Personalisation, people and alternative options

1. Personalisation, people and alternative options Name of presenter here

2. What is SharedLivesPlus ? • The UK network for family-based and small-scale ways of supporting adults. • Members are Shared Lives carers and workers, Homeshare programmes and micro-enterprises. • SharedLivesPlus(formerly NAAPS UK) was established in 1992, has 4,000 primarily Shared Lives members and a developing membership support for micro-enterprises. • Seeks to support the members by, • helping them to deliver • providing information and guidance • campaigning for and promoting small- scale ways of working.

3. What is Community Catalysts? • A social enterprise and Community Interest Company established by NAAPS in 2010 • Works to harness the talents and imaginations of people and communities to provide high quality small scale local care and support services • Aims to make sure that people wherever they live have a real choice of great services

4. Putting People in control of their own services? • Government commitment to extending personal care and personal health budgets • People buy support and services that help them to live their lives • Giving people control of the money is only half the answer • Not everyone can or could employ their own staff • People need alternatives - real choice of a wide range of great local services and supports

5. Micro providers • Are local people providing support and services to other local people • Work on a very small scale (5 or fewer workers – paid or unpaid) • Are independent of any larger organisation

6. What do micro providers offer people who need support and services? • An alternative to traditional care services • An alternative to employing own staff • Personal and tailored • Co-produced • Flexible and responsive to change • Help people to link to their community and build social capital • Help people to make their money go further • Local people helping other local people

7. Supporting micro enterprise Community Catalysts has developed a way to: • Find • Engage • Support • Connect Local people running a micro enterprise or those with a great idea Have worked with approx 20 councils and communities to help them support micro enterprise in their area

8. People, possibilities and alternatives

10. Insight for Carers • Launched in July 2010 with a vision of creating a place for carers in Dudley. • Run by volunteers - primarily people with a learning disability, older people and the unemployed •  Hosts Carers Surgeries, coffee mornings, Councillors surgeries, drop in sessions and an IT information hub • Now have approximately 100 customers per week • Many carers are also users of services and many are elderly.  They often feel that their voices are unheard • The cafe offers support, an informal social network, and empowers volunteers to become less socially isolated and gain valuable work experience

12. Pulp Friction CIC • Jill Carter runs the enterprise with her daughter Jessie, who has learning disabilities • Jessie wanted to find work like her friends but Jill felt it was unlikely that this would happen so the pair set up Pulp Friction • Pulp Friction run cycle powered smoothie bar at community events in Nottinghamshire • Work with young adults with learning disabilities to develop their social, independent and work readiness skills

14. Solo Support Services • After an accident left him with a disability, Stephen found himself a user of care and support services • He was deeply unhappy with traditional services and felt that a personal health budget might be a better option • Current rules prevent people from taking their personal health budget as a DP (and to employ own staff) • This inspired Nicola to set up her own organisation called Solo Support Services • Now registered with the CQC to provide personal care in people’s own homes • Also offer a DP support service to people who employ their own personal assistants

16. Funky Fitness and Fun • Set up by Carita who runs a drama group for people with a learning disability and knew people were looking for things to do with their friends • Focuses on health and well being • Members decide the activities which include aerobics, kickboxing, tai chi, street dancing, belly dancing and visits from a nutritionist and dentist • One member Michael says ‘ ideas are not restricted by management’ as in council services!!

18. Ace of Spades • New service idea from a couple who have a passion for gardening and skills in delivering care services • Will offer older and disabled people including those with dementia support to garden • Older people who used to love to care for their own garden but can no longer do so • Carers wanting to maintain their garden, enable their loved one to keep active and gain some free time • Residential care homes wanting to make better use of garden maintenance budget whilst providing the people who live in the home with a hobby and a real interest in their surroundings

19. Sunshine Care • A co-operative formed in 2008 by two entrepreneurial women who had previously worked as council homecare staff for the council. • Wanted to support older people needing care at home who are funding their own care or using a personal budget • Mission is :Putting People Before Profit • Registered with the Care Quality Commission • One of the first wave of Pathfinder mutuals • Support other aspiring co-operatives

20. Why do alternatives need extra support? - micro enterprises • The way in which services are supported, regulated and commissioned has forced many good micro services to close • It is unattractive or impossible for new and emerging providers to enter the market • Without support many existing providers will cease trading and people with great ideas will never set up their service • Existing third sector, business and other infrastructure organisations rarely work together, understand the market, have the specialised knowledge or the remit to provide the necessary tailored support

21. 90% of unsupported micro enterprises fail in the first year Business, Start Ups and Economic Churn: A literature review: NIESR: 2009 • About half of the micro enterprises surveyed operate sub legally MacGillivray, A., Conaty, P., and Wadhams, C. (2001) Low flying heroes: micro-social enterprise below the radar screen, London: New Economics Foundation • For every 100 people with a good idea only one makes it UnLtd July 2010

22. Why do alternatives need extra support? –pooled budgets The Housing Action Charity (HACT) and the new economics foundation (nef) are supporting six collective purchasing pilots. Their initial report ‘Making the choice: early insights from up2us’ found that: Such collective purchasing was extremely difficult to establish because: • Personalisation and direct payments were underdeveloped • No mechanisms for people to meet to identify collective needs • Professionals’ knowledge of such options was poor • Redundancies was causing further loss of experience • Traditional services not meeting the wish to buy support to develop social connections, experience new things and share with others. • Existing providers too cautious in changing working culture/practice.

23. But with support... In Oldham over three years: • 78 local would-be micro entrepreneurs were supported. • 52% (36) successfully established flourishing enterprises  • 83% were still flourishing at the end of 3 years • 850 disabled and older people were receiving support • 140 jobs and 40 volunteering opportunities had been created.

24. Things to consider • People need support, advice and information in order to turn good ideas into sustainable services • Sunshine Care is an exception and establishing a cooperative can be a real challenge • Pooled budgets are much talked about but are rare in practice • If imaginative and quirky services are to emerge they must be purchased by people (chicken and egg).While ever people buy the same services nothing different can emerge

25. “ If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten” Anthony Robbins So... what are you going to do?

26. For further information Contact: simon.taylor@sharedlivesplus.org.uk www.sharedlivesplus.org.uk angela.catley@communitycatalysts.co.uk helen.allen@communitycatalysts.co.uk www.communitycatalysts.co.uk Follow us on twitter @CommCats