Pet projects benefit from new care scheme

Pets are proving one of the unexpected beneficiaries of direct payments, the government social care scheme which seeks to give service users greater control over their care, it has emerged.

The revelation that dogs are receiving funding as service providers under direct payments was made by the Liberal Democrat local government spokesman, Ed Davey, at a fringe meeting on choice in public services organised by the New Local Government Network on Saturday.

Mr Davey lauded direct payments as a flexible means of enabling people to choose their care service provider, whether human or animal.

Mr Davey said he had received confirmation from the government that dogs delivering care to service users can have their food and vet bills covered by the direct payment scheme, in a parliamentary question tabled last year.

Dogs could often prove a cheaper and more reliable option than human beings delivering care, Mr Davey said.

"People are really happy because they do not have to wait for a human being," he said. "I am not saying it is right for everybody, but it extends choice in a small way."

Dogs can deliver a range of services for people who are deaf, blind or have mobility problems.

Charities usually train the pets to do up to a hundred tricks, such as drawing the curtains, pressing the button on a lift, and even drawing money out of a cash machine, according to Mr Davey.

The dog is then loaned out to the service user, who traditionally had to fund its food and other maintenance bills which can now be paid under direct payments.

"It can save over ?20,000 a year for a local authority because it is so much cheaper to pay for a dog. And what is so amazing is that it is cheaper for them and better for the individuals," Mr Davey added.

"Some people can go back to work because of services the dog can provide."

The government is expected to roll out direct payments in its forthcoming green paper on adult social care, due later this month.