Legal fears voiced

The risk of legal action could be lowering take-up of direct payments, says Sunil Peck

Campaigners have voiced fears that disabled people could be deterred from taking up direct payments (DPs) to employ personal assistants (PAs) because of the risk of becoming mired in legal action.

Direct payments are supposed to give disabled people more independence because they enable the user rather than the local authority to fund and control their care and support package.

But campaigners are worried that social services are leaving disabled people open to being sued because of funding cuts and a lack of support to resolve employment and legal issues.

One PA user, Anne Novis, a leading figure in the UK Disabled People’s Council, said: “We rely on these support services to ensure we are up-to-date on legal matters relating to employment but most are not providing such services in a way that addresses all issues.”

She added that many disabled people employ PAs unaware that they can end up at a tribunal because of inadequate insurance cover.

Another DP-user, Jenny Hurst, says she was scared to take disciplinary action against her PA because of the threat of ending up at a tribunal and the cost of defending herself.

She said: “You have to become an expert in working time regulations, national minimum wage, health and safety, etc.”

She added: “If you are just a run-of-the-mill person who happens to need assistance with personal care or daily living tasks, you are not necessarily going to want to learn all about this, retain the knowledge and keep up-to-date with changes in legislation.”

Another disabled person, who was taken to a tribunal by their PA and wanted to remain anonymous, said she had found the experience of becoming an employer “scary”.

She said user-led organisations should be given contracts to provide support for PA-users because individuals in those organisations might be more likely to have experience of employing PAs and resolving disputes before they end up in court.

A spokeswoman from the union Unison said she was aware of court cases involving disputes over breaches of employment rights and health and safety issues, although she did not have figures for the numbers of cases.

The Personal Social Services Research Unit at the London School of Economics also cited “concern about managing direct payments among service-users and personal assistants” as one of three factors hindering the take-up of direct payments.

A Department of Health spokesman said it had published resources for DP-recipients on becoming first-time employers and they could also seek support and guidance from independent living centres.

He added: “It is inevitable that some people eligible for DPs will not wish to take on the responsibilities that come with being an employer. However, it is for local councils to ensure that DP recipients are supported in their role of being an employer by providing appropriate support services.”