A research team based at the University of Sheffield’s Division of Population Health has called on MPs to take action to ensure adults with learning disabilities can access the social care funding they are legally entitled to.
Led by Dr Liz Croot, Senior Lecturer in the Division of Population Health, the group of 16 people, including researchers, social care professionals, and people with lived experience of learning disability travelled to Parliament to share findings from a two and a half-year national study into Individual Service Funds (ISFs).
Individual Service Funds are a way for people receiving social care to have more choice and control over how their support is arranged. Instead of the council or the person managing the money directly, a care provider holds the funding and helps the person decide how to spend it to best meet their needs and goals.
The study, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), explored how ISFs can be developed and delivered to improve social care for people with learning disabilities without requiring additional funding.
Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are legally required to offer ISFs as an option for managing personal budgets. However, the research found that only 30% of local authorities currently do so, and some of these are “ISFs in name only,” meaning they do not provide the flexibility or choice intended by law.
The research brought together people with lived experience, family carers, local authority commissioners, social workers, and support providers to identify what makes ISFs work well in practice. Their collaborative work resulted in two co-produced toolkits: the EQUALD Framework, which sets out the principles and practical steps for implementing effective ISFs, and the EQUALD Resources Toolkit, which provides templates, training materials, and guidance for councils and care providers. Both toolkits are freely available to download from the EQUALD website.
During their visit, the Sheffield-led delegation met with MPs to discuss the study’s findings and to demonstrate how ISFs can empower people who are unable to, or prefer not to, manage a direct payment themselves, but still want a say in their support arrangements. The team urged MPs to ask why ISFs are still not widely available across England, despite their legal status.
Dr Liz Croot, Co-Director of the University of Sheffield NIHR School for Social Care Research, said: “It was great to look around the room and see the team talking confidently to MPs who were engaged and keen to find out how they can work with local authorities in their constituencies to make sure they meet their obligations to disabled people under the Care Act.”
Faith Walton, an ISF user and part of the delegation, added: “It’s been brilliant. I’ve really got my confidence back by speaking and I’m just hoping we can make a difference. When I saw the EQUALD video, it really helped me because I finally understood what an ISF was. Before that, not knowing made me feel anxious.”
Olivia Blake MP said: “The work is very impressive; the team were brilliant and clearly passionate about improving the lives of disabled people.”
The visit followed a presentation of the findings to the House of Lords in September and earlier meetings in Sheffield with Louise Haigh MP, as part of ongoing efforts to improve social care provision across the country.