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With the closure of the independent living fund, disabled people are left in a precarious position by a system that compels them to become ‘employers’ of their personal assistants. RUTH HUNT reports
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AS TIME drags on before the long-awaited social care reforms are announced, a group rarely mentioned by ministers — those who are under 60 and disabled — need urgent action to address the problems in their care and support at home.
For professional care at home there are two main routes, home care directly supplied by the council, or the cost of that care given to the service user in the form of direct payments so they can purchase their own care, with or without a personal assistant.
People who have disabilities want to be as independent as possible but often they find the care they receive though direct payments isn’t flexible enough to support their needs.
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