So, inclusion is the thing, whatever we do we must include everyone no matter what their disability or frailty. Let’s give everyone a personal budget so they can make up their own minds what they want to do. Why not extend the personal budget to cover health and social care and that way everyone will be more empowered to make what they will of their lives.
Of course there is nothing wrong with independence and choice and personal budgets, aren’t we all brilliant, empowering all these citizens and weaning them all off the nanny state. We all know that in theory these ideas can offer the best solution where some money is given to the individual so they can decide how best to meet their own need.
Unfortunately though it didn’t take the state long to work out how these strategies could be used to save the Authorities money as the primary aim and there is growing evidence that these Authorities, faced with savage cuts to their budgets, are making these great ideas work in their favour regardless of the effect on the individual whilst they hide behind the inclusion philosophy.
Day services are being closed on the grounds that no one wants to go to day centres anymore. Phrases such as ‘not fit for purpose’ are being used frequently as an excuse to close facilities used for day services and residential homes so Councils can reap the benefits by saving on running costs and selling the land for lots of cash.
People are being forced to take up personal budgets. In my County these are now more or less compulsory. The only choice being that you either manage it yourself or have your social worker do it for you. Never mind, most would say, let’s make the best of it at least we are being given some money to do things.
Well this would be a wonderful idea if the Council hadn’t also cut its funding to the charities and local enterprises who are trying to provide many of the services that the disabled and elderly need. There are now an increasing number of disabled and vulnerable people who have lost their communities as day centres close and charities make cuts to their services because of a withdrawal of local Council funding so although they now have some money that have bugger-all to spend it on.
As a result I know many who are virtually roaming the streets with their support workers with nothing to do. For some of course it may mean that they are stuck at home and rarely get out anymore. I do know of some local disabled service users who have lost their support altogether because now if you don’t meet the criteria, which is being ever more restricted to just those with substantial and critical needs, you don’t stand a chance of getting any help at all.
Inclusion is the goal, saving money is the aim and exclusion is the result. What sad times we live in.
So there we have it. A wide scale call for inclusion which, due to funding being severely restricted is actually being used as a mechanism to exclude people. As time goes on we are also going to see thousands of elderly people living in isolation with no friends, no community of their own and no services worth having because no one cares.
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