
That’s no denying that disability breeds many barriers to the physical, economic, and social well-being of people. In the United Kingdom, approximately one-fifth of individuals live with a disability. This number reaches 28 percent in the North East of England, defining the effective need for social care support.
Through its local councils, the UK social care system ensures that care and support effectively reaches people with disabilities. They provide personalized, community or society-based support to enhance independence, social inclusion, and equality.
In today’s write-up, we will discuss how the UK’s social care system is supporting people with disabilities. Just read on to grasp a comprehensive idea.
Why Is Social Support Important For People With Disabilities?
Social support plays a very crucial role in supporting disabled people. It helps them to reduce psychological stress, boosts self-esteem, combats isolation, and improves mental health. This compassionate support allows them to achieve social inclusion and enhance their quality of life.
Forming social connections- this is the most common challenge people with disabilities face. Their physical or cognitive barriers make it difficult for them to participate in social activities. They feel uncomfortable being open to others. Here, social support is essential to overcome these barriers and combat the isolation that can bring results.
Moreover, positive social interaction enhances their self-esteem and makes them more confident. It enables them to overcome the challenges and achieve their goal.
Additionally, social support plays a key role in improving their mental health. Having strong social support helps them to reduce feelings of loneliness and helps manage anxiety, depression, or stress.
The Rights of Disabled People in the Social Care System
The social care system of the UK for disabled individuals is meant to uphold their rights and dignity. They are guided by the national legislation and international commitments.
Legal protection for disabled people
In terms of protecting the legal rights of disabled people, the UK has established a strong framework.
Equality Act 2010
The Equality Act 2010 recognizes disability as a protected characteristic. This legislation safeguards disabled individuals against discrimination in employment, education, and access to services.
UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
The UK ratified the ‘Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ (CRPD) in 2009. It has committed to its eight fundamental guiding principles.
- Respect for inherent dignity, autonomy, and independence of persons
- Non-discrimination
- Effective inclusion in society
- Equality of opportunity
- Accessibility
- Equality between men and women
- Respect and acceptance of differences as part of humanity
- Rights of children with disabilities to preserve their identity
Core Rights of Disabled People in the social care system.
Social care reform aims to ensure disabled people have the right to:
- Thrive, not just survive
Disabled people have the right to lead a fulfilling life. It shouldn’t just merely meet basic needs.
- Choice and independence
Individuals must have the freedom to make their own choices. Care, support, and connection will enable them to live a life that we’ve chosen within the community.
- Equal opportunity
Disabled people have the right to have equal opportunity to live, learn, work, and participate in society like any other.
- User-centric reform
Reform should be guided by the experience, needs, and goals of the disabled people who rely on the social care system.
How the UK Social Care System Supports Disabled People?
Councils with social service responsibilities in the UK enable disabled people to lead fulfilling lives in the community or society. It does so through legal protection and ensuring their core rights are upheld.
Let’s check out below how the UK social care system is transforming the ways disabled people can be supported.
1. Person-Based Care
The social care system of the UK offers personalized care to disabled people like personal budgets and direct payments. It allows them to take care of their own needs.
Moreover, this personalized support reduces all the bureaucratic barriers and ensures you have greater control over social care support. It enhances the sense of independence and takes steps away from a one-size-fits-all solution.
The UK social care system also provides many disabilities-related financial support. It includes benefits, tax credits, Universal Credit, grants and concessions. Here is an overview.
Tax-free benefit for children under 16 years old. It is to support the extra costs due to long-term disability and illness. | |
Allowance for adults with long-term ill health or a disability. | |
Tax-free benefit for people aged 16 or over. It is for the person who has not reached the State Pension age. | |
Tax-free allowance for disabled people who are State Pension age or over. | |
Employment and Support Allowance | Disabled people may also get New Style Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) if they can’t work due to disability. |
2. Housing and Transportation
The UK social care system also offers many benefits to help disabled people with their living. The system ensures that you can get the necessary support for your independent living at home.
For instance, Direct Payments. It allows you to buy and arrange the help you need on your own instead of getting it from the local councils directly.
Some other benefits include,
- Disabled Facilities Grants: It helps you with the cost of necessary home modifications and enables you to continue to live there.
- Council Tax Disabled Band Reduction Scheme: You can also get a decrease in the Council Tax bill in case your home has some special clinical features you need to continue your living.
Furthermore, you can also get support for vehicles and transportation due to your disabilities. You can apply for
- Exemption from paying vehicle tax
- Blue Badge or parking benefits
- Disabled Persons Railcard
- Disabled person bus pass
- Assistance to buy or lease a car from the Motability Scheme
3. Community-Based Support
The UK social care system also plays a very important role in offering community support for people with disabilities.
It ensures you can live with full independence and participate freely in community life. This access to essential services enhances choice, inclusion, and equality.
The social care system also supports disabled people with their work or job-related factors. If you are employed, you can get Access to Work grants. It is to pay for your special equipment, mental health support, or communication support at a job interview.
That’s not it! If you are disabled as a result of an accident at work, deafness caused by work, or disease, you can get an Industrial Injuries Benefit. This is all to ensure you can live independently and confidently in the community.
4. Social and Community Connections
The system helps disabled people take part in community activities and stay connected with others. It thus works to enhance social inclusion. The UK has made legal changes to give them more control over where and with whom they live.
It has introduced many inclusive programs and cut down many unnecessary rules. In all, the social care system of the UK encourages the active participation of disabled people and focuses on creating a more welcoming society.
How does the NHS currently support people with disabilities?
Well, the NHS or National Health Service does not maintain the social care system in the UK alone. Instead, it works with the local authorities and shares responsibilities for social care.
The same for supporting people with disabilities. Below are some ways by which the NHS is supporting disabled people.
1. Reasonable Adjustments
Under the Equality Act 2010, the NHS is legally offering reasonable adjustments in the lives of people with disabilities.
They are making it easy for them to use health services just like it is for normal people. These changes can be small changes in how care is given. However, it can greatly enhance the person’s experience in healthcare.
Some of the examples provided by NHS include
- Make sure people have wheelchair access to GP surgeries and hospitals.
- It can provide plain English or easy-read appointment letters.
- You can offer earlier appointments to the ones who have difficulties waiting at the GP surgery or hospital.
- Make sure there is a healing loop available in the consultation rooms.
- Use a communication chart to support the dementia patients during the appointments.
The ‘Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag’ is another initiative of the NHS. It allows healthcare professionals to record and share the reasonable adjustments needed across the NHS.
2. Special educational needs and disability (SEND)
According to the NHS, children and young people with learning difficulties may need extra health and education support. It is generally known as SEND [special educational needs and disability.]
The NHS makes sure the children and young people with SEND are properly supported. In this regard, the SEND Code of Practice 2014 and Children and Families Act 2014 offer the necessary guidance.
Moreover, if your need child needs support for health and education, you can apply an Education, Health and Care plan (EHC) to your local council.
NHS is working with the Department for Education (DfE), Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), voluntary organizations, and the Department of Health and Social Care (DH) to ensure effective support for SEND.
3. Accessing Support
In case you need additional health and social care support, you can apply for the needs assessment support to your local council. This assessment helps you to determine what supports and services you will be eligible for.
It may include,
- Help with home care like shopping or cleaning
- Care homes for residential support
- Daycare for your child
- Help you with parenting classes.
How to Access Social Care Support?
Social care services help you when you need any practical support due to your illness or disability. Below is an overview of how you can access the UK social care support.
Step 1: Request a Needs Assessment
You should contact your local authority to request a social care assessment. It is available for any adult who needs care and support.
This assessment will happen even if the local authority thinks you may not qualify for the funding.
You’ll discuss during the assessment-
- What matters to you the most
- Your specific needs and what support you’ll require.
- What will these support mean to you and so on?
Step 2: The Assessment Process
The assessment helps you to determine whether you’re eligible for the care needs. It can be done following some processes. Like
- Face-to-face assessment with the local authority qualified assessor. They can be care managers, social care workers, or any other professionals from your home or hospital.
- Self-assessment where you will need to complete a form.
- Phone or online assessment
- Joint assessment with the professional who provides your support.
You can have a family member, friend, or independent advocate to support you during the assessment.
Step 3: Financial Assessment For Disabled People
As a general rule of thumb, in the UK, you will need to pay the full cost for your care and support if your savings and assets are more than £23,250.
However, if it is below the £14,250, local councils will not count it in the financial assessment.
In case your savings and assets are between £14,250 and £23,250, the financial assessment will assume you have £1 a week income for every £250 savings.
When assessing your financial eligibility for social care, your local authorities will use your disability-related benefits as income. It may include-
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP) daily living component
- Disability Living Allowance (DLA) care component
- Attendance Allowance (AA)
- Exceptionally Severe Disablement Allowance
Your local authority may also assess your ‘disability-related expenditure’ (DRE). That includes any extra cost tied to your care and support needs. Such as
- A community alarm or other specialist equipment
- Additional costs of laundry or specialist clothing
- Additional heating costs
- Additional cost for transportation
- Extra assistance with gardening, cleaning, or shopping
- Additional costs for foods. For instance, ready-made food if you have difficulty with cooking.
You should prepare a detailed list of these expenses. Explain why they are necessary for you during your assessment with the authority.
Local authorities will decide which disability-related expenses really mean to you and will adjust accordingly how much you will need to pay for your care.
You should check with your local authority for a clear understanding of their financial policy.
Final Words
The UK’s social care system supports people with disabilities by helping them live a happy and independent life. It provides financial aid, and support with daily tasks, and ensures access to community activities.
The caretakers and the assistants make sure that they feel valued and included. It enables them to lead a fulfilling and confident life.
Frequently Asked Questions
In the UK, the social care system is mainly managed by the local councils. People are directly employed by the councils. They often work together with the health commissioners under joint funding arrangements. Some people work for private companies or voluntary organizations hired by local councils. They help the local councils with their personal social services.
The UK offers a number of disability-related financial support. It includes payments, benefits, tax credits, grants, and concessions. Moreover, they can also help people with disabilities with housing, employment, and other needs.
The disability scheme in the UK is meant to support employers to employ people with disabilities and keep them at work. The scheme offers free guidance and advice to employers to do this. It encourages them to think about how they can employ disabled people.
Disability Rights UK is the leading disability charity led by, run by, and works for people with disability. It also works with other DPOs or Disabled People's Organisation, businesses, government, or public bodies to create a more inclusive society for them.
Actually no, social care is not free at the point of use in the UK. However, some extent of social care help and support is free for everyone. There are no means-tested. You can get that support totally free of cost no matter what your income is. However, you need to go through a needs assessment and a means test if you request publicly funded social care.