Adult Social Care
Practice Guide
Contact details for Extra Care Arranging visits to Extra care schemes Staff are advised NOT to make unannounced visits to the schemes with the applicants Staff are to arrange a planned visit with the scheme manager, where both the professional and individual will be shown around the scheme. Staff…
The LGA and ADASS have published helpful practice guidance, and top tips for supporting people who are experiencing and recovering from homelessness. This resource provides top tips under six themes which which have been identified as enablers for achieving better outcomes for this cohort. Please…
Mora Burnet House and changes to provision The care and support provision at Mora Burnet House officially transferred over to Camden Council and is now part of ASC Provider Services. Recruitment of a Registered Manager will begin this month. In the meantime, Laurie Armantrading (Head of Provider…
Housing Matters Quick guidance to Camden's Home Improvement Services for practitioners Camden Council offers home improvement services for adults with care and support needs. These services include WISH Plus and the Camden Home Improvement Service. Please be advised that this page is due to be dev…
From the 1 st November 2021, Origin’s contract for the Camden Home Improvements service has transferred to Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTVH). The Handyperson Service covers the whole of Camden, helping local people aged over 65, or anyone who has a disability or mental health condition. T…
Housing Matters Team Around Me: A model for multi-agency working for and with people experiencing multiple disadvantage On this tile you can find an overview of Team Around Me (TAM). TAM has been designed for people experiencing multiple disadvantage – a combination of social problems such as home…
What is Team Around Me? Team Around Me (TAM) is a model for holding case conferences or multi-agency meetings for people who have support and/or care needs, which truly puts the person at the centre of their own support. Team Around Me has been designed for people experiencing multiple disadvant…
Team Around Me is based around four key principles: Strengths based: “ The meeting started by acknowledging the client’s achievement and she was overwhelmed by how far she had come, as she generally suffers with low self-esteem. The meeting was extremely uplifting.” Meetings begin by everyone in…
The process starts with an individual experiencing multiple disadvantage or a support provider working with them identifying that it would be useful to bring together the person’s support network, in order to create a collaborative action plan and work through any challenges. A TAM meeting can be…
Calling a TAM meeting is a simple process. TAMs are designed to be used as a framework for bringing people together, any time a meeting needs to be held. Ideally, the resident will choose which professional they would like to organise the TAM. If the resident is unwell, not contactable or not wor…
TAM meetings should always follow this process: 1. Introductions and check in Everyone has the opportunity to introduce themselves, their role, and to say how they are today. 2. Strengths and positives Everyone at the meeting has the opportunity to reflect on the resident’s strengths and/or posit…
After the meeting, the professional in charge of minutes should write up clear, concise minutes from the meeting, using the TAM form, and circulate to those in attendance via email within 48 hours. For any challenges which the group were not able to make progress with – for example, because they…
More information and support The Team Around Me model was evaluated in 2022. The full report can be viewed here . If you need support to set up a TAM, would like to book training for your team or need any other information, please contact Lucy Campbell [email protected]
Connecting people to support Information on the Sensory Needs Team, making reasonable adjustments and the Big Word It is important to support residents to be able to access services within their community and this may require making reasonable adjustments. The Sensory Needs team are able to provid…
What is the Sensory Needs Service? A note on language: Over the years there have been many ways to describe people who may have sensory needs, such as those who are blind, partially sighted, or those who are D/deaf or deafened. In this Practice Guide we have used language to be in-line with the…
D/deaf and hard of hearing residents - hints and tips for home visits When visiting or communicating with a resident who is D/deaf or hard of hearing, the following tips may be helpful to ensure you communicate effectively: Make sure you have the person’s attention before you start speaking. Plac…
Sensory Needs Service - Sight Loss Generally, the service receives referrals directly from eye hospitals. The hospital eye consultant (ophthalmologist) is the person who decides whether someone’s sight loss is permanent and significant enough to meet the criteria for certification as severely si…
Blind and partially sighted – hints and tips for home visits Everyone’s sight loss is different. Some people can see nothing at all, others have lost their central vision, others their peripheral (i.e. side) vision, others have only lost vision on one side. Some people need a lot more light to h…
Blind and partially sighted - further support Beyond the Sensory Needs Team, advice and support is also available from a range of organisations found here . This list includes organisations which specialise in certain eye conditions, and those who may also have additional health conditions or dis…
Sensory Needs Service – D/deaf residents The Sensory Needs Service can support people who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, and have difficulty staying safe and socially independent at home. Someone's hearing loss must be permanent in order to be supported by the service. If someone is eligible, they…
Connecting people to support Quick guidance regarding Shared Lives Schemes for practitioners Shared Lives Camden is a service where adults with care needs are given the opportunity to live in the homes of people who will support them. People with care needs will share a home with a carer and in so…
What is shared lives? Shared lives is a scheme that enables adults with learning disabilities or other care and support needs that make it harder for them to live independently, to live with a carer or carer and their family. Further information can be found on Camden's Shared Lives website . The…
Who is it for and is it safe? Within Camden Adult Social Care our statement of purpose currently states that we support Adults with Learning Disabilities and Autism. The Camden scheme is currently only registered to provide a service for people with LD and Autism. However, there are plans to exte…
How carers are employed and paid Carers can come from any background and will have a passion for supporting people and their community. Carers will generally be Camden citizens with a spare room that they wish to offer. Often carers will be people with a care background, either formal or informal…
Who shared lives cannot support The Shared lives scheme is not a quick fix and is not a scheme that can be used for emergency placements, nor is it 24-hour support as carers need a good work life balance. People being considered for placement need to be able to have their needs met within a home…
Who supports the placed person Social workers and or Care managers continue to support the placed person, the shared lives team role is to support and work with carers, ensuring that they are sticking to the persons support plans and supporting the person as agreed. Reviews are held in the same w…
Referral process Staff including social workers will know the person who they think would be suitable for the shared lives scheme. However, it is good practice that before contacting the shared lives team, that you firstly consider whether the person meets the criteria. If they do, you should ta…
Money Matters Connecting people to support
Money Matters Information on the personal finance service, eligibility and the role of practitioners Within ASC it is essential that our residents receive a high quality service from the Personal Finance Service (PFS) and practitioners in relation to the management of their personal finances when…
What is the Personal Finance Service (PFS) What is the Personal Finance Service (PFS)? The London Borough of Camden (LBC) has a duty of care to provide personal finance support for an individual as a last resort in situations where there is no other suitable person. Any financial management will…
Regular reviews of finances Completing a review of finances Financial reviews must be completed a minimum of every 12 months for individuals where LBC is a Corporate Appointee. These need to be completed by practitioners in Adult Social Care (including C&I Mental Health Trust). If you are the rev…
Working with the PFS team Communication between social care practitioners and PFS workers is essential when it comes to a person's finances. The Office of the Public Guardian - Standards for Local Authority Deputies are the standards that a local authority must adhere to as a Local Authority Depu…
How to refer to PFS In order to refer to the Personal Finance Service, you will need to: Complete the relevant documentation within the PFS application bundle. This includes: Internal Application Form - word or pdf . Mental Capacity Assessment - word or pdf Best Interest Form COP3 Form Obtain wha…
Contact the PFS team Referrals using the application bundle should be made to the PFS Service Manager [email protected] If you have any questions about the referral process or want to raise concerns about a person's finances you can email [email protected] Once a person is receiving suppor…
Appointees, Deputy, and LPA Within Adult Social Care, we may be working with people who need support with their personal finances. People should be enabled and assisted to manage their own financial affairs as far as is possible. However, in cases where the person lacks capacity to manage their m…
Money Matters Changes in the economy have had an impact on people's finances. There is support for residents in severe financial hardship and who can't afford necessities to live. Support could be through internal schemes or referrals to external support including grants.
Help with energy costs Help with energy costs There are a number of schemes/grants that provide support with energy costs: Warm Home Discount Scheme What it is - The Warm Home Discount Scheme is a one-off £150 discount off your electricity bill. If you’re eligible, your electricity supplier will…
How to access emergency funds How to access emergency funds In order to set up an emergency loan or payment, the following forms will need to be completed and sent to the Team Clerks: Emergency Fund Form (Completed by practitioner/ Social worker and signed by Team Manager) Pre-paid card agreement…
Cost of Living Awards Cost of Living Awards Cost-of-living crisis awards are where an individual or family are facing severe financial hardship and cannot afford food, warmth, water, electricity and household essentials. As such, there is a risk they will suffer harm without help as they have no…
Household Support Fund (HSF) Awards Household Support Fund (HSF) Awards In addition to two Cost of Living awards, residents who meet the criteria can apply to the Government-funded Household Support Fund (HSF). The deadline to apply for a HSF payment is 31 March 2026, and it has the same eligibil…
Debt advice Debt advice Age UK Camden The Age UK Camden Information & Advice service offer advice on: Welfare and benefits. Debt and money. Housing. Accessing services. Charitable grants. Supporting people with arranging Lasting Power of Attorney and later life planning. This service is available…
Health Exemption Services Communications Toolkits Health Exemption Services Communications Toolkits Help people access support with the cost of NHS prescriptions and dental treatment by sharing and displaying promotional resources. The NHS Business Services Authority has developed communications…
Charitable and Hardship Support Charitable and Hardship Support in Camden This guidance sets out the main charities and funds that Camden residents can apply to for financial or practical support. It is intended as a quick reference for Social Care practitioners when advising clients. Practice t…
Money Matters Connecting people to support Breathing space is a Debt Respite Scheme, that aims to help individuals by offering financial help from a debt advisor. The scheme give people in a mental health crisis support with the right to legal protections from their creditors. Further information…
What is Breathing Space? Breathing space is a scheme aimed to help people dealing with debt, within the scheme there are two types of help they offer people. MHCBS (Mental Health Crisis Breathing Space) is for patients that suffer with any type of mental health. The second is the standard scheme…
Eligibility Criteria for Mental Health Crisis scheme To be accepted by the Mental Health Crisis Breathing Scheme you must be: A UK resident receiving mental health crisis treatment (including if that treatment has already started). Receiving any other crisis, emergency care or treatment in hospit…
How Breathing Space works There are two different processes for both MHCBS scheme and the standard Breathing space scheme. The standard process can be read in full detail in the structure chart. The second advanced process chart outlines how the MHCBS works. These two processes have to apply to y…
How to make a referral It is expected that all people being referred will be under the care of a local mental service, an inpatient in hospital or in one of the Crisis Homes. To make a referral someone from the team of care looking after them should do it on their behalf. The patient will need to…
Nominated Point of Contact The nominated point of contact is the Mental Health Professional that the Breathing space debt advisor can contact throughout the persons breathing space. They will contact the nominee every 20 days to confirm the patient is still in crisis. The care coordinator should…