Direct payments

Direct payments can be spent on services to meet eligible care needs and the outcomes you wish to achieve, as identified in your care needs assessment. You will be supported to create a care plan to meet your outcomes with your social care worker. All your direct payment expenses will be agreed as part of this plan. This could be support to help you live in your own home, support to access the community and/or regular short breaks in a care home; your social care worker will discuss this further with your as part of the care planning process.

You could use the money received through direct payment to:

• employ your own staff to provide personal care
• set up a contract with an agency or a micro enterprise to provide staff and services for you
• arrange activities to meet your social, leisure or occupational needs
• purchase minor adaptations to your home and certain items of equipment to aid daily living
• arrange for relief from the stress and demands of caring by arranging your own respite care to offer you or your carer a break
• purchase a holiday or short break, provided this has been agreed with your social care worker and is considered an appropriate way to meet your assessed needs
• get a practical service which will help you to stay living at home

You can use the money to receive any combination of these options and any other services that are available to you. In this way you can create your own service that fits your choices and needs.

What can't I spend the money on?

You cannot use the money received through direct payments to:

• buy services provided by the local authority, Cheshire West and Chester Council (but you can ask us to buy them on your behalf)
• buy permanent residential or nursing care
• employ a spouse, partner or other close relative, if that person lives with you in the same household (exceptions can be made to this but only in exceptional circumstances as authorised by us)
• pay for a personal assistant's expenses such as food and drink or entry fees, except under specific, agreed circumstances (many places allow support workers and personal assistants a reduced entry fee or free entry and all these options must be explored prior to any agreement being sought for payment of entry fees)
• buy health-related services or equipment that should be provided by the NHS
• pay household bills or buy clothes, food etc
• buy anything that does not meet your agreed needs