CAF referal requires Moderate Learning Difficulty Diagnosis

[Sally44]

My son has recently been allocated 66 hours of paid carer support to access social activities, which is brilliant.

 

As a Social Worker was involved in setting this up, I asked her about CAF referals and that eventhough I have requested one by the school that they have not done anything about it.

 

She asked me what I wanted the CAF referal for and I said I was thinking for the future and that my son will need an adult to access things out of the family. I said I was thinking of direct payments so that I could buy in a carer to accompany him as he wants to become more independent and do things without 'mum'.

 

The Social Worker said that the criteria for this requires a diagnosis of "moderate learning difficulties" which she said she does not feel my son has, and that if I did seek and get that diagnosis to access provision that it might work against me in the future regarding school placement as he would then have a MLD diagnosis and fit the criteria for MLD school.

 

Is the criteria for a CAF referal different under each LEA. Could this be true? I would have thought that there are plenty of children/adults that need support which is bought by direct payments and which is not related to a MLD.

 

The Social Worker said to ask the school to start the process and to see what happened.

[call me jaded]

Each SS department writes their own access criteria. From what you have written you are wanting to use the CAF to access social care. The sw is telling you that the access criteria is MLD. I think you have already secured that maximum amount of provision they're going to give you.

 

My experience of CAFs (supporting families who've had one) is that they produce a mountain of paperwork and not much else. They're not usually a way of getting round the SS criteria, the focus is almost entirely around child protection (neglect, mainly, for children with disabilities). I wouldn't recommend you pursue one.

 

My own LA has access criteria of SLD and autism. This got us five hours a week DP but workers with sufficient knowledge or experience are as rare as hens teeth so ours goes unspent for long periods. Then we suddenly find someone and have a spending spree.

[chris54]

My experience of CAFs (supporting families who've had one) is that they produce a mountain of paperwork and not much else.

That is our experience, just a talking shop, mainly about what would have happened anyway.

 

Not heard anything about criteria, just asked for one an got it. The lead professional was our parent adviser. (Shes good at telling us about things we already know about).

[Sally44]

The 66 hours we have been allocated is via special funding and is called 'Aiming High'. I don't know if this is just in our area or countrywide. SS has no idea if it will be funded again from next April.

 

To access it a child has to be referred by one of the professionals that works with them. It is overseen by SS, but is nothing to do with SS funding or criteria. The child receives 100 supported hours per year or pro rata for part of the year - hence the 66 hours as we knew nothing about it.

 

The reason I wanted the CAF is because I want to be able to use direct payments. My wants to go out and do things. I cannot always go with him, and soon it will be inappropriate to go everywhere with mum and do everything with mum. He cannot do these things on his own. There is no way he would get changed in the swimming baths and come out the other side. He would get distracted and I would have to send someone in to find him.

 

With this funding he is going back to a foil fencing club that he started under a different scheme. Under that scheme the child was supported for 10 weeks and then was expected to be independent. The worker ceased the sessions after two weeks because he said it was obvious that my son would not achieve independence because his language skills are too bad.

 

So this scheme sounds brilliant. He is supported by a worker from a service company (mediline) and the worker sounds brilliant. I am just so grateful that this has happened and would love the opportunity for my son to be able to build on this instead of having to return back to doing nothing and going nowhere.

 

He has alot of problems being understood and understanding other people. Again he needs an adult with him.

 

It maybe that he is just too young at the moment. I seem to remember she mentioned the age of 14 as being relevent for something.

[karen(g)]

Please see http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/strategy/deliveringservices1/caf/cafframework/

Likewise have a look at the Every Child Matters literature on the web.

 

"The CAF promotes more effective, earlier identification of additional needs, particularly in universal services. It aims to provide a simple process for a holistic assessment of children's needs and strengths; taking account of the roles of parents, carers and environmental factors on their development. Practitioners are then better placed to agree with children and families about appropriate modes of support. The CAF also aims to improve integrated working by promoting coordinated service provisions."

 

I am extremely confused by your social workers response that only children with MLD are able to access a CAF. This is something that is open to ALL children, with or without disabilities. Not all children require support and a initial CAF checklist identifies at a very early stage whether there is a need to go to a CAF. If a child and families needs are able to be met through a greater coordination of universal services then it doesn't have to get anywhere near social services.

 

Sally, the fact that you are already receiving social services support means that you are 'past' a CAF given that you are already a package of support through social services . If I were you, I would be asking that Child in Need/Team around the Child meetings were being held at least every 6 months (more if problems) to look at how the package is working and if there is any further identified need. There are times when social workers are involved with CAFs but this is where the need has escalated from universal services or when there is no identified need for social worker input and an 'exit' CAF is attended by SW to ensure that a child's needs can be met through universal and other support services.

 

Karen

[karen(g)]

Just after I posted my response I see that the support is via Aiming HIgh and not social services. There has been a great deal of training of ed/health professionals etc in carrying out CAFs but from my experience these professionals are often wary of carrying out initial checklist and moving it forward. If I were you I would talk to school and ask about the CAF (if you google ECM and CAF you should find a copy of the checklist). This will identify whether your son is at risk of not meeting the ECM five outcomes without coordination of services.

 

Aiming High funding is due to finish end of next March and in the current economic climate it is unknown whether the new government will continue to provide similar funding. I get the impression that there is a recognition by social services that support at this level prevents the need for more costlier social service support at a later day (sad fact but the reality that there will always need to be the consideration of cost effectiveness). Hopefully, our new prime minister has a greater insight to families struggling to cope with bringing up disabled children.

Edited October 3, 2010 by karen(g)

[call me jaded]

I'm on the steering group for my LA's Aiming High funding and it's supposed to be used for those children that would not normally access social care. It's about broadening and expanding the reach so that families don't have to be in crisis to access some kind of support. It was a three year programme with all the Big Money in this current financial year. Like everything else there is no news about next year until the budget (20 Oct). I'm at a regional event on Friday and I expect to be given some kind of clue about whether it will continue. Put it this way David Cameron was 'hi-jacked' several times during the election campaign by parents of disabled children and if he sticks to his election promises there should be something.

 

Sally the CAF will not help you access SS if you don't meet the criteria. Simple as that. In my LA there was a SW who used to tell parents who enquired that their child was not 'disabled enough'. Charming.

 

The kind of support you're describing is provided by charities and voluntary agencies. It was one of the reasons why our group formed - we were so fed up of there being nothing that we got together and organised something ourselves. And in the current climate it looks like we're going to end up with an adventure playground to run and when we do it no child won't be 'disabled enough'.

[Sally44]

Please see http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/strategy/deliveringservices1/caf/cafframework/

Likewise have a look at the Every Child Matters literature on the web.

 

"The CAF promotes more effective, earlier identification of additional needs, particularly in universal services. It aims to provide a simple process for a holistic assessment of children's needs and strengths; taking account of the roles of parents, carers and environmental factors on their development. Practitioners are then better placed to agree with children and families about appropriate modes of support. The CAF also aims to improve integrated working by promoting coordinated service provisions."

 

I am extremely confused by your social workers response that only children with MLD are able to access a CAF. This is something that is open to ALL children, with or without disabilities. Not all children require support and a initial CAF checklist identifies at a very early stage whether there is a need to go to a CAF. If a child and families needs are able to be met through a greater coordination of universal services then it doesn't have to get anywhere near social services.

 

Sally, the fact that you are already receiving social services support means that you are 'past' a CAF given that you are already a package of support through social services . If I were you, I would be asking that Child in Need/Team around the Child meetings were being held at least every 6 months (more if problems) to look at how the package is working and if there is any further identified need. There are times when social workers are involved with CAFs but this is where the need has escalated from universal services or when there is no identified need for social worker input and an 'exit' CAF is attended by SW to ensure that a child's needs can be met through universal and other support services.

 

Karen

 

 

SS are only involved because they seem to be the organisation that co-ordinates the child with the service provider. The funding for it is not via SS at all. It is a one off funding called Aiming High. We have no idea if it will be funded again from April 2011.

 

Yes, as you say, it did sound strange to me. I know that all kinds of people access SS for all types of different reasons. And my understanding from an NAS seminar was that we should have a SS assessment for my son and myself and that if we were entitled to direct payments I could use those for him to be supported by an adult when he goes to clubs or the cinema etc.

 

We have another MEP meeting in school sometime this autumn. I'll ask again for the CAF to be done. I get the idea that no-one wants to do it.

 

Regarding a carers assessment. I cannot find who would do that. I have phoned SS a number of times over the years and it took two years before anyone mentioned that I needed a CAF for my son to access SS.

[Sally44]

I'm on the steering group for my LA's Aiming High funding and it's supposed to be used for those children that would not normally access social care. It's about broadening and expanding the reach so that families don't have to be in crisis to access some kind of support. It was a three year programme with all the Big Money in this current financial year. Like everything else there is no news about next year until the budget (20 Oct). I'm at a regional event on Friday and I expect to be given some kind of clue about whether it will continue. Put it this way David Cameron was 'hi-jacked' several times during the election campaign by parents of disabled children and if he sticks to his election promises there should be something.

 

Sally the CAF will not help you access SS if you don't meet the criteria. Simple as that. In my LA there was a SW who used to tell parents who enquired that their child was not 'disabled enough'. Charming.

 

The kind of support you're describing is provided by charities and voluntary agencies. It was one of the reasons why our group formed - we were so fed up of there being nothing that we got together and organised something ourselves. And in the current climate it looks like we're going to end up with an adventure playground to run and when we do it no child won't be 'disabled enough'.

 

What level of disability does a child need to access direct payments? I would have thought that if they are not independent and have complex needs that they would. If I don't do everything with him and for him he just sits in the house. There is no way I would let him out on his own, and he does not have any local friends. I suppose the only way to find out is the get the CAF done. But no-one wants to be the lead professional. I presume the paperwork is the thing putting them off.

 

I am not looking to access local services such as respite because that is not what we need at the moment. What I have is a capable child that wants to get out and socialise and go to clubs etc, but who cannot. I understand what you say about 'aiming high' meeting that need. But I have only 66 hours funding for that. When it finishes the clubs finish and he is again at home. I want to get direct payments to set up something more permanent even if it is less often.

[call me jaded]

Direct Payments come through resource allocation panels in SS. If you don't qualify for services you just aren't going to get them.

 

There are other pockets of funding - inclusion, extended schools, etc. You need to ask a lot of people until you find out what's available locally. In the current climate it's going to be very little and councils up and down the country are clawing back what they can as current year spending was slashed mid-year. So I would say you have zero chance of finding anything currently and you need to get on to your Aiming High representatives to campaign for some kind of provision in the future.

 

I'm just going to post about a petition for an adventure playground - it is because of the same kind of pressures that my council needs reminding or their obligations.

[lil_me]

If they follow national guidance they're talking poop

 

However as your son has a team working around them effectively he may not require a CAF to be done if his needs are being 'met'

[Sally44]

Please see http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/strategy/deliveringservices1/caf/cafframework/

Likewise have a look at the Every Child Matters literature on the web.

 

"The CAF promotes more effective, earlier identification of additional needs, particularly in universal services. It aims to provide a simple process for a holistic assessment of children's needs and strengths; taking account of the roles of parents, carers and environmental factors on their development. Practitioners are then better placed to agree with children and families about appropriate modes of support. The CAF also aims to improve integrated working by promoting coordinated service provisions."

 

I am extremely confused by your social workers response that only children with MLD are able to access a CAF. This is something that is open to ALL children, with or without disabilities. Not all children require support and a initial CAF checklist identifies at a very early stage whether there is a need to go to a CAF. If a child and families needs are able to be met through a greater coordination of universal services then it doesn't have to get anywhere near social services.

 

Sally, the fact that you are already receiving social services support means that you are 'past' a CAF given that you are already a package of support through social services . If I were you, I would be asking that Child in Need/Team around the Child meetings were being held at least every 6 months (more if problems) to look at how the package is working and if there is any further identified need. There are times when social workers are involved with CAFs but this is where the need has escalated from universal services or when there is no identified need for social worker input and an 'exit' CAF is attended by SW to ensure that a child's needs can be met through universal and other support services.

 

Karen

 

 

Social services are only involved because they provide the admin for Aiming High. It was this social worker that told me my son needed to have moderate learning disabilities for SS to be involved or to assess him. I have now got in touch with the National Centre for Independent Living, and like you, they have said he should be assessed and that there is no 'criteria' such as MLD that he would need to meet before that assessment could take place. So, I've now got to write in and ask them to assess. No professional involved with my son wants to be the 'lead' to carry out a CAF. It is simply a time issue as far as I can see because we have lots of evidence that he cannot access things like clubs independently - hence the support from Aiming High.