Putting People First - Shaping your future, choosing your care

Commission of Inquiry into the future services for adults in need of support and care

Background to the Commission

The Leader of Hampshire County Council, Cllr. Ken Thornber held a commission of inquiry to help shape future services for people in need of support and care.

The system for providing social care for adults is set to be transformed so that the emphasis is on the individual's dignity, right to self-determination, choice, control and power over the support services they receive. This is called Personalisation.

Personalisation means moving away from traditional social care where people are fitted into a limited set of available statutory services. It involves considering a person as an individual with aspirations, as well as needs, and a circle of family, friends and other resources and support mechanisms around them. It introduces the requirement for greater personal responsibility and for individuals to use their own resources, as well as those available through statutory and other services, to meet their needs in the best way possible.

The Commission sought to understand what ‘personalisation’ means for individuals and the impact of implementation on all those who are involved in support and care.

We have gathered people’s ideas, comments and experiences in relation to the personalisation of adult social care, how social care can be funded, and how it will change the relationship between the state and service users.

The Commission report and recommendations will help us to meet the challenges of demographic changes and resource constraints and will also inform the forthcoming government green paper on future funding of Social Care.