Case study: Emilie – support to be a PA Employer

Emilie chose her support through a Direct Payment to enable her to employ her own Personal Assistant.

Emilie does not have any family or friends to support her and lives on her own. She contacted a Disabled People’s Organisation for support in managing her Direct Payment and in employing staff.

Emilie has learning difficulties and short term memory loss; she also has underlying health issues and finds it difficult to communicate in writing or by phone.

The support that Emilie got

As Emilie prefers face-to-face support, one of the staff from the Disabled People’s Organisation, an Independent Living Officer (ILO) regularly meets up with her to discuss her support.

Emilie gets support through discussion, and writing down guidance notes. The member of staff keeps in touch with Emilie regularly to prompt her, and keep her up-to-date up with the things she needs to do, to manage her individualised package.

While recruiting a new PA and amending the contracts of her existing PA, the member of staff worked with the insurance provider, on Emilie’s behalf, and made sure that Emilie understood the processes. As amending contracts is a complex process, the staff member liaised with the insurer’s legal advice team with Emilie’s permission.

The staff member attended meetings with Emilie and her PA, provided her with guidance documents for contract amendment, and explained everything in a clear, simple, straightforward way during these meetings.

Emilie also has support to fill in returns for her council, and the staff member contacts her before every meeting to remind her what is required and fills in forms.

Emilie may still require extensive support but her confidence has grown remarkably. During her review Emilie said the support from the Disabled People’s Organisation, tailored to meet her specific needs, helps her to make decisions and allows her to manage her care package extremely well.

Find local help and support

There are many organisations across Scotland who provide the same types of support that Emilie receives. You can search for an organisation in your local area using the Find Help search tool.