Slides from a webinar broadcast on July 16 to inform councils how they are able to use In Control's Personal Outcomes Evaluation Tool (POET) for free to check the results of personal budgets.

1. What’s working
and what’s not?
Children’s POET
Focus on the outcomes,
not just the numbers
16th July 2014
Tim Parkin and John Waters

2. How to participate today

3. Agenda
• A brief history
• Where we are now
• What POET tells us
• Getting the best from POET
• Questions
• Next steps

4. A brief history
• POET developed over 10 years by In Control and Lancaster University
to check the experience and outcomes with people using personal
budgets and carers
• So far two National Personal Budget Surveys, with a third due to be
published in the autumn
• Versions developed for staff, providers, people with personal health
budgets and being tested for children with education, health and care
plans and personal budgets
• Today’s focus is on adult social care covering personal budget users,
carers and staff

5. Where we are now
• Care Minister Norman Lamb’s ambition is that all councils adopt a way of
checking the impact of personal budgets
• In Control has received some core DH funding to assist councils to start
using POET

6. The two offers are:
• Do it yourself – Gives access to the survey questionnaires, online
portal to upload and analyse data, and local reports comparing results
with a growing national data set. This option is free.
• Supported POET – Gives bespoke support, including facilitation of pre
and post survey engagement and a more detailed report and analysis
tailored to the locality. Cost £1,950 plus VAT and expenses

7. What POET tells us

8. • Mental wellbeing
• Physical health
• Independence
• Getting and keeping a paid job
• Volunteering taking part in community
• Choosing where to live and who to live
with
• Control over life
• Feeling safe
• Relationships with friends
• Relationships with family
• Control over support
• Getting support you need
• Being supported with dignity
• Relationships with paid supporters

9. Care act 2014 : Wellbeing POET 2013 Outcomes
Personal dignity Supported with dignity and respect
Physical and mental health and emotional
wellbeing;
Physical Health
Mental Health
Self Esteem
Protection from abuse and neglect Feeling safe, at home and when you go
out
Control by the individual over day-today
life (including over care and support
provided and the way it is provided)
Being in control of important things in your
life
Arranging the support you need
Relationships with people paid to support
you
Independent
Participation in work, education, training or
recreation;
Getting and/or keeping a paid job
Social and economic wellbeing Quality of Life
Domestic, family and personal
relationships;
Relationships with your other family and
friends
Relationship with your family carer
Suitability of living accommodation; Who and where you live
The individual’s contribution to society Doing things like volunteering that help

10. For the free text responses, we used themes that had emerged from the first
National personal budget survey. The list of themes was updated to reflect
free text comments included in this years survey.
Each quote was then examined and assigned to one or more themes
depending on what the person had written – for most comments a judgement
was also made on whether the comment was mainly positive, or neutral in
relation to the theme.

11. Process Experience
Got help to
plan PB
Views
included in
plan
Know amount
PB
Easy to get
support I want
Plan &
manage
support
Control PB Need assessed Information Restrictions Change my
support
Choose
services
Views
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Max
Min

15. The process conditions associated with
better outcomes
Views included
plan
Control budget Plan/manage
support
Choose
services
Change
support
Get info/advice Get support I
want
Assesment Restrictions Help to plan Direct payment
0
1
2
3
4

16. What worked well:
What didn’t work well:
What needs to change:

17. Were your views and opinions fully included when
This year we are taking a closer look
Assessment Budget Holders
Assessment Staff
Budget Set Budget Holders
Budget Set Staff
Planning Budget Holders
Planning Staff
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
No
Yes
Don't Know

18. The Personal Budget Process who’s saying what

19. Care and support
Community Leisure services
Personal Ast.
Equipment
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
National
Manchester
How people used their personal budget

20. Engagement events : action planning

21. Getting the best from POET: Key stages
It’s all in the planning!
Ownership:
• Getting senior management sign up, briefing staff, and telling local partners
e.g. DPULOs
Planning the survey:
• Who to survey – personal budget users and/or carers and/or staff
• Numbers – minimum expectation of 100 personal budget users & 100 carers
• Survey methods – postal, at review, online, meetings
Timescale:
• Clear timetable to avoid drift, between 6 and 9 months
Using the results:
• Local report to inform engagement event leading to action plan for
improvement
• Can link to Making it Real, if using

22. Next steps:
New POET User Guide: www.in-control/poetuserguide
Sign up via online form https://podio.com/webforms/5165120/404682
If you want to find out more, please contact poet@in-control.org.uk