Coronavirus social care and safety

Early in the COVID-19 crisis the Coronavirus Act created the power for local authorities to relax some of the rules around social care.  A local authority can only make use of this relaxation of the rules if that LA is so short of staff or overwhelmed by demand that complying with all their usual duties under The Care Act is “no longer reasonably practicable” and “to continue to try to do so is likely to result in urgent or acute needs not being met, potentially risking life”. The duties that could then be relaxed mostly apply to adults and carers not to children. Neither ESCC or BHCC have said they are likely to use this power so things locally are unchanged in terms of the law, although social care services are under additional pressure.

If adult social care activate this permission to relax some Care Act duties they will still have to make sure that the care people receive is enough to prevent a breach of their Human Rights. This does mean that existing care packages for over 18s could be changed or reduced, although the government guidance is clear that the person concerned (and carers) should be consulted as part of any decision to revise a care package.

The government has made it clear that this is not intended to mean people who need care stop getting it. They expect all LAs to keep doing the right thing. But it does recognise the pressure that the coronavirus is putting on social care and allows for LAs to focus on the most urgent needs and most vulnerable people if things get really tough.

Specialist Community Disability Service (SCDS) staff are working from home but trying to provide a normal service as far as possible. Read more about SEN interim arrangements in Brighton & Hove here

If you have an allocated social worker they will contact you by phone to provide updates and to check in with how you and your family are doing. If you don’t have named worker the Intake duty system can offer support and advice. Phone: 01273 295 550 or email SCDS@brighton-hove.gov.uk

SCDS are continuing to monitor direct payments. Advice is still available from People Plus. If you have a problem with your current Direct Payments package, for example your PA may not be available, contact your Social Worker or Early Help Worker. It may be possible to use your Direct Payments in a different way in the short term but you must contact your worker before making any changes to how you use your Direct Payments package. There is more detail bout DPs and PAs below.

Drove Road and Tudor House (BHCC residential respite centres) remain open for overnight respite, but they are affected by the need to keep children distanced and the availability of staff. There may come a time when this provision has to cease due to staff shortages and families needing to self-isolate, but the team will keep these services open as far as possible. If the centres do close the local authority will try to offer other options for short breaks like additional direct payments or support from outreach and social work staff.

ISEND Social Care teams are working from home but offering as close to a normal service as possible. Social workers in ISEND Social Care are continuing to respond to parents and assessing their needs on an individual basis. They are mostly doing this over the phone. All children’s social care services have been told to identify the children most at risk at this time and concentrate on them. Other more routine work may need to wait, but the ISEND social care team say they have mostly been able to find ways to respond to the particular challenges and queries from families of disabled children that are arising since the lockdown.

If you don’t have a named worker in the children’s disability service, there is central ESCC contact point for all queries relating to Children’s Services and provision in the current difficult situation. Email cs.customerrelations@eastsussex.gov.uk or call 0345 60 80 192 (10am-3pm).

Your child’s PAs can still work as usual as long as they are not sick or self-isolating, unless you decide that it is safer for your household that they do not. As paid carers they are considered essential workers.  This also means that they can be tested for COVID-19. Find out how to get tested for Covid-19 here.  In East Sussex the council will help PAs arrange a test if they meet the criteria which they explain here https://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/socialcare/providers/pa-covid.  You may need to provide your PAs with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), for example if they do personal care.  If you can’t get this from your usual supplier, in Brighton& Hove there is a an online route to request this but only if you meet certain criteria   and in East Sussex  ESCC have information about PPE on their website with a couple of options including a form to request an emergency supply from the council. Well Child, the national charity for sick children is offering help with PPE.

The government have provided some FAQs now about PAs and DPs which are easier to follow than their official guidance and cover more of the questions parents have about DPs and PAs in the current crisis including when PPE is needed. There is some information from People Plus who provide the PA support service in both East Sussex and Brighton & Hove this includes what you need to know about statutory sick pay if your PA is sick or self-isolating, why furlough does not apply to employees paid for from DPs and the options for paying your PA even if you feel it is safer for them not to come to your home at the moment. A good source of more detailed advice is from Mark Bates Ltd who are an insurance company frequently used by parents who employ PAs

 If your usual PAs can’t come to you currently, it is possible that you could use Direct Payments to pay family members instead.  The regulations about the use of DPs say they can’t be used to pay close family members living in the same home unless the local authority decides it is “necessary” to do so. In the current circumstances it is more likely that the LA will agree this kind of arrangement, at least temporarily. You must get agreement from your social worker first and get advice about the employment law implications of transferring funding over from an existing paid PA to a family member. Note that if your DPs come from health rather than social care because you get Continuing Health Care funding, the position is slightly different as the law says a CHC direct payment cannot be used to pay a family member or friend who lives in the same household to provide services unless this is set out in the care plan, so you would need to to request and negotiate a change to their care plan. Contact your care coordinator as a first step.

If you think there are things you could buy that would make it easier to care for your child at home in the current difficult circumstances, talk to your social worker. The Children Act 1989 gives LAs the power to give direct payments to purchase equipment. In the current crisis it is reasonable to ask them to be flexible about how to meet the needs of disabled children. Using direct payments imaginatively may be part of the solution. But be sure to get agreement before you pay out for anything that is not in your current DP plan, even if you have the funds in your DP account. In practice social care may come up with another way to fund a reasonable request.

If you are worried about how to cope if you are without your usual help from PAs you should let your social worker know, particularly if any part of your agreed social care support package is not happening as normal e.g. if your child’s PA becomes ill or is self-isolating and you have not been able to find a replacement.

The government guidelines about exercising outdoors changed again on 11th May. The new rules say people (in household groups) can exercise outside as often as they like, drive to open spaces for the day, sit down for a picnic or stop and play – so long as they keep the two metre distance rule with anyone who isn’t part of their household. You can also meet up with a friend in open space outside your home as long as you stick to the two metre rule. Playgrounds are still shut, but multi use sports courts and tennis courts should reopen.  You can play close contact sports like football with members of your household, but you need to keep two metres apart from anyone else. The advice continues to be to avoid crowds, only use public transport for essential journeys and that it is safer to be side by side rather than face to face when sticking to the two metre rule.  You can see more information about the changes to coronavirus advice here 

If your child normally spends time in another household with another parent e.g. your ex-partner, they can still do this. But you will need to make an individual decision about what is safest for your child and both households. This BBC news article explains both the guidance and what you will want to think about in making a decision, or see this page from Rights of Women for more details especially if you and your ex-partner are not in agreement 

 Many children and young people will be online more than usual during lockdown. Using the internet for learning and keeping in touch with family and friends is a positive. And the challenge of caring for your child with SEND at home and mostly indoors, alongside getting other things done and having enough time for yourself to stay sane, means resorting to devices and the distractions on offer online is fair enough. But it is worth checking they are as safe as they can be.

Here’s some good advice about online safety from Childnet

The Children’s Commissioner has also produced a digital safety guide for parents and one for children and young people 

 More time at home together may be a happy thing for some families but the reality for others is that brothers and sisters of disabled children may be finding it hard. They may be being more of a carer than usually, getting less attention from you and perhaps struggling with their sibling’s behaviour towards them. National charity Sibs have good advice for parents and siblings including an online chat forum they can join.

In Brighton & Hove the Young Carers project at the Carers Centre may be able to offer some online support for siblings now taking more of a caring role. Parents can refer their own child to this service at the moment using their online young carers referral form and put ‘parent’ in the ‘professional agency’ box on the form.

In East Sussex, the Sibling Service are working on how to to offer groups and activities online. Email them to find out more Sibling.Service@eastsussex.gov.uk

Staying at home and isolating yourself and your family isn’t easy for anyone, but it is particularly difficult if you are living with someone who may hurt or abuse you. The current lockdown situation can increase the risk of harm. If you need to leave home to escape domestic abuse you should still do this.

If you are subject to domestic abuse, you are not alone, there is help available. For advice and support contact The Portal on 0300 323 9985 or via The Portal website.

If you are in immediate danger, or suspect someone else is, call 999.

If you are unable to talk, call 999, listen to the operator and then either press 55 on a mobile, when prompted, or wait on a landline to be connected to the police, who will be able to help.

For more advice and support, in East Sussex visit the Safe in East Sussex website  and in Brighton & Hove try this page from COVIDBrighton 

 Families are dealing with a lot at the moment – being stuck indoors, missing normal activities, worries about coronavirus, trying to do some school work, not getting a break from each other. This all adds up to quite a challenge for children and parents. Many families are finding that it is tough and your parenting skills may be being stretched to the limit. There is no easy answer but some things will help. Triple P have a good summary of the common sense things we all need to do as parents at the moment or watch their Triple P videos here and the tips from the National Autistic Society are useful for many children. ISEND educational psychology service have written a guide about Some parents are finding the opposite, their child is more relaxed now they don’t have to go to school and many things that are normally a battle don’t arise. In this case you may be worried about how a return to school will work. We will add some ideas for this soon.

East Sussex : If your child is already connected with a worker at an ISEND service for example from the CLASS or ESBAS teams, they may be able to offer advice to you at home now. Open for Parents have helpful parenting advice and information on their website  and they are sharing ideas on their OpenforParents Facebook page.

ISEND educational psychology service have written a guide for parents about emotional wellbeing that you can use to help your child manage the emotions that can lead to tricky behaviour.

Brighton & Hove: If your child is already connected with a worker at BHISS for example from the autism or the SEMH teams, they may be able to offer advice to you at home now. The Integrated Team for Families are providing virtual support to families via Family Coaching. Front Door for Families and the Parenting Team are offering support and advice. Find their contact details here.

Amaze can offer Brighton parents some phone advice on parenting whilst we are unable to run our Triple P Stepping Stones courses for parents of children with SEND. Contact the SENDIASS helpline to ask about this.

Challenging behaviour is often interlinked with anxiety and stress so you may also want to look at the information about mental health services in our Coronavirus and Health section.  If your child has severe learning disabilities and behaviour that challenges you may find this ‘Advice on supporting children with severe learning disabilities’ and this ‘Supporting your loved one’ info sheet from the Challenging Behaviour Foundation useful. If sleep is becoming an issue try these sleep tips.

Obviously every parent aims first to help and support their child with their behaviour, but even if their behaviour is intertwined with their learning disability, neurodevelopmental condition or mental health need, there is a point when you have to consider the safety of those around them. The additional strain of the current coronavirus situation may be a tipping point.

If you have a named worker  from the Specialist Community Disability Service (BHCC) or ISEND Children’s Disability Service (ESCC) you should contact them if your child’s behaviour is becoming a challenge to manage at home during lockdown. If you are not under one of these services call Front Door for Families in Brighton & Hove on 01273 290400 (out-of-hours 01273 335905) or SPOA in East Sussex on 01323 464222 (out-of-hours 01273 335906). Do this urgently if you or other children in the house are at risk as a result.

In an emergency situation you can and should call the police via 999.

The government issued guidance on 8 April for family carers.  It outlines what to do if the person you care for has symptoms. And it emphasises the importance of writing an emergency plan just in case you are unexpectedly unable to continue caring at some point during the pandemic. Carers UK have good tips about how to plan for emergency care.

As part of this planning make sure you have an up to date Hospital Passport or This is Me Care Passport for your child or young person.

The Carers Hub for Brighton and Hove is still working to support carers locally, switching services to phone, email or online

Care for the Carers is still working to support carers in East Sussex, switching services to phone, email or online  and has information about extra support from other carers organisations across the county at this time, like this example.