Find out how Direct Payments work, who can get them, and how they give you more choice and control over your care.
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Adult Social Care in Torbay is provided by Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust. Their team carries out care and support assessments. One way to pay for your care is through a Direct Payment.
A Direct Payment is one of the ways you can use your personal budget. You can pay for and arrange your own care and support. Instead of the Trust organising services for you, you can choose what works best for your life.
If you have been assessed as:
You can request a Direct Payment, through your allocated worker.
Flexibility, choice, and self-directed care are key to the principle of personalisation. This is what a direct payment is designed to provide.
“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.” Read the Care and Support statutory guidance on GOV.UK
Watch our short video to learn how Direct Payments give you more choice and control over your care
Direct Payments are where funding is given directly to you. You can then choose and arrange your own care and support. If you’re not able to manage the payment personally, it can be given to someone suitable. This could be a trusted family member or friend. They can then act on your behalf.
This option means you can take control of your care instead of using services arranged for you.
You can get a Direct Payment if you:
In some cases, we may do a mental health assessment. This is to check whether a person can make decisions about receiving and managing a Direct Payment.
Direct Payments are now available to most people who qualify for social care support. In a few cases, legal rules may mean it is not possible. Once we understand your situation, we can let you know what applies to you.
You can use the money to arrange care that suits your life and matches your support plan. This might include:
Direct Payments give you more freedom than traditional services. You decide what support works best, when, and where.
This money is there to help you reach the outcomes that have been agreed in your plan. Everyone’s situation is different. How you use it will vary from person to person.
Direct Payments give you more flexibility than traditional care services. They let you decide:
The government’s official guidance explains that Direct Payments are meant to be used in flexible and creative ways, as long as they meet your assessed care and support needs. You can explore what’s possible in the GOV.UK Care and support statutory guidance.
There are some things that a direct payment cannot be used for.
You cannot use direct payments for:
Adult Social Care will check that your Direct Payment is working well. We will check it is meeting the needs and outcomes agreed in your support plan. This is known as monitoring the Direct Payment. This includes a yearly review of your care and support needs.
If you have questions or want to make changes:
In Torbay, two organisations have been commissioned to support with parts of the Direct Payment process:
A Torbay based community project that helps match Personal Assistants (PA’s) with people who receive care funding.
The Windmill Centre
Pendennis Road
Torquay
TQ2 7QR
They offer advice and payroll support for people with Direct Payments or Personal Health Budgets. They will be happy to speak with you and explain how they can support you.