Social care
At their best, social care services (social work services in Scotland) help people to live fuller, more rewarding lives, providing support when it is needed, and enabling people to exercise choice.
But it’s not always easy to access support in a way that suits each person and their individual circumstances.
There are many types of support available from local authorities - the choice will depend on what you need and your personal preferences.
Social care services are changing quickly, with a greater focus on offering people a say in the support they need - a focus known as personalisation.
Everyone with MS is entitled to an assessment to see if they are eligible for social care. The local authority will carry out an assessment of your needs in key areas.
Various tips should help you get what you're entitled to. You are entitled to ask for more than the basics - help so you can do things like visiting friends and family and having a social life.
Unlike health services, social care services are not free. If you are found eligible for support after an assessment, your local authority will do a financial assessment to determine how much you will need to contribute.
Direct Payments and Personal Budgets should offer more flexibility to choose the services you need.
There may be times when you are not happy with the decisions made by social care services, whether around the amount of help they are prepared to offer you, or about how the service is being provided.
