Citizen Advisors - Turning Point

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Turning Point Connected Care Report 30 Case Study Elsie contacted her local village agent to ask for some help with understanding letters from the Council. 1. The first letter from the council was in response to Elsie informing them that her son had moved back to live with her. It was not clear what, if any, effect this would have on her council tax payments. The village agent rang the Council and confirmed that the letter meant that there was no change to her payments. 2. Elsie was also concerned about a letter from the county Community Equipment Service asking for aids to be returned. Her late husband had been loaned equipment – all of which Elsie had made use of to assist her mobility and safety around the house since his death. The village agent spoke to the Adult help desk at Gloucestershire County Council, who contacted the original occupational therapist to see if she could keep the items. It was agreed that Elsie should have an assessment for needs to ensure she received the appropriate support and equipment 3. As a result of these conversations, the village agent noticed that the client was paying Basic Rate tax on her widows pension. The village agent investigated this and discovered that she had some unused Personal Allowance which could be set against this income to reduce the tax. The village agent also arranged to have the clients tax code changed to reduce her future tax and wrote a couple of letters, for Elsie to sign, requesting a reassessment of tax paid in the previous tax year and provide the necessary documents. Elsie received some money back for her overpayment and her pension was increased. In the words of the village agent, “Elsie was very appreciative of the assistance offered. In particular she had no idea about income tax and what she should be paying. Although sorting out this situation took a number of visits, phone calls and letters, it just shows how looking at the overall picture can reveal benefit that was not the original request. This was only possible because Elsie gained confidence in me. We have become good friends.” Source: www.villageagents.org.uk A further important element of the village agent programme is that it is designed to help build communities. People living in rural areas can be very isolated and rather than needing high level health or social care support they may be in need of opportunities to socialise or to take part in activities with other members of the community. Village agents have set up social activities and clubs in response to the needs of the older people in the community. For example, they have set up library clubs, lunch clubs, an internet café, tai chi classes, quiz nights, bingo and fortnightly minibus outings. These activities have helped to enable older people to feel part of a community, which is of the utmost importance for maintaining good mental and physical health.
Turning Point Connected Care Report 31 Summary of the model: Village agents are community members that are paid and trained by the provider organisation. Not only focuses on providing support to access services, but enables individuals to get more involved in their local community. Integrates health and social care. Regular meetings are held with service providers and other organisations in the area so that the village agents are known by other professionals and there is a shared understanding of the service. The village agents are supported by an online Gateway referral system, where they can look up services and information from partner agencies. The village agents enter the details of the client that the appropriate service calls the client and arranges a visit. 6.2 Community Mentors Social isolation can be a particularly big problem for people living in rural areas. The Community Mentors programme in Devon helps to tackle isolation and lack of service use in rural parts of the county. The service is for people who are at risk of social isolation and losing their independence, or who are experiencing a crisis in their lives due to personal circumstances. This might include bereavement, redundancy, or ill health. It is for people over the age of 50. The mentoring scheme helps people to access information and services when they lack the knowledge or the confidence to contact them. The support they receive meets their individual needs and helps them to develop a positive sense of social identity. The aim is to re-engage people in meaningful social activities and community life, in order to improve physical and mental well-being and prevent health and social care needs emerging in the future. There are similarities between this and the East Sussex navigator service which is an example of early intervention navigation. However, whilst the East Sussex service is focused on providing practical solutions to health and social care problems, the Devon scheme emphasises the importance of signposting people towards social and community-based activities. The local coordinators who run the community mentoring signpost people to services or help people with more acute problems over a longer period of time to enable them to build the confidence and the networks to become involved in their community. Summary of the model: Navigators provide information on services, but the focus is more upon building confidence, social capital and community cohesion. Provided through voluntary organisations on behalf of the County Council. The service is available to people over the age of 50, who are experiencing social isolation or a downturn in their lives. Community mentors are similar to befrienders, but in addition to providing social support, they direct individuals to services and other social activities.
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Citizen Advisors - Turning Point

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