of the payment, as long as it is being used to meet eligible care and support needs.”
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/care-and-support-statutory-guidance
How are disabled people supposed to live their lives if social care are constantly working to undermine the Care Act and re-interprete in their own interests - which clearly are not those of the people they are supposed to be serving. It is beyond depressing.
"The Department of Health Care and Support Statutory guidance states in point 12.34 "The direct payment is designed to be used flexibly and innovatively and there should be no unreasonable restriction placed on the use of the payment, as long as it is being used to meet eligible care and support needs.”
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/care-and-support-statutory-guidance
How are disabled people supposed to live their lives if social care are constantly working to undermine the Care Act and re-interprete in their own interests - which clearly are not those of the people they are supposed to be serving. It is beyond depressing.
Replies
Hope you're having a tolerably good day.
Very warmest best wishes to you,
Richard
My DP is for accommodation.
My understanding is this is for care and support, not how you get there to receive that support.
So you would fund the transport?
Lorraine9
See information from Luke Clements website (a leading professor of Law and a solicitor), that you may find helpful in arguing transport costs should be covered in sons personal budget:
Transport to Social Care Services
http://www.lukeclements.co.uk/resources/transport-to-social-care-services/ .
I'm not sure if you have already gone down the formal complaint route, but if not may be worth considering?
Best Wishes,
Zoe
Scope helpline
I been billed and still get billed.
I'm sorry that it took so long to get this sorted, and the impact that it had on your family. But fantastic news that you successfully challenged the LA and got the correct outcome. People are often told to use the mobility element of PIP for transport related to an eligible social care need, your sons case highlights it is worth challenging LA's when they make those type of statements.