Please also see our factsheet, which summarises the information that you need to know, and gives links to other information sources.

PIP Factsheet June 2013

Skills for Care will fund all types of learning, development or qualifications that demonstrate value for money and meet the learning needs of individual employers and their personal assistant(s).

If you are over 18, live in England, and employ a Carer or Personal Assistant, you can apply for funding for you or your assistant to take a training course or gain a qualification.

Courses could include:-

• Health and safety
• Person-centred care
• Communication
• Diplomas in Health and Social Care
• How to be a good employer
• Moving and assisting
• Awareness courses - including diabetes, stroke, dementia and falls
• First aid

All training must commence before 30th September 2013

For further information visit:

Funding for Personal Assistant and Individual Employer learning and development

www.skillsforcare.org.uk/individualemployerskillsfunding 

Inducting and building relationships with your staff/Training your staff

www.skillsforcare.org.uk/individualemployers

 Or telephone 0113 241 1275

Organisational and Workforce Development, ‘Essential 12’ training provided by LGSS includes

• Introduction to Dementia (1 day)
• Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) (½ day)
• Emergency First Aid at Work (1 day)
• Pressure Care (1/2 day)
• Fire Safety Induction (2 hours)
• First Aid Awareness (½ day)
• Food Hygiene Awareness (½ day)
• Hoist Training (½ day)
• Manual Handling Foundation (1 day)
• Medication in residential or non-residential setting (½ day)
• Mental Capacity Act (MCA) Decision Makers Training (1 day) OR MCA Refresher (½ day)
• Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults Level 2 Recognising and Reporting Safeguarding Concerns (½ day)

For more information on these courses please visit www.lgss.co.uk/Services/traininganddevelopment/Pages/trainingcourses2

PA training funding

For training courses provided by The Disability Resource Centre please go to this page

Geoffrey Van Orden met with businesses who have been offering free Health and Safety training with the Estates Excellence programme that the Council has been promoting. They met at the Disability Research Centre.

The group raised the issues that small businesses face to keep up with all important regulation and how locally delivered schemes such as Estates Excellence helps them to share experiences with larger companies.

Mick Dillon, Chief Executive of The Disability Resource Centre, welcomed Geoffrey to the Centre and outlined how the charity is helping people with disabilities get the support they need to lead independent lives. There is also a business incubation centre on site to help local people to develop their business aspirations.

Discussions continued with Central Bedfordshire Council to seek further Euorpean support for the area’s key developments and needs. This included transport, waste and social funding.

CEO of the Disability Resource Centre, Mick Dillon (seated) with Geoffrey Van Orden CBE MBE (4th from left), and representatives of local businesses and Central Bedfordshire Council.

Geoffrey Van Orden said ‘The facilities, information and support that you provide for disabled people in the area is clearly so valuable and important. I was also impressed b the successful steps you have taken to run the Centre on a commercial basis’

Individual employers (people who directly employ their care or support staff) are now able to apply for grant funding directly from Skills for Care to support the full costs of training and development for themselves and their personal assistants.

What will be funded?

Skills for Care will fund any training, development or qualifications that demonstrate value for money and meet the needs of the individual employer and their personal assistants.  This can include relevant training for the employer if it relates to employing care staff.  The cost of care staff wages while absent on training can be included.

When can I apply for the funding?

You can apply for funding now. Grant funding will be allocated on a ‘first come, first served’ basis between now and 31 March 2013. Make sure you apply early so you don’t miss out.

How can I apply?

More information and the application form is available on the Skills for Care website: www.skillsforcare.org.uk/Individualemployerskillsfunding

Information on possible training courses can be obtained from The Disability Resource Centre and Northamptonshire Centre for Independent Living

 This year the theme is  Removing barriers to create an inclusive and accessible society for all.

Persons with disabilities often face barriers to participation in all aspects of society. Barriers can take a variety of forms, with  the result that persons with disabilities do not have equal access to society or services, including education, employment, health care, transportation, political participation or justice.

The Vision of the Disability Resource Centre is ‘Equality, access and independence for all disabled people’, and we wholeheartedly support the aspirations of the theme of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities this year.

To read more about IDPD please visit    http://crm.disabilityrightsuk.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=5591&qid=133893

The Chief Executive officer of the Disability Resource Centre, Mick Dillon, has had a busy week in his role as paralympic flame ambassador.

After collecting the flame from Trafalgar Square on friday, where he met VIPs including the prime MInister David Cameron, London Mayor Boris Johnson, Government Ministers and paralympic committee members, Mick brought the torch back to Central Bedfordshire.

On Saturday he attended an event at the Bunyan Centre in Bedford, where a number of sports were on display, then the torch was brought to the Disablity Resource Centre on Sunday 26th August where it was present at a paralympic flame festival. The event was a great success with over a thousand  people attending the free family event that highlighted the role of sport in the inclusion of disabled people. .

Mick Dillon said “There was real energy and passion from everyone, with the flame receiving great reverence wherever it went. Families everywhere queued up to engage with the lantern – holding it and having their pictures taken with it”

On Sunday afternoon Mick attended an all-faith celebration of the paralympics, and then was at Luton swimming pool on Monday.

The opening ceremony of the games took place yesterday evening, and featured a flame that was created at a Ceremony at Stoke Mandeville from the union of four flames lit at each of the UK’s capital cities. On Tuesday night Mick attended the flame ceremony at Stoke mandeville, and on Thursday this week will be at the Olympic park to take part in a debate about disability legacy with Three Counties Radio.

To read more about the paralympic games, the ceremony at Stoke Mandeville, and Mick’s involvement please see the BBC School news article.

Mick DIllon collecting the paralympic flame from Trafalgar Square in London

Mick DIllon prepares for his radio interview at the Olympic Park

The view of the Olympic park from the Radio studio

Following the hugely successful Olympic games, it will soon be the turn of the Paralympic athletes to shine.  The Opening Ceremony of the Paralympic Games will feature a special Paralympic flame, which will be created at Stoke Mandeville by the union of flames lit at ceremonies in each of the UK’s capital cities (London, Belfast, Cardiff and Edinburgh).

Mick Dillon is a local wheelchair user, who has been the Chief Executive of the Disability Resource Centre for 12 years, and has been announced as the Paralympic Ambassador for Bedfordshire and Luton. Mick’s first duty will be to go to Trafalgar Square in London on Friday 24^th August, to collect London’s flame to bring it back to Dunstable where it will be hosted on behalf of Central Bedfordshire.

The flame can be seen at The Disability Resource Centre’s premises on Poynters Road for the morning of Sunday 26^th August from 9.30am to 12.30pm, when there will be a special Flame Festival to celebrate the inclusion of disabled people.  The free, family event is open to everyone, and will feature activities that can be enjoyed by both disabled and non-disabled people, including sports, sailing, assistance dogs and a jazz band.

Mick Dillon said

“I am proud to be the Paralympic Ambassador for Bedfordshire and Luton and I look forward to further developing the inclusion of disabled people in society. Sport is becoming a catalyst for narrowing the gap between disabled and non-disabled people in 21^st Century Britain, and builds on the greater choice and control that disabled people are beginning to have in their everyday lives.”

After the event at The Disability Resource Centre on 26^th August, the flame will continue on its journey to Stoke Mandeville. Once all 4 flames have been united, a 24-hour torch relay will take it back to London for the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympic games at the Olympic Stadium on 29^th August.

There were several advisors on hand to talk about subjects such as benefit entitlements, getting back to work and help with direct payments.

There was time for relaxation and to chat to other carers, with a cafe serving tea and cake, and a massage therapist  too!

If you missed the event, please contact us for information about any of the topics mentioned above 01582 470970