Carers and caring

In some cases, eligible support needs will be offered a budget to support the sustainability of carer support. This will mostly be to support a complete break from caring where this has been identified at the assessment.

Carers should discuss and agree with their allocated social work professional on how support will be delivered, and in what form and ensure transparency regarding the use of the resources allocated. This will be recorded on the Adult Carer Support Plan / Young Carer Statement.

If you are in any doubt as to whether the support you are planning will be regarded as appropriate and will clearly demonstrate the link to agreed outcomes, you should seek further advice from your link professional.

Where local authorities or Health and Social Care Partnerships have concerns about underspending of allocated budgets, these will be reconciled in line with local contractual arrangements. To ensure reconciliation is done accurately and transparently, providers and Direct Payment holders must keep a record of decisions made, (e.g. deployment of staff, additional costs incurred) with a transparent and clear link to adult carer support plans or young carer statements.

The Self-directed Support Finance team will conduct regular audits and will communicate directly with direct payment recipients on the timing of reviews, the information required e.g. bank statement or other supporting evidence, and the outcome of reviews. The Finance Team is here to help and can be contacted at SWSDSfinance@southlanarkshire.gov.uk or by telephoning 01698 454080.

All unspent funds in Direct Payment accounts should be returned to the local authority or Health and Social Care Partnerships. Direct payments do not form part of an individual’s estate and will be fully recoverable at the point the recipient no longer is eligible for a direct payment.

Lanarkshire Carers can support carers financially as well as offer a range of support, services, and information resources tailored to the carer's identified support needs, for example, funding for short breaks and other essential items.