Involving Adults who Use Services

1. Introduction

Adults who use care and support services, and those of partner agencies, are at the centre of the personalisation agenda and the Care Act 2014.

Feedback from adults and carers about their service experience and outcomes – that were either achieved or not achieved – are vital to providing effective and appropriate services.

2. Co-production

Co-production is a way of working whereby everybody – adults who use services, carers and staff – work together on an equal basis to create a service or come to a decision which works for them all (see What is Co-production? TLAP).

The Care Act states:

Co-production is when you as an individual influence the support and services you receive, or when groups of people get together to influence the way that services are designed, commissioned and delivered.

The TLAP National Co-production Advisory Group says:

Co-production is not just a word, it is not just a concept, it is a meeting of minds coming together to find shared solutions. In practice, co-production involves people who use services being consulted, included and working together from the start to the end of any project that affects them. When co-production works best, people who use services and carers are valued by organisations as equal partners, can share power and have influence over decisions made.

3. Involving Adults

Adults who use services should be involved at each level of development, delivery, and review of care and support services in order to ensure:

• that services are developed to meet the care and support needs of adults;
• that the services which are provided are of good quality;
• positive outcomes for those who use the service.

Service commissioners should ensure that adults who use services can:

• have their views considered in the development of new strategies and services;
• contribute to the review and performance management of existing strategies and services;
• receive information on planning and delivering of new services in an accessible and jargon-free format;
• contribute to meetings and decision making where practicable. This may include practical support (for example considering the time and venue for meetings) and other assistance (for example help to deal with jargon – see TLAP Care and Support Jargon Buster – feelings of stress and any  perceived power imbalances between staff and people who use services);
• access appropriate training and mentoring support to enable them to contribute to planning arenas.

Service providers should ensure adults:

• have easy access to information about their rights and responsibilities within the service;
• have easy access to clear information on all the services available (see Information and Advice chapter);
• have access to information on their care and support options (see Care and Support Planning chapter);
• are fully involved in the assessment process and development and review of their individual care plan and have their needs, wishes and goals incorporated into their plan (see Assessment chapter);
• should be involved in the recruitment process of new members of staff or volunteers;
• receive information on how to make comments, complaints and compliments about the service they receive (see Complaints chapter);
• contribute to the evaluation of the service.

User led organisations (ULOs) are one approach to facilitating user involvement as referenced in the Care and Support Statutory Guidance. ULOs are organisations that are run by and controlled by people who use care and support services, including disabled people of any impairment, older people, and families and carers. See also A Commissioner’s Guide to Developing and Sustaining Local User-Led Organisations (SCIE).