Support Brokerage
A Support Brokers' role is in helping people plan and organise any support they need to be independent. Support Brokers ensure that the service user is fully involved, and in control throughout the process of choosing a care package and its delivery. They also ensure that any agreed services are value for money.
A broker does not necessarily have to coordinate all of the support a person needs, but only the aspects the person says that they need support with. The support broker can be a member of the person’s family, one of their friends, a neighbour, a worker for a voluntary and community organisation, or even social services – basically anyone that the client wants to be supported by.
The Support Broker can be someone who acts independently of the council, and can be requested by the client to help with any or all of the following:
- Accessing an assessment of their care needs
- Helping in the support planning process
- Putting together a support plan that fits the person’s needs
- Negotiating and managing the person’s Individual Budget on their behalf to pay for services, or organising support to do so
- Initiating the plans
- Monitoring and evaluating the services that the person receives
- Building personal networks and/or helping the person to do so
- Mediating and solving any issues that arise
- Helping and advising the service user for as long as the person uses care services, or wishes to be supported
- Advising on flexible approaches to independent living
If a support broker is to give full choice and control to the client, they will need to be aware of certain issues and be prepared to stay informed and keep their knowledge up to date:
- Access – Empowering Individual Budgets recipients by letting them know what their rights are, what services are available and how to access the services.
- Information – To give clear, accessible, and concise information about the services available.
- Person-centred planning – Putting the Individual Budgets user at the centre of the decision making process.
A Support Broker can be involved in any of the following tasks:
The following examples may be one-off tasks, or may involve ongoing support, depending on the requirements of the service user.
- Individual Service Fund – If requested by the person, a support worker can hold their Individual Budget monies for them and act as their agent.
- Service Design – To work with the person to design and develop individually tailored support packages to an agreed budget.
- Payroll service – Organise pay and taxation when the person is employing their own supporters.
- Accounting – Help Individual Budget recipients keep up to date financial records for monitoring purposes.
- Recruitment – Support the person to recruit their own pa/support workers.
- Personal advice – Advise the person in managing their support. Benefits advice – Help and identify and claim additional benefits, or resources.
- Coordinate the support – Help the Individual Budgets recipient to manage and run their support service, as and when required, or to mange the support on their behalf.
- Independent living skills – Help support the person with other independent living issues that may arise.
Please note: While the support worker can take responsibility for any of the above, this must be agreed with the person to be to at a level that they are satisfied with.
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