Partnership Domiciliary Care Agency (PDCA)

Our services are particularly directed towards adults with learning disabilities and complex challenging behaviours. It is likely that people suitable for this support may have additional difficulties such as autism.

We work with people who:

• are aged above 18 years of age (16-17 years olds will be considered on specific schemes)
• have a diagnosis of learning disability and are unable to sustain an independent tenancy without additional support
• have complex needs that cannot be met by other providers more suitably in the local area
• have a referring agency that is able to provide a completed referral form including known risks
• are in housing need or inappropriately housed
• where risks are identified, a shared risk agreement is made through their respective risk management and Person Centred Plan processes
• are willing (where accommodation is provided) to comply with the terms of a tenancy agreement with the appropriate amount of support

Domiciliary care is a range of services which are put in place to ensure that an individual can stay in their own home. Support is offered in a variety of areas but always focuses on helping the person to follow the lifestyle and routines that they are familiar with, offering support at particular times with specific activities. This type of care is for those who prefer support at set regular times each week and individuals using our service will have agreed hours of support and activities agreed within their support hours.

We work with people who are already using our services, so referrals are made internally. Referrals for PDCA support can be made directly to the service manager, who will then organise an assessment. This assessment is to determine whether or not the PDCA can provide the service required and the exact nature of the support required.

This information is then relayed back to the referring agency with a proposed costing.

In addition, if the referral is suitable to receive support, the service will nominate the individual as a request to Southdown Housing Association, who will then proceed to establish the tenancy agreement, ensure a Housing Benefit Application is made, and attend to other accommodation related matters.

Comprehensive Assessment
The PDCA will organise a full assessment of the person’s needs to make sure we understand what help is needed. We will also make best use of the knowledge that has already been gathered. The assessment will include:

• Care Manager’s assessment of needs
• Existing Risk Assessments
• PDCA assessment of support needs

The Care Plan
We will put together a written care plan which will include:

A basic behaviour support plan
A crisis plan
Risk assessments

Review of progress
For individual service users, we will set up a “Team around the Person (TAP)”. The TAP meeting, which will take place every 6-8 weeks, will make sure that all of the input and support provided is effectively matching the needs and wishes of service users.

The PDCA is a service designed to work with people whose behaviour may challenge services. As such, it is our goal to reduce the level of challenge and minimise the risk of harm that such behaviour causes. 

We do not support a culture in which the ongoing presence of violence or aggression is tolerated. It is our priority to remove the factors that trigger challenging behaviour and offer acceptable alternative forms of expression. We will work proactively to create environments, settings and routines that maximise the person’s understanding and well-being and minimise the need for behavioural challenge.

We will also complete regular reviews of behaviours and incidents to ensure that proactive and reactive strategies are tailored to the service user’s needs.

We work with service users to reduce the likelihood of negative changes to mental health. We do this is in a variety of ways, appropriate to the service user's individual needs. If extra support is required, we will liaise with the funding authority.

If a person is becoming increasingly distressed, or their behaviour is becoming increasingly unpredictable and dangerous, either to themselves or others, we will hold a full risk review. We will liaise with local mainstream health services and specialist services where necessary to ensure a co-ordinated and timely response to increases in risk and will seek to provide the most effective (yet least restrictive) management of risk.