Ask the experts

Q Could you please tell me what direct payments are for and who to contact about them? I have asthma, angina and arthritis. I cannot make a meal or do my own washing, ironing, and many other household chores. I have a launderette collect and do my washing. I also have meals on wheels several times a week and need someone to help me with curtains, gardening, bed-making, etc. Are any of these covered by direct payments?
Ms T Webster, Blackpool

AB: Direct payments are cash payments to individuals who have been assessed as needing personal social services. They give people more choice and control over the services they receive, to help them live independently in their own homes. The amount paid is based on the estimated costs of the service the individual needs minus any personal contribution that might be required by the council. The individual can use the cash to pay for the service required, for example engaging a personal assistant. An individual in need of services does not have to accept direct payments. The key element is choice.
They are now available to: disabled adults aged 18-64 who have been assessed as eligible to receive community care services; disabled people over 64; parents of disabled children; disabled young people aged 16-17; and carers aged 16 or over who provide substantial care for someone 18 or over (except in Scotland).

Since April 2003, it has been mandatory for all local authorities to offer the choice of direct payments to all eligible recipients.
If Ms Webster would like to receive direct payments instead of some of the services she is currently receiving she should discuss this with her local adult care services. She could spend the money on help with shopping, and keeping her garden tidy, even though these are not services normally provided as part of social care. The downside would be that she would have to give up some of the services that she is already receiving, unless she can persuade adult services to re-assess her as needing more care. She may also wish to check that she is getting all the benefits she is entitled to. These are separate from direct payments, although the council may take some of the benefits into account when assessing any charges they make.

Q My wife uses a wheelchair and we have a wheelchair-accessible vehicle. Her manual wheelchair is secured by an adjustable belt restraint system, which fastens round the chair, both at front and rear. As we both become older and not so strong, we have decided the time has come to buy a powered chair. While there is an abundance of them on the market, there is a big problem finding one to which the vehicle restraint belt system will attach. The sales people just look blank when I point this out. Surely it is as necessary to secure a power chair in the vehicle as the manual one?
AW Bentley, Stoke on Trent

EP: The fact that you have encountered sales people who have no idea of the acceptable uses of the wheelchairs they provide is, frankly, scandalous. It is absolutely imperative that any wheelchair (and occupant) is adequately restrained within a private vehicle and any failure to do this is a major safety risk.
Although a powered wheelchair may look heavier and more stable, the weight and forces within a private vehicle mean it would shift or tip even at very low speeds. 

Your current vehicle has a belt restraint system, which is likely to be a four point type commonly used in private wheelchair-accessible vehicles. I assume that if your wife travels in her wheelchair, rather than transferring to a passenger seat, there is an appropriate lap and diagonal seatbelt, fitted to coincide with the positioning of the wheelchair. Powered wheelchairs offered for sale should have clear labelling showing whether they can be used in transportation, whether a specific or restricted range of wheelchair tie-down and occupant restraint system should be used and the location points for tie-downs or restraints.

Reputable wheelchair suppliers should be able to provide this information and it is worth contacting the British Healthcare Trades Association for details of members in your area: www.bhta.net or ring 020 7680 4048. You should also contact the converter of your vehicle to check the type of restraint system fitted and whether there are any restrictions on its use. They should also provide information on any necessary modifications.

When you’ve located a suitable wheelchair supplier and checked with your vehicle converter, it is still really important to make sure your chosen wheelchair is compatible with your vehicle. The only way to do this is by trying it out in your vehicle before you buy it.

There are many other factors to be considered when buying a powered wheelchair. Two useful guides, Choosing a Powered Wheelchair and Out and About with your Wheelchair, are available from the Disabled Living Foundation: visit www.dlf.org.uk or ring 0845 130 9177.

Many Mobility Centres offer advice for passengers travelling in wheelchairs and may be able to offer your wife a detailed assessment. Visit www.mobility-centres.org.uk or ring (freephone) 0800 559 3636 for details of your local centre or further advice.

The Medical Devices Agency has issued detailed guidance on transporting wheelchairs – DB2001 (03) – www.mrha.gov.uk and there is a shorter version at www.independentliving.co.uk/legis7.html

OUR PANEL

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Simon is a chartered counselling psychologist who has also studied psychosexual therapy. He was the only disabled director of the former Association to Aid the Sexual and Personal Relationships of People with a Disability (SPOD).

FINANCE - DAVID  CLARKE

David has spent 14 years in the banking industry and has worked for three leading financial service providers. He is a senior partner of Clydesdale Bank.

PROPERTY - KATE  SHEEHAN

Kate is a director of Better Living and an occupational therapist with 20 years’ experience and a passionate interest in housing. Better Living works with manufacturers to meet the needs of the ageing population.

LEGAL &  BENEFITS - LINDA  CLARKE

Linda is director of Disability Law Service (DLS). DLS is the only service controlled and managed by disabled people that offers free legal advice to disabled people, families and carers.

EQUIPMENT - JOHN  MANDRAK

John, who is blind, has worked in the disability sector for nearly 25 years, mainly as a disability journalist and consultant. He is an adviser on the Disabled Living Foundation’s helpline.

TRAVEL - ANDY  WRIGHT

Andy is a disabled travel industry professional with over 25 years’ experience and is managing director of Accessible Travel, a specialist tour operator providing holidays for people with mobility impairments.

MOTORING - ED  PASSANT

Ed is chief executive of the Forum of Mobility Centres. The centres provide driver and passenger assessment for disabled people across the UK.

MONEY,  LEGAL  AND  OTHER  PROBLEMS - ALAN  BARTON

Alan is a social policy adviser for Citizens Advice, and an adviser at Rickmansworth Citizens Advice Bureau in Hertfordshire. He has a particular interest in benefits issues.