Your child's EHC Plan should be updated at the Year 9 Annual Review to include their wishes about any or all of these things, and clearly lay out their aspirations for their future as a teenager and as an adult. From the Year 9 Annual Review, their EHC Plan must include outcomes which help them to prepare for the future life that they choose. Parents and carers must also be given an opportunity to express their views and thoughts about their child's future and should be included as part of the planning process for their child at every stage.

Your young person's choices about their future may change during their teenage years and so their aspirations and outcomes should be reviewed each year at their EHCP Annual Review meeting and amended as needed, so that the Plan always accurately reflects their wishes and the planning that is needed for the future life that they want.

Ask the SENCO at your child's school or college how they are going to be looking at preparing your young person for adulthood from their Year 9 Annual Review? How will they be including your child's views and wishes about their future life within their EHCP? If your child receives social care support (short breaks and respite provision), who from children's social care will be attending or contributing to your child's Annual Reviews from year 9? Have any key health professionals that your child sees been invited to contribute to the Review? If you feel that your child's EHCP or their Annual Review does not include the Preparing for Adulthood focus that it should, you can contact the EHC Team at Central Bedfordshire Council:

The EHC Team 0300 300 8356 ehcreviews@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk

You can also contact your local SEND advice service for help and support:

SENDIASS 0300 300 8088 support@sendiass.co.uk

You will find more information about SENDIASS and the help that they can offer in the section below.

More information about EHCP Annual Reviews from Year 9:

Key-Topics-Annual-Review.pdf (ndti.org.uk)

Year-9-Annual-Review-Guide.pdf (ndti.org.uk)

Annual reviews in Year 9 and beyond | (IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice

What is an Education, Health and Social Care (EHC) plan? (updated 2019) (youtube.com)

Whether the local authority has to provide school transport will depend on your child's age, the school they attend, and what their particular needs and difficulties are.

Applications for school transport can be made annually, and give you the opportunity to provide evidence to show why your child needs school transport even if they live within the statutory walking distances (under age 8 this is 2 miles; age 8 to 16 is 3 miles)

If you live within the statutory walking distance but you think that your child or young person's special educational needs mean that they need help to get to school, you can find more information and apply for school transport for your child here:

Apply for school transport | Central Bedfordshire Council

You can also contact the Central Bedfordshire School Transport team on 0300 300 8339

Other help and support:

SENTAS – Special Educational Needs Transport Advocacy Service

Transport assistance is only subsidised, and a termly fee is usually charged unless your family is on a low income. If your young person chooses to attend a mainstream school or college that is not the nearest one offering the course they want, they will not be eligible for this transport assistance.

The programme of study must normally be full-time, which is defined as 15 hours per week for at least 30 weeks of the year. However, if your young person is attending post-16 education part-time because of their SEND, they will still qualify.

Post-16 transport should be applied for each year by 15th July to ensure that travel arrangement are in place ready for the start of term in September. Applications can be made after this date, but it may take longer to have the transport in place.

More information can be found here:

Access Arrangements, Reasonable Adjustments and Special Consideration - JCQ Joint Council for Qualifications

The guidance describes how and when a child is assessed for an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and what support this Plan should provide for them.

Chapter 8 of the SEND Code of Practice sets out what different professionals across education, health and social care should be doing to help your child prepare for adulthood.

The local authority can only take away a young person's EHC Plan if any of the following apply:

• The young person's special educational needs have changed and no longer require the provision set out in the plan. However, if the outcomes in the EHCP have not been met then the EHCP should continue and the provision amended

• The local authority is no longer responsible for the young person because they have moved to a different local authority area

• The young person is no longer attending any kind of education

• The young person has moved into higher education e.g. university

• The young person has reached age 25

• The young person is in paid employment

  
  

  The local authority can also cease an EHCP if the young person no longer needs the provision set out within it. However, the law requires the local authority to consider whether the outcomes in the EHCP have been achieved. If they have, there may still be a need to set new outcomes for the young person. If not, then this would indicate that the EHCP should continue.

  
  

  Find out what to do if your young person's EHCP is being ceased by the local authority:

  
  

  If your LA takes away your EHC plan | (IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice

  
  

  Changes in circumstances | Contact

  
  

  The SEND Code of Practice p202-205 explains when an EHCP can be ceased:

  SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

The SEND Code of Practice p202-205 is statutory guidance that explains when an EHCP can and cannot be ceased:

SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

The local authority can only take away a young person's EHC Plan if:

• The young person's special educational needs have changed and no longer require the provision set out in the plan. However, if the outcomes in the EHCP have not been met then the EHCP should continue and the provision amended

• The local authority is no longer responsible for the young person because they have moved to a different local authority area

• The young person has left any kind of education (this can only be the case once they reach age 18)

• The young person has moved into higher education e.g. university

• The young person has reached age 25

• The young person is in paid employment

  
  

  More information and advice can be found here: If your LA takes away your EHC plan | (IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice

The SEN Code of Practice p111-119 explains what post-16 educational settings must do to support young people with special educational needs:

SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

The full Care Act 2014 can be found here:

Care Act 2014 (legislation.gov.uk)

Find more information about The Care Act here and what it means here:

The Care Act | Mencap

CareActGuide24january2017.pdf (disabilityrightsuk.org)

The Care Act when transitioning from children's to adult social care - Special Needs Jungle

Care and support statutory guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The Care and Support (Eligibility Criteria) Regulations 2014 (legislation.gov.uk)

Care Act factsheets - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Everyone over the age of 14 who has a learning disability should be on their GP's Learning Disability Register and be invited to a annual health check each year. Annual health checks help people with learning disabilities to have any health needs recognised early so they are more likely to get the support and treatment quickly when they need it.

Annual health checks can also help people with disabilities and their families to have a closer relationship with their local GP or Disability Nurse, and know who to go to when they have questions or concerns about their physical or mental health.

You can ask for your young person to be added to the Learning Disability Register at their local GP surgery so they will then be invited to a health check each year.

More information about annual health checks:

NHS England » Annual health checks

Learning disabilities - Annual health checks - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

The information in these sections will help you understand the support your young person can receive when moving on to college or into supported employment or other training. It will highlight what options and support are available for post-16 education, training or work. These sections will also help explain whether a young person can get help with transport to school, college or training after the ages of 16 and 18.

These sections highlight what health services should be doing and when, to help children move from children's to adult health services without their being any gap in their care.

The information in these sections is about getting the right help and support to manage physical and mental health conditions and disabilities in adulthood.

These sections will explain what support your young person might receive for daily-living and leisure activities (outside of school, college or other education) as they get older and move into adulthood. This information aims to help you understand what social care support a young person might get after age 18 and who provides this. It will help you understand how the role of family caregivers can change when your child turns 18, and what your new rights as their carer are. It will explain the eligibility criteria for adult support and how and when your child can be assessed for getting the support that they need as an adult.

These sections also explain what extra financial help may be available at colleges or university for young people and young adults with SEND.

If your young person has never claimed DLA, they are still entitled to apply for PIP from age 16. You can find out who is eligible, how much you might receive, and how to claim here: https://www.gov.uk/pip

More help with applying for PIP can be found here:

Personal Independence Payment (PIP): What PIP is for - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) | Mencap

SMN - Guide to completing a Personal Independence Payments (PIP) form (youtube.com)

Moving from DLA to PIP - Citizens Advice

Changing from DLA to PIP | Disability charity Scope UK

Universal Credit is paid monthly and can include money for housing costs as well as money for living expenses. Adults with long-term health conditions or disabilities who are unable to work can be eligible for extra amounts. If your young person needs to move onto Universal Credit from other benefits, they will receive a letter from the DWP telling them how to do this and when to apply.

Universal Credit is separate from Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Personal Independence Payment (PIP), so these benefits will not affect the application for Universal Credit or how much they will receive.

For more information check out these links:

https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit

Moving to Universal Credit from other benefits - Citizens Advice

Getting Universal Credit if you’re sick or disabled - Citizens Advice

Applying for Universal Credit | Disability charity Scope UK

To be eligible for this bursary young people must be aged 16-19 when they start their course and this must be at a publicly funded school or college, or at a training course (including unpaid work experience). In order to apply a young person also needs to be in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA), Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit (in their own name). The Bursary can be worth up to £1,200 but the amount will depend on the young person's particular needs and the course they have chosen.

You or your young person can apply for this bursary through their post-16 school, college or training provider.

Please see the links below for further help:

16 to 19 Bursary Fund: Eligibility - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Financial Support | The Bedford College Group | Bursary

Learner Support Fund | Barnfield College

Financial support - North Hertfordshire College (nhc.ac.uk)

Financial Support - Cambridge Regional College (camre.ac.uk)

DSA Experiences - Dan's story (youtube.com)

VoiceAbility | Bedford Borough and Central Bedfordshire

Your or your young person can request advocacy help here:

VoiceAbility | Make a referral

Recommendations | Advocacy services for adults with health and social care needs | Guidance | NICE

If you have any concerns about your child's mental health you can contact the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) using the links below. Wherever you live within Bedfordshire, young people or their families can now self-refer into their local CAMHS using this form:

Self-Referral form Bedfordshire CAMHS | East London NHS Foundation Trust (elft.nhs.uk)

Click the links below for more information about the help available for children living in Central Bedfordshire:

What we help with | East London NHS Foundation Trust (elft.nhs.uk)

South Bedfordshire/Luton CAMHS | East London NHS Foundation Trust (elft.nhs.uk)

North Bedfordshire CAMHS | East London NHS Foundation Trust (elft.nhs.uk)

The following guidance explains what mental health support should be available for people with disabilities:

Mental health problems | Information for the public | Mental health problems in people with learning disabilities: prevention, assessment and management | Guidance | NICE

mental-health-problems-in-people-with-learning-disabilities-what-care-you-should-expect-easy-read-version-2612226638 (nice.org.uk)

Recommendations | Mental health problems in people with learning disabilities: prevention, assessment and management | Guidance | NICE

More information about applying for a home through the council can be found here: Applying for accessible council and housing association homes | Disability charity Scope UK

Adaptations may be needed because of a young person's physical or intellectual disabilities. If you feel you need adaptations to your home, you can apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant by contacting:

psh@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk or call 0300 300 8050

Disabled Facilities Grant | Central Bedfordshire Council

Get involved, share your experiences (good or bad!) and have your voice heard by joining SNAP: Get Involved - SNAP PCF - Central Bedfordshire

Find our more about what Parent Carer Forum's do:

What is a Parent Carer Forum and what do they do (youtube.com)

What is Co-production and what difference should it make to children and families?

Co production Subtitled (youtube.com)

Get Involved - SNAP PCF - Central Bedfordshire

Internships are a combination of workplace volunteering and study at college, to help prepare young people to move into a paid job. They are usually offered by colleges and other specialist providers who connect with local employers that can offer six month work placements.

Find out about supported internships within and near Bedfordshire using the links below:

Supported Internships | Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

Bedford College:

Supported Internship (Pathways) – 21303 23 | The Bedford College Group

Barnfield College:

Supported Internship - (Progressing Students Only) | Barnfield College

North Herts College:

EXTERNAL SUPPORTED INTERNSHIP - North Hertfordshire College (nhc.ac.uk)

You can also get help from the Young Adult and Independent Living Team (YAaIL):

Young Adult and Independent Living Team (YAaIL) | Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

More information about supported internships can be found here:

Supported internships - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Supported Internships For 16-24 Year-Olds | UCAS Progress

What is Internships Work? - NDTi

Some local activities for adults with disabilities within Bedfordshire and neighbouring counties are listed below.

Support for Adults » Autism Bedfordshire

Young Adult Club - Age 18 to 25 years - Families United Network

Adult Club - Age 26 to 35 years - Families United Network

Adults Skills Workshop - Families United Network

Adult Sensory Movers | Spectrum CA

Adult Movers | Spectrum CA

Search local groups | Mencap

Day Centre - Cottons Farmhouse

The Cube Disability

The Inclusion Project - Learning Disabilities, Learning Difficulties

About Electric Umbrella

Riverside Tennis Club / #NoBarriers: Open Court Disability Tennis at Riverside (lta.org.uk)

About | BDHRA

Music therapy and learning disabilities — Music24

Adult Services — Grow Wild

Home Grown Care Farm

SENsational Care Provisions | Northampton | Facebook

The 3H Foundation supports people with disabilities and carers.

Day Centre | CYCD

DSUK Milton Keynes Group (disabilitysnowsport.org.uk)

Disability - Bedfordshire FA

Social Link Evening Clubs (sociallinkcharity.org.uk)

Social Link Day Projects | Day Project Sessions (sociallinkcharity.org.uk)

Charitable Organisation | Living It Up Events | Bedford (lovelivingitup.org)

Book club (autism.org.uk)

HOME | Swirl Nightclub (darren6421.wixsite.com)

Special Needs Events (djdanblaze.com)

However, where a young person is not able to make some or all decisions for themselves because of their additional needs or disabilities, the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) allows others to make these decisions for them. The MCA requires that every possible support must be offered to the young person first to allow them to make a decision for themselves, but where this is not possible others are then able to make the decision on their behalf and in their best interests.

Until a child reaches age 18, parents still have legal rights and responsibilities for their child which is called 'parental responsibility'. Having parental responsibility means that parents and carers can still make many decisions for their child until they turn 18, although a clear definition of exactly which decisions fall within 'parental responsibility' is still not clearly described within the law.

After the age of 18, any decisions that are made for the young adult should be made in their best interest by everyone involved in their care. This must include their family members who should be fully involved in any decisions that are made.

Once a young person has turned 18, family members can apply to the Court of Protection for Deputyship, to be granted the legal right to act on behalf of their young adult and make decisions for them. Please see later sections of this guide for more information about Deputyship.

Find more information about the Mental Capacity Act and parental responsibility here:

Parental responsibility & mental capacity beyond 16 | Contact

Mental Capacity Act - Social care and support guide - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

What is The Mental Capacity Act? | Mencap

Parental rights and responsibilities: What is parental responsibility? - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

What is the Mental Capacity Act? - Mind

Mental Capacity Act 2005 (legislation.gov.uk)

A social worker from the YAaIL Team will carry out the Care Needs Assessment of your young person to determine what their eligible needs will be in adulthood and how the support that they require can be provided. The YAaIL Team must listen to the wishes and views of the young person, and take into consideration your views as their family carer.

The YAaIL Team can be contacted to request a Care Needs Assessment for your young person on 0300 300 8000 or you can use their online enquiry form: Adult Social Care Enquiry | Privacy Notice (centralbedfordshire.gov.uk)

The Ready, Steady Go programme provides easy read versions of its resources which can be found here:

Moving into Adulthood booklet:

ready-steady-go-programme-easy-read-booklet-2459-patient-information.pdf (readysteadygo.net)

'Ready' questionnaire:

easy-read-ready-3.pdf (readysteadygo.net)

'Steady' questionnaire:

easy-read-steady-3.pdf (readysteadygo.net)

'Go' questionnaire:

easy-read-go-3.pdf

Ask your clinician or health professional about this programme if you feel it may be helpful for your child.

Central Bedfordshire SENDIASS - Central Bedfordshire SENDIASS (cbsendiass.org)

ARtimetable.cleancopy.final.pdf (councilfordisabledchildren.org.uk)

ARfactsheets.general.cleancopy.FINAL_0.pdf (councilfordisabledchildren.org.uk)

The team can help young adults who still live at home with family, or who live independently in the community. They can be contacted on: 01234 310538 nelft.ist@nhs.net

Showing staff a hospital passport will stop you having to explain the same information about your child again and again to different healthcare professionals. It can help your child or young person get the kind of care that works best for them.

It is always a good idea to have multiple copies of their hospital passport available so that it can be given to everyone who comes into contact with your young person whilst they are at the hospital.

More information about hospital passports can be found here:

Learning disabilities - Support if you are going into hospital - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

Click on the image above to look at one format for a Hospital Passport. Other formats can be found here:

healthcare-passport.pdf (england.nhs.uk)

Hospital Passport to fill in electronically.pdf (hscni.net)

download.cfm (royalsurrey.nhs.uk)

If the Council decides that your young person does not have care and support needs, they should still provide you with information about other local services and support that can support your young person in adulthood. If you disagree with the outcome of your young person's Care Needs Assessment, you should first make a complaint to the Council here: Customer feedback | Central Bedfordshire Council If you are not happy with the outcome of your complaint to the Council you can also refer the matter to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman: Home - Local Government and Social Care who can provide an independent person to look into your complaint.

Adults with disabilities, particularly learning disabilities, may need to be constantly supervised by other people and may not be free to leave their home whenever they want to because they need to be kept safe. If they do not have the mental capacity to agree to their own care arrangements, the Mental Capacity Act says that a court will need to grant a Deprivation of Liberty order (DoL) for the person, which sets out the reasons why some of their freedoms have to be restricted in order to keep themselves and others safe from harm. A DoL has to be regularly reviewed by the court to safeguard the adult against any unnecessary restrictions that could be put upon them. An adult who is continuing to live with their family carers would generally not need a DoL order form the court, but may need one if they move out of the family home and live within a residential or non-residential setting and require care and support that they do not have the capacity to agree to themselves. The rules around Deprivation of Liberty orders are governed by the Deprivation of Liberty Standards (DoLS) as set out in the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

An adult's social worker and/or care provider will normally be responsible for applying to the court for the DoL order and for reviewing this regularly. When major decisions about changes to a person's care are being made for them, a new DoL application will need to be made to the court to explain why the decision has to be made for them and who will be making it. Family carers should contribute to the DoL application to express their views about the changes being proposed.

Use the links below to find out more information about DoL orders the the DoLS:

Deprivation of liberty - Mind

Understanding when someone is deprived of their liberty | The Law Society

Locations that offer specialist dental care:

Dental Care Centre, Bedford – Tel: 01234 310210
London Rd Dental Clinic, Bedford – Tel: 01234 310427
Liverpool Road Dental Clinic, Luton – Tel: 01582 708121
Leighton Buzzard Dental Clinic – Tel: 01525 751104
Houghton Regis Dental Clinic – 01582 512612
Queens Park Dental Clinic, Bedford – Tel: 01234 310859
Marsh Farm Dental Clinic, Luton – Tel: 01582 707435 

You can ask your regular dentist, GP or other healthcare professional to refer your child to your local specialist dentist, or contact 03332 074002 cds.referrals@nhs.net

Bedfordshire - Clinics - Community Dental Services

Dental treatment for people with special needs - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

Click this link to find out who you need to contact to become a DWP Appointee for your child:

Become an appointee for someone claiming benefits - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

More information about becoming a DWP Appointee:

Becoming an appointee | Disability charity Scope UK

Check how to fill in your claim form - Citizens Advice

This video explains what PIP points are and how many are needed to receive the standard or enhanced rate of PIP:

The Three Minute Guide to PIP points (youtube.com)

Click this link to see the points awarded for different types of difficulties in each of the activity sections on the form:

pip-9-table-of-activities-descriptors-and-points.pdf (citizensadvice.org.uk)

The governments full guidance on how PIP should be assessed and awarded can be found here:

PIP assessment guide part 2: the assessment criteria - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

PIP handbook - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

All of the support that they receive at school or college, from health services, or from social care, should focus on helping to prepare them to achieve the things that are important to them in adulthood.

Any plans being made with them or for them must be focused around their wishes, aspirations or ambitions for the future, and should be designed to help them get ready to live the life that they want as an adult.

Before a child reaches 16, parents and carers are usually able to apply online for their child and can help manage the account on their behalf without needing any additional legal status to be able to do so. Many banks will automatically change a child account into an adult account when the child reaches 18.

Once your child has turned 18 (and 16 in some cases) they are legally an adult and so will need to be able to communicate with the bank themselves to be able to open their own account. Opening a bank account on their behalf can usually only be done if you have a financial Deputyship in place for them (more about that later in this guide).

Having their own bank account will allow your young person to receive their own income or benefits in their own name when they become adults, and can help them to begin learning how to manage their own money, use their own debit card or use a cash machine.

During Year 11 young people are making decisions about their post-16 future and whether to stay in education or to move into supported employment, work or other training. The sections below will help to explain some of the educational support and options available, as well as other issues relating to turning 16.

When a young person is moving on to a new school or college this is called a 'Phase Transfer'.

In Central Bedfordshire, a Phase Transfer happens when your young person is moving from a secondary or upper school into post-16 education

If a young person has an EHC Plan they are entitled to ask for a place at any mainstream school or college, provided that:

• The school or college is suitable for their age, ability and special educational needs

• Their attendance at the school or college would not be incompatible with the education of other pupils at the school

• A place at the school or college would be an efficient use of local authority resources - this condition means that the local authority does not have to provide a place at a more expensive school or college if there is another school or college that can also meet the young person's needs at a lower cost.

  
  

The Phase Transfer process begins in Year 10. In the summer term of this year you should receive an invitation to a 'Transfer Review Meeting' from your young person's school. The Transfer Review Meeting must be held before the end of the Autumn Term of Year 11. This meeting is your opportunity to say which new school or college you would like your child to transfer into. The Transfer Review Meeting must also act as an Annual Review of your child's EHC Plan to ensure that their Plan is amended where needed to include the most up-to-date information about them, ready for their move to their new school or college.

For young people in special school, the Transfer Review Meeting can still be held in Year 11 if they wish to move to other post-16 education rather than remaining at the special school.

The EHC Team will consider the new school or college that you have requested, together with any proposed updates to the young person's EHC Plan, and send you a new draft EHC Plan showing the name of the new school or college and any other amendments to the Plan that are needed. The EHC Team must do this by 31st March during Year 11.

The young person's current and new school or college should then start to plan for their transition, working closely with you to ensure that the change is as smooth and stress-free as possible. To help with this process, you can contact the SENCo at the new school or the Additional Learning Support Team at the college to talk to them about how best to help your young person during their transition.

If you disagree with the school or college that the local authority has named on your young person's EHC Plan you should contact the EHC Team to discuss this.

The EHC team | Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

You have the right to appeal the local authority's decision with SENDIST by using this form:

Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal appeal: Form SEND35 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

This appeal must be sent to SENDIST within two months of you receiving the new finalised EHC Plan.

More information about the Phase Transfer process for young people living in Central Bedfordshire can be found here:

Phased Transfers for children with an Education, Health and Care Plan | Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

What good support actually looks like for the young person should be clearly understood by everyone involved in their care and support, whether this is at school or college, at leisure or community activities, or at health settings like GP surgeries, hospitals or clinics.

Personalisation in Social Care:

What is personalisation (youtube.com)

NHS Personalised Care Model:

NHS England » Comprehensive model of personalised care

If your young person regularly receives NHS services or support and you would like to consider a Personal Health Budget for them, you should ask the healthcare professional that oversees their care or their GP. Click this link for more information: NHS England » Frequently asked questions about PHBs

Personal Budgets were introduced to give young people and their families more control over the kind of support that they receive. Personal Budgets can allow you as parents and carers to make the decisions about what support is best for your child's preferences and lifestyle, who provides it and how it is provided, rather than these decisions being made for your child and family by other professionals.

A Personal Budget is not designed to replace all of the services that your child might need, but it can replace some of them, to give you the freedom and flexibility to tailor the support that they need. Personal budgets might pay for support workers or personal assistants, special equipment or adaptations, activity costs or transport into the community.

Any young person with an EHC Plan, or their parents or carers, can ask Central Bedfordshire Council to prepare a personal budget for them. Personal Budgets are not compulsory and you are not obligated to accept the personal budget just because you have asked for one to be created. The Council will first prepare a draft budget that should show an amount of money that is sufficient to cover the cost of the support needed to help your child meet the relevant outcome(s) within their EHC Plan. The draft budget is only a starting point and will only be finalised once everyone is satisfied that it can meet the needs of your child.

Once agreed, the money that is put into the child's Personal Budget can be managed by the local authority or by the family themselves. If the family is paid the money and manages it themselves, this is usually done via a regular monthly payment which is called a Direct Payment.

Sometimes the Local Authority might not agree to a Personal Budget; but if this is the case they must tell you why.

If you are interested in requesting a personal budget for any of your child's educational or social care needs or EHCP outcomes, you can contact the EHC Team:

The EHC Team 0300 300 8356

ehcenquiries@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk

More information about personal budgets for education and social care can be found here:

personal-budgets-3_tcm3-14184.pdf (centralbedfordshire.gov.uk)

personal-budget-guide_tcm3-4942.pdf (centralbedfordshire.gov.uk)

At the bottom of each information section, you can click on the star symbol to rate how useful that section was for you and your family.

This helps us to keep improving and expanding the information so that other young people and their families can continue to benefit from this guide.

When a child reaches the age of 18 this changes. The child then legally becomes an adult and parental responsibility no longer applies. This means that parents are no longer legally required to meet the needs of their child, and the responsibility for providing any eligible support that their child still needs as an adult to keep themselves safe and to stay healthy transfers to the state. Local authorities are not allowed to assume that parent carers will continue to care for their child after they reach the age of 18. As family carers are no longer expected to care for their son or daughter when they become an adult, they only need to continue to provide the care for them that they are both willing and able to offer. This might mean continuing to provide all of their child's care if they choose, or providing some of their care with the rest being provided by the local authority and/or the NHS.

Reaching the age of 18 and becoming an adult also means that the young person can legally begin making decisions for themselves, unless they are deemed not to have mental capacity to make some or all of their own choices.

This guide will help explain these changes, what happens for adults who can not make all of their own decisions, and how parents or carers can secure the support that their young person may need in adulthood to be able to live the life that they chose. This may include living independently from their family carers if they wish to do so, or if their family carers are unable or unwilling to continue caring for them at home.

SENDIASS is a free information, advice and support service that can help with issues related to Special Educational Needs and disability. They can help by offering you:

• confidential support and someone to talk to in confidence

• information and advice about:

  • Special Educational Needs support in the education setting

  • Education health and care (EHC) needs assessment process

  • EHC plans and annual reviews

  • Appealing to the SEND tribunal

  • Exclusion processes

• listen to your views and concerns

• work with you to explore your options

• help you prepare for meetings

• support you to find the confidence to express your views

• work in partnership with education settings, the local authority and other services to develop positive relationships

If you are interested in a Personal Health Budget you can contact the Personal Health Budgets Team at the Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board:

01525 624402 blmkicb.phb@nhs.net

More information about who qualifies for a Personal Health Budget can be found here:

Personal Health Budgets - BLMK Integrated Care Board (icb.nhs.uk)

PHB-easy-read-final-version-6.pdf (england.nhs.uk)

on-6.pdf

What is a personal health budget? - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

If you are interested in a Personal Wheelchair Budget you can contact:

Bedfordshire & Luton Wheelchair Service

03456 024064 elft.wheelchairs.admin@nhs.ne

Personal Wheelchair Budgets | Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

NHS England » Frequently asked questions

Bedfordshire and Luton Wheelchair Service | East London NHS Foundation Trust (elft.nhs.uk)

All maintained schools and colleges have a legal duty under section 66 of the Children and Families Act 2014 to put in place the support that a pupil requires because of their special educational needs. This means that any support that a young person is receiving when they transfer to a new school or college must continue to be provided.

You can contact the school and ask to speak to the school SENCo or the Additional Learning Support Team at the college, to discuss your young person's needs and check what support is going to be put in place for them. If you feel that the support that they will be offering your young person is not going to be adequate, you can consider requesting an EHC Needs Assessment for your young person as the first step in securing an EHC Plan for them. Even though an EHC Plan may not have been necessary in a previous setting, it may sometimes become necessary in later phases of education. Find out more about requesting an EHC Needs Assessment here:

Assessment of SEND and EHC Plans in Educational Settings | Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

Find more information and how to apply here:

Access to Work: get support if you have a disability or health condition: What Access to Work is - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The information has been presented by age and year group, to enable parents and carers to focus in on the information that may be most relevant to the age of their young person. Click on the images to take you to further information, explainer videos and other content. We would encourage you, where possible, to read and consider all of the information in this guide so that you can understand and begin the process of securing the support that your young person will need in adulthood well in advance of their 18th birthday.

1. Their needs arise as a result of a physical or mental impairment or illness

2. They are unable to achieve at least two of the ten outcomes listed below without assistance

3. Not achieving these outcomes will have a significant impact on their wellbeing

   
   

   Outcomes:

• Managing and maintaining their nutrition

• Maintaining their personal hygiene

• Managing their toileting needs

• Keeping themselves appropriately clothed

• Using their home safely

• Maintaining a habitable home environment for themselves

• Developing and maintaining their family or other personal relationships

• Accessing work, training, education or volunteering

• Making use of community services, including public transport and recreational facilities

• Carrying out caring responsibilities for their child if they have one

  
  

  Any adult is regarded as being unable to achieve an outcome if they (i) cannot do so without assistance, OR (ii) trying to do so would cause them significant pain, distress or anxiety, OR (iii) trying to do so would endanger themselves or others, OR (iv) doing so takes them significantly longer than would normally be expected.

  
  

Your young person has the right to have a Care Needs Assessment and the local authority has a legal duty to assess them if they appear to have any level of need for care and support. The purpose of the assessment is to identify what help and support they will need as an adult and how this support might best be provided to them. The assessment is carried out by the YAaIL Adult Social Care team at the local authority (see above).

It is good idea to ask for a Care Needs Assessment for your young person when they turn 17, to ensure that there is time to put in place the care and support that they will need when they become an adult. If your young person already has a childrens' social worker, you can also contact them to ask for the assessment. Alternatively you can contact the YAaIL Adult Social Care team directly at Central Bedfordshire Council on

0300 300 8000

or start by completing this online enquiry form: Adult Social Care Enquiry | Privacy Notice (centralbedfordshire.gov.uk)

Your young person does not have to be receiving social care support as a child to request an adult Care Needs Assessment; you can still contact the YAaIL Adult Social Care team to ask for an assessment for their adult care and support needs.

More information about eligibility for care and support as an adult can be found here:

Getting a social care needs assessment | Disability charity Scope UK

CareActGuide24january2017.pdf (disabilityrightsuk.org)

Quick guide to eligibility outcomes under the Care Act 2014 - SCIE

How much your young person will have to pay depends on whether they are being cared for within a residential care home or not. Further information about the charging differences for residential and non-residential care can be found in the next section of this guide. But below are the relevant guides for Central Bedfordshire:

Paying for non-residential care: Paying-for-non-residential-care-leaflet-1.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Paying for residential care: Paying-for-residential-care-leaflet.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Most young adults with disabilities will not have significant assets of their own, and so any contribution that they make will most often be based solely on their benefit income. Any extra costs they they have because of their disabilities will also be taken into account.

You can ask for a Carers Assessment at any time by contacting the Central Bedfordshire Adult Social Care Team on 0300 300 8000 or by submitting an online enquiry here Adult Social Care Enquiry | Enquiry (centralbedfordshire.gov.uk)

There is no charge to have the assessment and you don't need the permission of the person you are caring for.

More information about Carers Assessments can be found here:

Carer's assessment | Carers UK

Find out if you are eligible for Carers Allowance and how to apply here: Carer's Allowance: Eligibility - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The application to become a Deputy for someone is made to the Court of Protection Court of Protection - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) who will consider each application very carefully, particularly for health & welfare. Once a Deputyship is awarded, the Deputy can make all of the decisions that the person is not able to make for themselves. However, the Deputy is still expected to allow the person to make whatever decisions that can, and should still consult other people involved in their care when making decisions for them.

A Deputyship is not the same as a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA). An LPA can only be made when a person has full mental capacity in readiness for a time when they do not. A Deputyship is needed where a person does not have capacity to consent to someone acting on their behalf.

Deputies - legal information - Mind

Deputies: make decisions for someone who lacks capacity: Overview - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Common questions and misconceptions about the role of Deputies (penningtonslaw.com)

If your young adult needs support at their family home, it is worth considering how having carers within the home might impact other family members and how this might work for your particular family situation. Every young person and family situation is different, and so finding the right solution for them and for you as their family will be important. Carers can also be employed to come and help your young adult get out and about, to attend clubs or activities that are important to them or to support them to pursue their hobbies and interests.

In some respects a residential care home for younger adults may look and feel similar to supported-living. However, as the home and the care are linked, it is not possible to change care provider without moving to another home. The financial contributions that the adult will pay towards their care are also different, as explained in a later section.

Find more information about care homes for younger adults here:

Care homes for younger adults (under 65)

Younger Adults Care Homes / Nursing Homes England | 66321 Reviews

Support staff come into their home to support them with whatever aspects of their life they need help with. This care might be provided by a care agency who organise staff to work at the person's home to support them, or by a personal assistant paid for from the person's direct payment or personal health budget. In supported-living the young adult may need help to manage their own finances, and this support can be given by a family member or by their support worker, to help them manage their household bills and expenses.

The amount of support that they receive in their home will be based on their particular needs and will be set out in their Care and Support Plan. For some adults this care might be for just an hour each day, whilst others might need high levels of support for 24 hours a day.

Unlike residential care, the care and support that the adult receives in their home is not tied to the home itself. They are able to change who provides their care and support without moving out of their home.

Some organisations that provide non-residential care within supported-living settings, can also help your young person find their own property to rent either through a housing association or with private landlords who rent specifically to people with disabilities. They may also have support-living homes that have vacancies, to allow your young person to join a existing shared home.

Many adults with disabilities will receive housing benefit or universal credit which can pay for the rent on their home. Although they will still be financially assessed and may need to make a contribution towards the cost of their care and support, they should always be left with enough money to pay for their living expenses and to live an independent and active life.

Adults being supported within a shared-lives setting are financially assessed in the same way as for supported-living, and will be required to make a contribution towards the cost of their shared lives placement.

Find out more about shared lives here: Is Shared Lives right for you? (ategi.org.uk)

HOLD offers adults with disabilities the chance to buy a home on the open market under a special shared-ownership scheme. They must have an annual income of less than £80,000 and must not already be living in a home that they already own.

For more information click these links:

Own Your Home | Home Ownership for People with Long-Term Disabilities (HOLD) - Own Your Home

HOLD and shared ownership and step by step guide_FINAL.pdf (local.gov.uk)

Mortgage affordability and benefits | Disability charity Scope UK

Shared ownership homes: buying, improving and selling: Who can apply - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

HOLD Shared Ownership for People with Long-Term Disabilities | Advance Housing (advanceuk.org)

The Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice should be followed by everyone involved in the care of a person who lacks the capacity to make some or all decisions for themselves. The Code can be found here: Mental-capacity-act-code-of-practice.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Click the links below for more information about the Mental Capacity Act 2005:

What is the Mental Capacity Act? - Mind

Mental Capacity Act 2005 (legislation.gov.uk)

However, where a young person is not able to make some or all decisions for themselves because of their additional needs or disabilities, the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) allows others to make these decisions for them. The MCA requires that every possible support must be offered to the young person first to allow them to make a decision for themselves, but where this is not possible others are then able to make the decision on their behalf and in their best interests.

Until a child reaches age 18, parents still have legal rights and responsibilities for their child which is called 'parental responsibility'. Having parental responsibility means that parents and carers can still make many decisions for their child until they turn 18, although a clear definition of exactly which decisions fall within 'parental responsibility' is still not clearly described within the law.

After the age of 18, any decisions that are made for the young adult should be made in their best interest by everyone involved in their care. This must include their family members who should be fully involved in any decisions that are made.

Once a young person has turned 18, family members can apply to the Court of Protection for Deputyship, to be granted the legal right to act on behalf of their young adult and make decisions for them. Please see later sections of this guide for more information about Deputyship.

Find more information about the Mental Capacity Act and parental responsibility here:

Parental responsibility & mental capacity beyond 16 | Contact

Mental Capacity Act - Social care and support guide - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

What is The Mental Capacity Act? | Mencap

Adaptations may be needed because of a young person's physical or intellectual disabilities. If you feel you need adaptations to your home, you can apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant by contacting:

psh@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk or call 0300 300 8050

Disabled Facilities Grant | Central Bedfordshire Council

The local authority can organise this care and support for them by paying a local care agency to provide the carers that your young person needs. You and your young person should still be consulted by the care agency to ensure that the carers that they send to help your young person are the right fit for them. Carers usually come on set days and times as detailed in the Care and Support Plan.

Alternatively, instead of the local authority organising the care for your young person, you can ask for them to have a Direct Payment. This is an amount of money that is paid to either the young person themselves, or to a family member, to allow them to find and employ their own carers, or to pay a care agency themselves. This money must be kept in a separate bank account and only used to provide the care and support that is included in the young person's Care and Support Plan. Having a Direct Payment means that the money can be used more flexibly, allowing the amount or type of care to change at different times in a way that best meets the needs of the young person.

More information about Direct Payments for people living in Central Bedfordshire can be found here: Local Forms & Leaflets – Central Bedfordshire APPP Resource (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Direct payments: adults and older people | Central Bedfordshire Council

What is a Direct Payment?

ER1-Direct-Payment-Final.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Support Planning & Money

ER2-SupportPlanning-Final-2024.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Support Options

ER3-Direct-Payment-Support-2024.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Things you will need to do

ER4-DP-Responsibilities-Final.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Training a Personal Assistant

ER6-PA-training-Final-2024.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

How to Complain about your support

ER5-Complaints-Final.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

The NHS in the UK is a free service to everyone, so if the care and support that a person needs is eligible for 100% CIC funding, they will not need to make any contribution towards the cost of their care regardless of their financial circumstances.

In reality most young people with care and support needs will have this care paid for by their local authority as adult social care. As a result, they will have a financial assessment on their income and be expected to make a contribution to the cost of their care. Some young people with more severe intellectual or behaviour difficulties can sometimes be part-funded by both NHS CIC and the local authority. In this instance they would still have a financial assessment and make the same contribution, as this would help fund the proportion of the care paid for by the local authority.

The NHS uses a Decision Support Tool (DST) to decide if someone is eligible for CIC funding for their care. This tool can be found here: NHS continuing healthcare decision support tool guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

There are 12 different areas or 'domains' against which a person's condition is measured on a scale that goes from 'no need' to 'priority need'. Generally, in order to be eligible for some level of CIC funding a person must have at least one 'priority' need or two 'severe' needs across these domains; although it is possible to qualify with a 'severe' need in one domain and 'high' needs in others.

If Adult Social Care at the local authority believes that your young person may qualify for NHS CIC funding, they can arrange an assessment for them.

Adults who are classed as 'severely mentally impaired' can apply to get all of their council tax discounted and so pay nothing. To get this full reduction they will either need to be living on their own, or be living with others who are also all severely mentally impaired. Where they live with any other adults who are not severely mentally impaired, they will receive a 50% discount on their council tax. Please note that paid carers are not counted as adults living within the person's home even if they provide overnight care, and do not affect a person's eligibility for council tax reductions.

You can apply for council tax reductions for Central Bedfordshire here: Council Tax discounts and exemptions | Central Bedfordshire Council

1) Residential care

Residential care provides a person with both a place to live and the care and support that they need all in one place by the same organisation. These are generally called 'care homes', and are not just for the elderly. There are also care homes that are designed to support younger adults who need care and support, usually where a small group of disabled adults share their home together. Each adult usually has their own bedroom, together with the use of other communal spaces that are shared with the other people living in the care home. When looking for a care home for a young adult it is important to consider who they will be living with, to ensure that they will fit in well with the people already living there.

Care homes cover the cost of all of the adult's basic living needs including rent, utilities and food. Some also provide a schedule of onsite or offsite activities for those living at the home. The local authority and/or NHS will pay the organisation that operates the care home one single payment that covers both the accommodation and care costs for the young adult. As a result, some benefits that the young person may have been receiving before living at the care home will stop once they move in. This includes the care component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP). However, the mobility element of these benefits will still continue to be paid to the adult while they are living at the care home.

Adults living in residential care homes should still be given as much choice and control over their lives as possible, and be encouraged to make as many decisions for themselves as they can e.g. what they eat, what to wear, what activities they participate in. Care home staff should support them to increase their independence and self-help skills by involving them in daily living tasks such as washing, cooking or laundry to the extent that they are able. They should continue to be supported to access education or work where they are able to do so.

2) Non-residential care

Non-residential care is support that is provided separately from the adult's housing arrangements. Support workers will travel to the person's home to support them where they are living. This might be to the family home if the young adult is still living with their parents or families, or to their own home if they are living independently in a property that they rent or own. Adults who receive non-residential care will continue to receive all of their benefits such as Universal Credit or Employment and Support Allowance, Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment. They will use these benefits to pay for their own rent, utilities and food, and can be supported to manage their finances by family members or their support workers. Adults living independently and who are unable to work or are on a low income, can have help with their rent costs by applying for Universal Credit or Housing Benefit.

For residential care homes, many of the young person's benefits will stop when the move in because all of their accommodation and living expenses (including food) are paid for as part of their residential home. However, they will still receive the mobility component of DLA or PIP. Any other benefits or income that they receive will be used to assess what their contribution towards the cost of their care will be. The rules for these contributions are currently the same for both younger and elderly adults. Usually for a younger adult their contribution will simply be their total income less a Personal Allowance of £30.15 per week. This personal allowance is the money that they can keep to spend on personal items, but must usually also cover clothing and any activity costs that are not provided by the care home. Therefore, when considering residential care it is important to think about whether this weekly Personal Allowance plus the mobility element of their DLA or PIP will be enough to pay for their personal and activity expenses.

Paying for residential care: Paying-for-residential-care-leaflet.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

For non-residential care and support, all of the adults benefit income (excluding the mobility element of DLA or PIP) is considered when their contribution is calculated. However, as the young person is paying for and managing their own food, household bills and living expenses, they must be left with a set amount each week called the Minimum Income Guarantee. This is an amount of money set nationally by the government each year and is currently £110.60 per week. However, people with disabilities are often entitled to a higher Minimum Income, and may have a disability premium of £48.80 and an enhanced disability premium of £23.85 added to the standard Minimum Income amount. The local authority must not leave a disabled person with less money each week than the Minimum Income Guarantee that they are entitled to, when setting their care contribution.

In addition to the Minimum Income Guarantee, the local authority must also take into account any disability related expenditure when setting the amount of a person's contribution. Disability related expenditure is any regular products or services that the adult has to pay for because of their disability, and these expenses will need to be evidenced by showing receipts or invoices. Disability related expenditure will reduce the amount of the contribution that the person has to make towards the cost of their care and support.

Paying for non-residential care: Paying-for-non-residential-care-leaflet-1.pdf (centralbedsappp.co.uk)

Whilst the amount of assets or savings held by an adult can also affect the amount of their financial contribution, this is not until these exceed £14,250 in value. In reality, most younger adults accessing care and support are unlikely to be holding this level of assets or savings and so will be unaffected.

Details of the most recent Personal Allowance rates, Minimum Income Guarantee amounts, and savings thresholds, can be found here: Social care - charging for care and support: local authority circular - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Unpaid carers are usually family members or friends who provide help and support to someone without being paid. There are also paid 'support workers' or 'carers' who are trained to provide care and support to adults with disabilities or health conditions, either in their own homes or within a residential care home. Carers who support people in their homes normally work through local care agencies, although they can also sometimes be employed directly by the person needing the care, and can sometimes be called 'personal assistants'.

The Adult Social Care team within a local authority is usually responsible for organising support for any adults living within their local authority area who need care and support. Social Workers are professionals who work with adults to find out what support they need and to help them to get it.

In Central Bedfordshire there is a special team of Social Workers who work specifically with young people who are transitioning into adulthood. They are the Young Adult and Independent Living Team (YAaIL) and they can be contacted on 0300 300 800 or by using this online form:

Adult Social Care Enquiry | Privacy Notice (centralbedfordshire.gov.uk)

Young Adult and Independent Living Team (YAaIL) | Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

Universal Credit provides money for rent and/or living expenses. It is paid monthly straight into a person's bank account. Universal Credit also offers additional amounts for adults who have disabilities.

Universal Credit is separate from Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Personal Independence Payment (PIP). These can both be claimed alongside Universal Credit.

You can support your young person by filling out the Universal Credit online application form for them, or by supporting them to do so themselves. You can also help them to provide all of the information that is needed for the application.

Your young person can claim Universal Credit for living expenses if they are still living with parents or other family members - this is called the 'standard allowance' Universal Credit: What you'll get - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) They will not get money for housing costs (i.e. rent) unless they can show a legally binding tenancy agreement with someone who they do not live with and who is not a close relative: Claiming benefits if you rent from family - Shelter England

For a step-by-step guide to applying for Universal Credit click here: Step-by-step guide to making a Universal Credit Claim from DWP. (youtube.com)

You can start the process of applying for Universal Credit by setting up an online account here: Universal Credit online - Universal Credit (universal-credit.service.gov.uk)

Although there is now a 'new style' ESA that can still be claimed by adults who are unable to work due to illness or disability, this benefit requires a prior period of work where full National Insurance contribution were paid by the person applying. For this reason, many young people with disabilities may not qualify for 'new style' ESA and should therefore apply for Universal Credit instead.

More information about new style ESA can be found here: New style employment and support allowance | Disability Rights UK

However, if your young person is already receiving DLA they will continue to receive this as an adult until they are sent a letter asking them to apply for PIP. They only need to apply for PIP if they receive a letter asking them to do so. Until then, their DLA payments will continue to be made to them.

DLA or PIP can be claimed alongside Universal Credit and will not affect the amount you receive from Universal Credit.

A full list of the activities that are considered and how many points are awarded can be found here: pip-9-table-of-activities-descriptors-and-points.pdf (citizensadvice.org.uk)

Find out how to make a claim for PIP here: Personal Independence Payment (PIP): What PIP is for - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Click here for advice about filling out your PIP claim form: Applying for PIP - how to fill in your claim form (youtube.com)

DLA or PIP can be claimed alongside Universal Credit and will not affect the amount that you receive from Universal Credit.

These links will give you more information about how your eligibility for PIP is assessed and awarded:

Personal Independence Payment - PIP Assessment - What is the PIP test? | Turn2us

How PIP is Awarded - BSL - YouTube

This video explains how you can challenge a decision about PIP is you disagree with it: Challenging a PIP Decision (youtube.com)

The government's full guidance on how PIP should be assessed and awarded can be found here:

PIP assessment guide part 2: the assessment criteria - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

In some cases Universal Credit may accept the written evidence that you send them as sufficient evidence to show that the adult is not able to participate in full-time work. In other cases, the adult may get a letter asking them to attend either a face-to-face or telephone appointment with a Universal Credit assessor. The letter will explain what happens at the appointment and what to do if you need to change the appointment time. At the appointment the assessor will ask questions about how your young person's disabilities impact their ability to do daily-living and self-help tasks. You can support your young person during this appointment and they can bring any new evidence that they have about how their disability affects them.

If the Work Capability Assessment decides that your young person has limited capability for work, they will not be required to look for work or prepare for work in order to receive Universal Credit payments, but they can still work if and when they feel able to do so.

Use the links below to find more information about Work Capability Assessments and how to prepare for them:

Health conditions, disability and Universal Credit: If you have a Work Capability Assessment - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Work Capability Assessments. (youtube.com)

How to prepare for your Universal Credit Work Capability Assessment : Mental Health & Money Advice (mentalhealthandmoneyadvice.org)

To qualify for the discounted fare, the journey must either start or finish within the county of Central Bedfordshire.

There are two cards available:

A green YP Card is issued up to a young person's 16th birthday, after which they receive an orange YP Card until they are 19. Both cards allow travel at the discounted rate of £1.

Click the image above to apply.