Is personalisation working in social care? Live discussion roundup

Peter Hay is president of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services We need to improve outcomes for older people Systems for supporting older people don't seem to be as strong as those for young adults. We need to emphasise long-term measures Reported measures of people feeling in better health may turn out to be the real long-term wins when tracked across the lengthy experience of care and support. Richard Humphries is a senior fellow at the King's Fund How do we know when personalisation is working? The traditional demarcation of commissioner/provider roles become increasingly irrelevant and individuals are supported to secure their own arrangements with providers. That should mean councils spending less on commissioning and care management and more on support, information, advocacy, etc. Personalisation requires a new funding settlement There is a real danger that personalisation could be used as whipping boy for an underfunded care system rather than a panacea, and it's hugely difficult to make it work at a time when the gap between need and resources is growing. Charlotte Hammond is head of change implementation in the active intervention and safeguarding team at Lancashire County Council Local authorities' role in personalisation will diminish There needs to be more investment in the voluntary and third sector to enable people to take the money and live their lives in ways that make sense to them involving all aspects of the community. Sue Brown is head of public policy at Sense Market development is critical There is no point giving someone control of a budget if there is nothing for them to spend that budget on. This is a common experience for people with less common support needs. Personalisation can work for older people Almost by definition personalisation should work for everyone, so if there is evidence that there are groups where it isn't working it means it hasn't been personalised. Elaine Cotterill is a full-time carer for her husband who has multiple sclerosis I surprised myself when I took control of my husband's budget and staff Many people should be able to manage their support once they get over the fear of becoming an employer. It's quality not quantity Care managers signed up to deal with real people, real lives and real situations with a hands-on approach, rather than what they consistently come up against, which is lack of time, unreachable targets and a lack of support from above that is more focused on numbers than people. Peter Beresford is professor of social policy at Brunel University and chair of Shaping Our Lives Policy has overtaken values What has really worried me about personalisation is that it has been a heavily politicised policy and values have often come off second best as a result. We're not on the right track The words are right, but in its present form and with the inadequate resources it is being given, it is looking precarious, with more cuts and disinvestment to come. We need to look at the whole picture It's what service users constantly say; they aren't in bits and pieces – they are whole people and want support arrangements that are framed in recognition of that. Sarah Carr is a senior research analyst at the Social Care Institute for Excellence There can be concerns about perceived risk and capacity The best way to enable people with mental health problems who may be seen as a risk is for social workers to talk to service users about what positive risks they want to take and what makes them feel safe. Martin Routledge is programme director at Think Local, Act Personal Personalisation is not just a policy We must own this ourselves rather than see ourselves as passive recipients of government policy. Personalisation is broader than personal budgets Other key elements include information, inclusion and contribution in the community, etc. Jenny Pitts works as an independent social care consultant and is managing director of Ambrey Associates Jargon tends to over-professionalise some very basic principles Even the word personalisation is misleading – we should be talking about citizenship. We need to think past outcomes The levels of satisfaction are just as high with individual service funds and third party arrangements as with direct payments. The problem is that in many areas the only way you can exercise control is via a direct payment and hence they tend to generate the positive results. Jon Glasby is director of the health services management centre at Birmingham University and a qualified social worker We need to think more broadly about the system The forthcoming social care white paper will hopefully be a chance to debate what kind of life we want together as a society and what this means for how we fund and design the social care system. We should be proud of personalisation I'm still inspired by the way in which direct payments became part of mainstream policy – something that was invented by disabled people, introduced because of campaigns by disabled people and that has made such a difference to people. Wendy Lowder works as the assistant director for personalisation at Barnsley metropolitan borough council A good programme for personalisation has to look at personalisation in the broadest of senses I suppose you could say personalisation at an individual level (personal budgets), at a family level (think family) and at a community level (community budgeting). This article is published by Guardian Professional. Join the social care network to receive regular emails and exclusive offers.