Care changes in the pipeline (From This is Hampshire)

Care changes in the pipeline

12:40pm Wednesday 17th March 2010 in

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A MAJOR shake-up of care for adults with learning disabilities is being planned by Hampshire County Council.

Proposals include funding fewer places in private residential and nursing homes, reviewing services at nine council-run homes and smaller day centres.

Instead, councillors want more people to be given personal budgets to spend on care and activities of their own choice.

But the scheme has been criticised by some service users and carers as a cost-cutting exercise.

The learning disability strategy for Hampshire 2009-11 entitled “Ordinary People, Leading Ordinary Lives”, was approved by Councillor Felicity Hindson, executive member for adult social care.

The Conservative-controlled council says it wants to increase the number of people with learning disabilities who have paid jobs, are in adult education, are homeowners and enjoy fulfilling social and personal lives.

The idea of personal budgets is to give people greater control over the type of support they receive, for example to employ their own personal carer instead being looked after by a rota of care home staff.

The county currently spends £47.8million per year on private and in-house residential and |nursing care – 60 per cent of its total budget for adults with learning disabilities.

Of the 11 council-run residential units, eight offer respite care and three are homes to 22 long-stay residents. But officers say they are only three-quarters full.

The aim is to get more adults with learning disabilities into shared ownership, supported and mainstream social housing.

At present, 1,087 people with learning disabilities use day services at a cost of £13m per year. The council has 11 day centres but they are less popular among younger adults, say officers.

The strategy said: “Some form of day service will continue to exist for people with severe and multiple disabilities. This will not be in the form of much of the present provision but will be small, integrated and focused on meeting needs in a person-centred way.”

The proposed budget for 2010-11 includes £1.97m for the “transformation” of learning disability services, including £600,000 for clients moving from traditional day services to personal budgets.

A report to the safe and healthy people select committee included the results of a public consultation in 2008 involving about 550 people, including service users and carers.

It said: “The plan was generally well received and, theoretically, seen as supportive to people. However, there is very considerable scepticism over the outcome.

“There were a number of comments which directly challenged whether this was an exercise in simply closing day services to save money.

“In addition, there were a number of comments on the need for respite, both during the day and for longer periods to allow holidays.”

Cllr Hindson said: “I would like to reassure our learning disability services users and their families there is nothing in the partnership learning disability strategy for Hampshire about closing county council day centres or residential units.

“Service users and their families have told us they want to live ordinary lives. They want jobs and their own homes, and this will mean changing learning disability provision across Hampshire.”

In Hampshire, there are 2,348 adults with a |learning disability who receive a service from the county council – about a quarter of the total.

About 35 per cent live in residential care, 26 per cent with their family and 23 per cent in rented housing compared to just 0.7 per cent who own their own home.