Progress in Personalisation Trials for Children

September 1st 2010

Personalisation budgets for children are experiencing difficulties in a major pilot scheme.  The key issues center around funding restrictions,  although it is reported that good progress is being made overall.

The use of personal budgets for children is currently being tested in the 2-year pilot scheme, involving six local authorities and primary care trusts.   The trial began in April 2009, and will run until March 2011, testing whether the concept of individual budgets will work for children’s services in practice.

A progress report by the Department of Education says PCTs have not helped enough with funding, despite each pilot being co-signed by the PCT and local authority and being co-sponsored by the Department of Health.  The schemes have also struggled to gain funding from education sources, with some education colleagues ‘distancing themselves’ from the work on individual budgets.

It seems clear that it has been difficult for children’s services teams to learn from their adults’ services  counterparts, mainly because of the differences in funding streams and legal responsibilities associated with young people.

Overall, however, it seems that good progress is being made on the pilots, and many lessons are being learned.  Although there have been issues, they are being highlighted at this stage in order to help guide the process and to demonstrate the challenges that still need to be overcome.

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For more on this story, take a look at the articles below from Children and Young People Now, and Community Care: 

>>> Children and Young People Now – Indiviudal Budgets for Children

>>> Community Care – Personalisation for Children