Faye Medcalf I am an adult in her early 30’s with learning disabilities, autism, sensory disabilities and hidden long term health conditions and I speak up for myself and other adults with learning disabilities, autism, sensory disabilities and hidden long term health conditions in lots of different parts of their lives, like health and wellbeing, housing and transport, sport and leisure and easy read and communication and the disability organisations that do multiple support services…

A survey about finding and keeping Personal Assistants The Local Government Association (LGA) and Think Local Act Personal (TLAP) have facilitated a survey which has been designed by people who use *Personal Assistants (PAs) for people who use PAs. The purpose of the survey is to find out about the challenges faced by people who use PAs since March 2020, particularly in recruiting (finding) and retaining (keeping) PAs. The survey is aimed at all people…

A book based on the extraordinary experience of Manavodaya, a non-profit organisation in India that has facilitated self-help groups among poor villagers and trained development practitioners for over 20 years.   Varun Vidyarthi, leader of Manavodaya and the book’s co-author, says that ‘development from below’ is not enough. The key to social change is development from within – change in individual and group consciousness. This change leads to collective capacity for self-management among people’s organisations….

A book describing how to help your family member to be in control. This resource guide was written by a family member. It was written for families who have a relative who needs support in order to have a good life.   This book by Caroline Tomlinson offers suggestions about how you can help your relative – son, daughter, husband, wife, partner or friend – to get a better life. The guide tries to explode…

As we know, there is a very big rhetoric-reality gap between the policy on personalisation and many people’s real life experience. At a local level, too many people are struggling to get their rights to control their own support and are facing bureaucracy, lack of support, over control by the system. Many local groups and organisations are working as hard as they can to support people, but such support has often been decimated by cuts…

Catch up on the latest Partners in Policymaking courses and news… All Together Better, Portsmouth As part of the Transforming Care agenda, In Control have been supported by NHSE and the IPC programme to start an ‘All Together Better’ course in Portsmouth, led by Lynne Elwell and Julie Stansfield. The course sessions deliver both inspiration and information to participants, giving people cutting-edge information and confidence in the belief that people and their families have always…

Does your CCG need some practical help and advice to support the further roll-out of personal health budgets? The Government’s Mandate expects 50,000 -100,000 personal health budgets (PHBs) by 2020/21, as well as CCG responsibilities regarding the legal right to have a personal health budget for people who are eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare and continuing care for children. The Next Steps on the Five Year Forward View published in March 2017 further promotes supporting…

The Guardian Article   Campaigners say growing use of prepaid cards for people to spend on support at home is removing their independence   For the past 10 years, Edwina McCarthy, 63, has lived contentedly in her own home in south London with the support of personal assistants she employs through a personal budget for needs arising from cerebral palsy. In many ways, she is an advertisement for the merits of the personalisation of care…