“This is the best thing I have ever done for Mum!”
89-year-old Olive lives in sheltered accommodation in Wetherby just a mile from her son Paul who helps care for her. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's five years ago. For the last six months Olive has been using a personal budget to employ a team of five personal assistants.
Paul tells us, in his own words, the difference this has made in both their lives.*
“The main difference the personal budget has made is that we can dramatically improve Mum's quality of life during the day and there’s a lot more flexibility. For example, previously an agency worker spent just half an hour providing lunch – Mum needs an hour for a meal.
"Mum gets up to all sorts of activities with her daytime personal assistant – reading and looking through books together, singing along to the old timers, doing simple jigsaws even feeding the ducks on the wharfe or visiting the garden centre. Compare that to just sitting staring at the TV.
"The personal assistants are hand-picked and really care. And Mum gets to see the same friendly faces. In many ways they treat her like their own mum rather than there just being a procession of strangers who watch the clock and rush in and out.
"For anyone in a similar situation I would definitely recommend using a personal budget. This is the best thing I have ever done for my Mum."
Read more real-life case studies on the self-directed support case study page, or read national stories on the Putting People First website.
* Interview with Paul took place in Spring 2010.