Once in place, your personal budget can be managed in a number of ways. There are 4 mechanisms for managing personal budgets:
- You can have money as a direct payment which is paid into a dedicated bank account and make your own arrangements. If you do this it could involve you hiring your own staff or buying in a service from a provider. If you employ someone you have to deal with the legal responsibilities of an employer.
- You may prefer to identify a third party who may be an individual nominee or an organisation to manage the money or arrangements on your behalf.
- You could opt for an organised arrangement, where the organisation making the money available arranges the desired support on your behalf. (i.e spot purchase)
- Some people opt for a combination of these mechanisms.
Some assessments and planning work will be part of an EHC Plan. The plans bring together a child or young person's Special Educational Needs and set out the provision to meet those needs from Education, Health and Social Care Services. If you are having an EHC Plan prepared or reviewed, you can request a personal budget to meet educational needs. You do not need an EHC Plan in place to request a social care personal budget or a health personal budget. However, if you have an EHC Plan in place, these become part of the EHC planning process.
Whether or not you have an EHC Plan, the assessment will consider all relevant circumstances, identify needs and desired outcomes. It will look at the child or younger adult, a family, how the child or younger adult can change things to achieve their outcomes, and how we all can meet the outcomes identified and any future plans.