Paying for Care

If you have been assessed and this has shown you are eligible for support with your care needs, you could choose to manage this with a Direct Payment.

A Direct Payment means you will receive an agreed amount of money to arrange the support that you need instead of the Council arranging this for you. This gives you more choice and control over the way you arrange your day to day help.

There are two ways to manage a Direct Payment. Either employing your own care worker (known as a Personal Assistant or PA) and paying them yourself, or paying an agency to provide someone. Your social worker or care co-ordinator will give you advice about this.

You can choose who will help you and decide when and how they will do things for you but you must only spend your Direct Payment on meeting your eligible needs, as agreed and recorded in your support plan. This could be someone you know, who understands your needs, who speaks your language, or shares your interests.

Direct payments can be used to pay for anything that has been agreed in your support plan.

This could include:

• support from a care agency of your choice
• employing a Personal Assistant (PA) to help with personal care
• support with daily living activities
• short-term breaks away from home or respite care

Specifically, you cannot spend your Direct Payment on:

• anything that is illegal
• alcohol, tobacco, drugs or gambling (including bingo)
• long-term or permanent residential care
• to pay a close relative who lives with you as your PA, except in exceptional circumstances

Employing someone privately

• to employ a PA you advertise for, interview and choose someone who suits you
• you are also responsible for the administrative and legal responsibilities including managing your PA's pay and arranging the appropriate insurance before they start working for you
• your social worker will be able to explain this in full. They can also provide you with some further information to help you understand this process.

You will need to have a dedicated bank account to manage your Direct Payments and must send us invoices or receipts and bank statements every quarter so that we can see that the Direct Payment is being managed properly.

Vibrance

Direct Payments enable people to be in control of the support they need to live the life they wish. Leading the way in Direct Payments Support, Vibrance works in partnership with Southend-on-Sea City Council, care and support providers and Personal Assistants, to ensure that you have real choice and control in the way they live your life.

Vibrance's Direct Payment Support Services include:

• Providing advice on how to apply for a Direct Payment and Identifying a choice of support options
• Empowering people to make informed decisions, so that they can make the right choices for them
• Supporting people to identify an appropriate care and support agency
• Supporting people to recruit a Personal Assistant and be a good employer

Vibrance's Employment Support Our team can support you with all aspects of employing your own Personal Assistants including:

• Finding your Personal Assistant by Advertising or using the PA Register
• Writing Job Descriptions and Contracts of Employment
• Recruitment checks including references, right to work and DBS, insurance and health and safety requirements
• Setting up of payroll, registration with HMRC and pensions
• Sign posting to training and development opportunities
• Ongoing support including employer updates and sharing of resources

LinkMeUp Personal Assistance Register

For those looking for an individual and flexible service, LinkMeUp can help people to find the perfect Personal Assistant. You can search by location, experience and support provided, as well as viewing a personal profile to find out more about their skills and interests. All PAs have provided two references and have DBS/Right to Work checks. Visit their website www.linkmeup.org.uk for more information on their PA service.

Vibrance can provide payroll and account management services, whether purchasing agency support or employing staff directly. Their tiered service allows people to have as much or as little involvement as they choose, including:

• Payroll
• Fundholding
• Individual Service Fund

To find out more about direct payment support services in Southend-on-Sea, you can contact Vibrance. They can be phoned on 01702 214540 or emailed at southendsds@vibrance.org.uk.

Paying an agency to provide someone

• you will pay an agency who will find you a PA, pay their wages, tax and national insurance
• you will have less choice about your PA as you will not be able to interview them
• the agency may not be able to provide the same person each time
• employing someone through an agency also costs more