Personal Budget

Under the Personal Budget scheme, service users can choose to receive a budget from the rehabilitation providers instead of services or benefits in kind to facilitate their participation in society. They use this to pay for the expenses required to meet their personal care needs. This turns people with disabilities into budget holders who can organise the ‘purchase’ of services on their own responsibility, independently and in a self-determined manner; they become buyers, customers or employers. As experts in their own affairs, they decide for themselves which forms of support are best for them and which service provider or individual should deliver a service at the time they wish. This freedom of choice promotes the self-determination of people with disabilities. The Personal Budget breaks down the previous triangular relationship between the funding body, service recipients and service providers; benefits in kind are replaced by cash payments or vouchers.