I'm done with the excuses

The situation with social services and the non-delivery of a support plan following my 2018 carers assessment has been ‘picked up’ finally. How far this will go considering social services has pushed it to another linked organisation, is anyone’s guess.

They are obviously still denying any wrong in all this. Despite being the organisation who conducts support plans for carers. It is unclear whether the contractually linked organisation should have done this as part of their agreement with the Council.

Notably, as social services were made aware I hadn’t received a support plan as a carer. Instead of ignoring my communications and pretending they hadn’t heard or understood me, they should of ‘signposted’ me to the other organisation who appear to be on the receiving end now to explain.

At the actual time of all this taking place, I was told social services deal with the carer’s assessment and after it is completed, to decide whether there are any ‘needs’. When I asked I was mainly ‘blanked’ by both an allocated social worker and his upline management. Including a general manager who is no better than the former one, who did nothing but ignore me.

At one stage, I was subjected to the ‘practitioner’ of the service emailing me telling me I was eligible for any assistance, as a carer…and then deleting the said email, he’d written. This was a practitioner who was continuing the wishes of both former and the present general manager and that was regardless of my situation and based on the direction of himself and whoever else was involved in it.

It was mainly based on discrimination towards the care I have to provide for my son and because of social services operating a zero-tolerance of clients with low functioning autism, especially with other complex disorders.

For example, Social services hold ‘false beliefs’ of seizures not being part of epilepsy and also that no-one has the need for 24-hour care and these are just small aspects, of the overall rigidity shown by social services employees, towards service needers such, as my son. Social services clearly have adopted its own set of rules and those do exclude, any guidance of the Care Act.

Social services have already ‘looked at’ the matter and apparently ‘didn’t ignore me’. However, they did ignore me and also delayed any proper responses. To keep sending me ‘a copy’ of my completed carers assessment, instead of a support plan was actually ignoring the issue. The service pretended they had no idea what I was talking about when I asked for a written outcome but that’s something that would be reasonably expected following completing a carer’s assessment.

At one stage, I received an email to say I had been sent an outcome but then I had stated I hadn’t. That too became a problem to be ignored, by the service, including a social worker who had ‘been allocated’.

By the way, being allocated doesn’t necessarily mean acting for that person or acting in that person’s interests or even seeing that person. All it means is the social services are covering themselves by ‘allocating’ a really unaccessible member of staff to a case.

There’s probably a name for this being done by the service…such as ‘a sleeping allocation’. All I know is, it’s a case where the ‘client’ becomes a bottom of the list one and that also applies to informal carers attached to the client, where they will also reside as last or no priority. That is until it’ll be expected to ‘justifying the social worker’s job’. For example, to be available to complete paper assessments that only consist of a social worker’s decision, which are always based on their own views which disregard anything said by a carer, anyway.

It is a pointless task which really gets nowhere fast and in fact courses, stagnation and none movement towards support or ever getting it.

It’s the unwillingness to listen or acknowledge anything which may cost the service any money whatsoever. There are no reviews of packages which are losing value to the point of losing the ability to utilise the amount of care really needed.

It doesn’t matter what is said either as once a package is in place and has been in place for 7 years, it never goes up alongside the cost of future care, which goes up each and every year. The amount remains the same regardless and there’s no flexibility.

117 aftercare packages shouldn’t have to be ‘topped up’ yet only 3 years ago I was told to top it up then and when the amount wasn’t functioning the package properly. Direct payments are meant to be flexible…meaning they are supposed to cover the type of care and a choice of how the care is administered. The truth is, my own son’s package isn’t enough to allow a care agency unless he has less than half the care, even though that would not be a manageable solution.

It was one thing telling me to top-up an agency at the time and quite another when recourses would not allow this. Trying to speak to ‘an allocated’ social worker about this was like talking to a brick wall as I found myself being treated to ‘the ignoring method’ straightaway. In fact, I never did receive an answer to this matter, at any time, within the past 3 years.

I have not had a proper answer to any issue big or small from social services.

Right now, they have deallocated any services but they have actually been deallocated the whole time and I’m talking about during the entire time my son has been on a joint solutions ‘package’ for 117 aftercare.

Social services are meant to be ‘the lead’ organisation and that is because Health has unfairly refused full continuing healthcare. The worst thing is health are not sharing responsibility, by withholding healthcare or specialist services. They currently or I should say one sad individual is withholding services…on the basis of his attempt to force community nurses through the door.

They are not coming through my door, as I am not even allowed to see full files when they are expecting to visit me in effect. It’s not that I haven’t formally asked to view the files because I have.

What I have viewed so far is by no means a complete set of files and the legal representative has ignored my communication since he sent a load of completely blacked out file writings.

This matter has to be resolved.

Social Services in my area has contracted out services to carers to the local carers centre, they carry out the assessment which is sent to social services to someone who has never met you and they make the decision.
The website promises a care help and support plan, I never got anything.
My wife who I care for has Non Epileptic Attack Disorder and mental health issues, fits without warning so like your situation needs 24 hour care, cannot be left on her own.
Social Services solution, put my 32 year old wife in a nursing home, my wife naturally didn’t want to go into a nursing home meant for elderly people.
Providing carers and sending my wife to a day centre, that doesn’t resolve the fits problem, I know how to deal with her fits, day centre would probably call an ambulance, hours and hours at A&E.
She doesn’t need an ambulance, comes around dizzy confused, needs reassurance, sit down somewhere quiet until she feels a bit better.
Social Services just have little understanding of fits and Mental health issues, that it is someone else’s job to deal with this.

I realise you can’t do this but I gave up with social services a long time ago, years of arguing with people just don’t understand and have their own rules and own agendas.
All it did was cause considerable upset and make my wife worse- that means more fits.
And if this is complex mental health issues is it Social Services or mental health services who deal with this? I was shunted from one to another for years.
Who should take responsibility? I don’t know they just argue with each other and while they are arguing I am left with no help.

Yes, social services do the same here. They contract the carers hub to do the assessment and then there is no decision made at all. No letter and no allowance to question it. They have turned a former ‘carer’s grant’ into a ‘carer’s budget’ by name. I completed one assessment in August 2017 and received no ‘budget’ until April 2018. I had my next carer’s assessment in November 2018 and received no ‘budget’ until October 2019. The Ombudsman said he couldn’t find fault in what they’d done. Not to mention, I received no carers support plan, despite asking my son’s social worker about it.
Londonbound, it’s a disgrace they suggested a nursing home for your 32-year-old wife. Can’t say I’m surprised though.
I have long lost all faith in social services and they have deallocated which makes no difference as they weren’t listening or doing anything but creating problems, just as an excuse to visit. I don’t want to know them or their idiot behaviour. They told an Ombudsman ‘my son’s seizures are not part of his epilepsy’ and the Ombudsman used this in their decision making to later tell me they were just quoting the council and what they’d told them. When I asked for its removal based on it being factually incorrect, I was told it wouldn’t be removed as it wouldn’t affect me. Of course, it did affect me, in wasting my time and energy and having my complaint ridiculed.
I despise social services because of all the suffering they’ve caused over the years, through their totally dishonest service and staff working for them who make knowing wrongful decisions that affect peoples lives. To think they are ‘the lead’ regarding my son’s 117 aftercare sickens me. He should have full continuing health care and have to have nothing to do with them. I trust none of those working for this deceptive department. Not one of them is decent, in my opinion, and all are paid wages from the state pot…but do nothing to justify the wastage of funding they get, while clients go without. Most should be sacked.

Its a big waste of money really having a carers assessment when they know that no help will be provided.
And what can social services do for fits, what can they do for fits, nothing basically.
NEAD is caused by trauma, and is resolved by therapy e.g mental health services so why I was told to contact social services.

Unless Social Services are willing to count mental health issues and ensure proper help is provided, then its just a waste of time contacting them.
My wife needs supervision and help going out neither of which social services provide.

They don’t do 24 hour care so nursing home only option in that case, yes but how about information , advice support groups etc, help with benefits , that’s DLA if someone needs supervision all the time.

I went through complaints and ombudsman, a load of errors in the report, I corrected them sent it off and lost my case.
Social services had done their best to support me, I didn’t even have a leaflet about NEAD.
The carers centre refuse to help as it is social services that provide the help, but I was told by social services to contact the carers centre in the first place for carer support.

And the contact with my doctor telling me I should get carers in, what will the carers do if my wife has a fit, they have no training in fits and I would have to arrange for my wife to have the fits when the carers turn up, which obviously you can’t do.
You cannot phone the carers when my wife has a fit it doesn’t work like that, but my wife would need the carers WHEN she has a fit anytime day or night and they don’t do nights either.

A lot of people are getting paid a lot of money for nothing not supplying any help, salarys I could only dream of, I am on incapacity well ESA now, about 100 a week.
You phone up the social worker, they are on holiday well bully for them, I can’t afford a holiday, I can’t afford anything.

But I don’t blame the social workers, in the good old days, social workers were there to help, now they have the unfortunate job of cutting services, cleaning, shopping, emergency care all was cut.
North Yorkshire County council are having to cut £69 million off their budget by 2022 or something, social care, education, librarys, roads, everything.
I think my wife is very lucky to have me as there is so little support in the community I am there all the time, she has multiple health problems but is not entitled to help and neither am I the unpaid carer. I am on ESA so don’t even get carers allowance.

Luckly as well I am internet savvy, I can look up and find out, and have found out a lot of information about NEAD, but why didn’t the carers centre provide that information?
My wife as well has fibromyalgia , again no help, support treatment provided, I contacted Versa Arthritus and received more information, advice and support in 20 minutes then I had done for years.
Its just wrong this whole situation, you are told to contact social services you just get nothing.
I have never had any kind of personal budget, advocacy refused me help as the local carers centre has the carers contract yes they do but they don’t supply advocacy.
There just needs to be a massive reform of Social Services, they keep saying they will do that but it never happens.

And we have some special scheme where people are supposed to get more help to avoid people getting worse.
I repeatedly asked for help was refused help, my wife had a nervous breakdown and has been very ill ever since.
Again no help has been provided by mental health services, as my wife has to be a service user in order for me to be considered a carer.
Dicharge the caree and bingo, you don’t need to supply any help to caree or carer.
But I am a carer except I am not according to mental health services rules.