Special educational needs and disabilities direct payments

Find out what direct payments are and how they can be spent on special educational needs and disabilities short breaks.

What a direct payment is

A direct payment is money given to:

  • young people aged 16 years or over with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)
  • parents and carers of children and young people with SEND aged 0 to 25

This money enables them to buy in support that is assessed as being needed, instead of Brighton & Hove City Council providing that support through their own services.

If under 16, the direct payment is made to the young person's parent/carer/representative to be spent on services that meet the needs and outcomes in a health, social care support plan or Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan. Once a young person turns 16, they can become the recipient and manage the direct payment themselves, or their nominated person can continue to manage it.

The amount of funding must be sufficient to secure the provision required to meet the needs and outcomes in a personal health plan, care support plan or EHC Plan.

Local authorities must offer the option of direct payments in place of services currently being received.

For both education and social care, the local authority must be satisfied that the person who receives the direct payments can manage the direct payments either:

  • by themselves
  • with whatever help the authority thinks the applicant or nominated person will be able to access

This ensures they will:

  • use the payments appropriately to meet the needs in question
  • act in the best interests of the child or young person

Who is eligible for direct payments

Those assessed as meeting the criteria for the Specialist Community Disability Team (SCDS) can receive direct payments.

Children and young people with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCP) and their parents have the right to request a personal budget, which may contain elements of education, social care and health funding. This may be delivered by way of direct payments.

Under the Children and Families Act 2014, this covers people aged 0 to 25 with SEND.

How to get Direct Payments

A Social Worker first assesses the child and/or family's needs.

This assessment will:

  • look at the needs of the child and their family
  • assess if the parent/carer or young person is willing and able to administer direct payments, with appropriate support being provided

The Social Worker will then present a request to a Resource Panel of Managers and service providers who will decide:

  • whether direct payments are the most appropriate option to meet the need
  • how the funds should be allocated

How direct payments are made

Direct payments are paid in advance into a bank account set up for this purpose. The payments are either made as a one-off payment or paid weekly.

A separate bank account, called a ‘supported bank account’, will be required. The Local Authority will monitor this account for expenditure and will be looking at when, how, and on what funds are spent.

If the direct payment is assessed as needed at key times, such as for school holidays, then payment will be made accordingly.

Sometimes funds can accumulate if you have struggled to find/put in place the services the money was intended for. With agreement for the local authority, you may be able to spend the accumulated funds on an alternative service as long as it meets the support plan/EHC Plan outcomes.

The local authority will monitor your account, and if the surplus builds up beyond 8 weeks, they can suspend payments to the account and/or request funds be recouped from you as per the policy. The local authority will always inform you about this in advance and try to support you in the first instance.

How direct payments can be spent

Direct payments can be spent to employ a Personal Assistant (PA) to:

  • take the young person/child into the community to access an activity
  • support their inclusion, for example, by going to a club
  • work with the child directly within the home, to give parents and siblings a break
  • stay overnight with the PA to give respite to parents

You can spend direct payments to pay a registered childminder or child home carer for children under 8.

You can spend direct payments on:

  • using an approved agency to provide direct care to meet the child/family's needs
  • after-school clubs and holiday play schemes for the disabled child
  • residential overnight breaks for the disabled child

By agreement with the Head of Service for direct payments, the money can also be spent on any service which meets the family’s assessed need for a short break.

Learn more about specialist short breaks.

If you want to buy a service to go into your child's school, this would require the written consent of the headteacher/principal or person occupying an equivalent position.

Generally, you cannot use direct payment funds to pay your close relatives to meet your child or young person’s support needs. This applies to:

  • partners
  • parents
  • parents-in-law
  • stepchildren
  • grandparents
  • siblings
  • aunts and uncles

However, exceptions can be made in some circumstances.

What happens if you do not want a direct payment

You cannot be forced to accept a direct payment. The local authority will need to arrange support to meet your needs if you do not want a direct payment.