The right help when you need it

The council can help most people who approach Adult Social Care to remain living independently at home. The council will support you to help yourself by providing information and advice and introducing you to other organisations, so that you can find solutions.

The council will make sure any care and support arranged for you is only in place for as long as you need it and, for those people who need long-term care, the council will ensure that the care and support is flexible if your needs change.

Everyone who appears to have care and support needs is entitled to a needs assessment. This is a conversation with a trained assessor about the

Who is eligible for care and support?

The council uses a national eligibility framework set by the Government to decide whether your needs are eligible for care and support through the council. You can read the national eligibility

Planning your support

If you have eligible needs, the council can help you to plan the support you need – if you like. Everyone’s needs for care and support are different, and needs can be met in many ways.

Planning is all about you, your needs and what is important to you. It looks at what you can do for yourself or, with the support you already have, what you want to achieve, and what local help is available. It is your plan, but it will also involve your carer (if you have one) and anyone else that you want

Independent advocacy

POhWER provides independent health and social care advocacy on behalf of the council. It helps people who want to communicate their own views or who want to support others to communicate.

POhWER provides: things that matter most to you to find out what will improve your wellbeing now and in the future. Assessors will also discuss what support is available to you and what you hope to achieve. Sometimes this conversation is all that you will need from the council. criteria for care and support at www.yourcircle.org. uk/Information/eligiblecareandsupport/ If your circumstances change, you can ask the council for a new assessment. to involve. Even if your needs are not eligible, the council will offer information and advice about how you can help yourself and suggest organisations that may help you.

• Independent Care Act Advocacy (ICAA).

• Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy (IMCA) including IMCA Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and Relevant Person’s Representative (RPR).

An assessment is the way that the council gets a full picture of your needs and circumstances, what might improve your wellbeing and what is important to you and your family. You can involve a relative, friend or carer in your assessment if you would like. The council will arrange an independent advocate for you if you are likely to have substantial difficulty in taking part in your assessment and have no-one appropriate to support and represent you.

Means-tested charges apply to almost all care and support arranged or provided by the council. The council will ask you to have a financial assessment (a means test) if charges apply to your care and support. For more information on paying for care and support, see page 38.

• Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA).

• Independent Health Complaints Advocacy (IHCA) – if you would like support to complain about NHS-funded care.

ICAA can help you communicate your views if you have ‘substantial difficulty’ in participating in your care needs assessment, planning or changing your support or if there are safeguarding concerns. This is also available for carers’ assessments, support planning and reviews. For more information, see page 40.

The council will arrange an advocate to support you if:

• You find it hard to understand, retain and use important information.

• You have trouble communicating your views, wishes and feelings, or making decisions.

• You do not have an ‘appropriate person’ who can support and represent you.

If you or someone you know would benefit from advocacy in Gloucestershire, visit www.pohwer.net/Gloucestershire,

Transition to adulthood

The transition to adult life can bring many changes such as leaving school, taking up new leisure activities, starting training or college, finding employment and moving towards independent living.

For young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), person-centred transition planning is essential preparation for adulthood. View the Gloucestershire Preparing for Adulthood Strategy at www.gloucestershire.gov.uk (search ‘preparing for adulthood’).

Useful contacts

The Glosfamilies directory provides support and advice for families and young people from birth to 25. The website also contains information and guidance for parents and young people with additional needs on education, health, care and voluntary and community sector services. This is Gloucestershire’s Local Offer and explains what is available in Gloucestershire and how to get help. Visit www.glosfamiliesdirectory.org.uk

Dementia

People with dementia often feel happier if they can remain independent and in their own homes for as long as possible. Information about services and support for people with dementia and their carers is available through Alzheimer’s Society Gloucestershire and Managing Memory Together. See page 13 for more information.

If the person with dementia can no longer be cared for at home or is considering moving to a care home, you should look for a care home that offers quality personal and person-centred care.

email glosadvocacy@pohwer.net or call 0300 003 1162.

The website www.yourcircle.org.uk/Information/ socialcareadvocacy provides information and tips about how to self-advocate, which applies to any situation where you want to communicate your views.

These tips can also be used when advocating on behalf of someone else.

Future Me Gloucestershire is a website for children and young people aged 14-25, providing information and guidance on education, employment, building independence and mental and physical health. It also uses Instagram, Facebook, Twitter (all @futuremeglos) and YouTube (www.youtube.com – search ‘Future Me Gloucestershire’) to share daily updates on topics of interest to young people in Gloucestershire. Visit www.gloucestershire.gov.uk (search ‘Future Me’) or email futureme@gloucestershire.gov.uk

SENDIASS Gloucestershire provides confidential and impartial information, advice and support for children and young people with SEND. The service is offered to parents and carers of children and young people aged 0-25 and young people aged 16-25. Visit www.sendiassglos.org.uk, email sendiass@ gloucestershire.gov.uk or call 0800 158 3603, 01452 427566 or 01452 427567. You can also visit www.facebook.com/sendiassglos or www.twitter.com/sendiassglos for further with your search for care

It’s important to consider homes that also provide nursing care in case the person with dementia develops more complex needs as the condition progresses. Many care homes offer specialist environments with specially trained, experienced staff and specialist facilities adapted to the needs of residents living with dementia.

A residential dementia care checklist is on page 85, to be used with the checklist on page 83. Care providers that specialise in care for people with dementia are shown with D in their listing.