The video clips in this set of pages come from the In Control DVD titled ‘How to be in control’. The DVD has been organised under In Control’s seven steps to self-directed support and stories. You can buy the ‘How to be in control’ DVD for £12 by contacting In Control or by using the order form   Click here to see the 7 steps video clips Click here to see stories

Top Tips is a shortened version of ‘Keys to Citizenship’ designed for people who are helping someone to plan. In the Driving Seat is a workbook for people creating their own support plan.   Some people decide their own route through life – make their plan without help. But some need support to do this. Family members, friends, advocates and paid workers can help people to get the support they need to live the life…

Stories of regenerating lives from people supported by The Thistle Foundation in Renfrew   Between December 2000 and June 2001, 14 people began new lives – a regeneration process of discovery and rediscovery. They moved from institutional care for people with learning difficulties and physical disabilities to their own brand-new homes in two ordinary neighbourhoods in Renfrew, Scotland. They had spent between 10 and 65 years in different institutional environments – an average of 28…

A guide to getting good support services for people with learning difficulties. Simon Duffy’s book about how people with learning difficulties can be supported to take their place as citizens (rather than be just the recipients of care) says there are six keys to people getting a good life. These are: self-determination, direction, money, home, support and community life.   Author: Simon Duffy Price: £12.50 inc P&P (size175 x 245mm) Order form

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…