Everyone's care and support plan will be different. You can use the types of support that work for you.

Your plan will include:

• how you will stay independent and keep safe
• what you want to change or achieve - we call this your outcomes
• how much the support will cost
• how your support will be arranged

Your plan will also include the support available from your carers, family, friends and community organisations.

Agree on your care and support plan

Once you have completed your plan it will need to be agreed by us. We must make sure it meets your needs and:

• does not go over your estimated care budget
• uses our money sensibly and within the law
• is clear about how you will manage your support and budget

When the support plan is agreed we will have a clear idea of the care you need and how much this will cost. This is called your personal budget.

Set up your support

Once your support plan has been agreed, you can start setting up your support. You need to decide how you want to receive and manage your support and there are three options you can choose from:

• direct payments from us which give you complete control
• care arranged by us
• a combination of both

In order to get the right support you can also choose to employ your own staff or you can buy services from a private service provider.

We recommend looking at our adult social care directory of services, as well as the Dorset Care Services Directory provided by Care Choices.

What your care and support plan may cover

The plan will cover a range of services and these could include:

• help with personal care - such as washing, dressing and taking medication
• meals - such as meal delivery to your home or going out to a lunch club
• equipment - such as walking frames or personal alarms
• support for your carer - this may be your partner, family or friends

The support and activities that should not be included are:

• anything provided through the health service
• day to day living expenses such as rent, food and bills
• anything that is illegal or would not promote your wellbeing

Care and support plan reviews

Even if everything is going well, we will check to make sure you are happy with your support, this is called a review.

At a review we will:

• check if your needs or circumstances have changed
• check if your support plan is achieving the outcomes you agreed and if not, what needs to be done
• make sure you are healthy and safe
• check your budget is still being used for the purpose(s) it was provided for

If your needs change between reviews, then please do contact us.