South London Jewish Community Services

The Guide

This guide is intended to be a useful information source for anyone who is try to obtain care or support for Jewish peoploe in need who live in south London. They may be seeking this help for themselves, or on behalf of others. Who are these"Jewish people in need?" They may be men, women or children. In essence, they are people who are need of specialised help, care or protection. Some examples of the issues which may create such a need are: physical ir seneory disability, degenerative illness, emntal health problems, neglect or abuse, dementia, domestic violence, learning disabilities. The list of challenges faced by people in eryday life is endless.

The Guide:

* Explain "how the system works" in terms of care and support services

* Indicates how to go about finding and accessing those services

* Gives contact details for relevant agencies and service providers

What the Guide does not do:
This Guide deals with what is now termed "social care" and sometimes "primary care" but does not cover purely medical care or hospital services. For reasons of space, this Guide does not list all the providers of relevant services, or give full contact information. Instead it offers key pointers in the direction of the best route(s) to follow and very brief contact details - usually just an address and telephone number.

Children and Adults:
At the outset it is worth noting that most of the institutions which help people in need, make a fundamental distinction between children and adults. There are specific services for children and other services for adults. It is important to be clear about this when setting out in search of help or care for someone, and to help focus one's efforts accordingly.

Who does what - how the system works
When confronted with the maze of organisations which offer services, it is helpful to think in terms of two sectors. The public or "statutory" sector consists of bodies such as local authorities and the NHS which are established by law (statute) and whose duties are specified by law and Government policy.

The other sector is the independent sector. This consists of "voluntary organisations" (mostly charities) set up by ordinary citizens and not intended to be money-making businesses, plus, of course, genuine private firms offering care who run as a business, and aim to make a profit through the provision of services.

It is also helpful to be aware of the distinction between assessment and provision of services. "Assessment" is about identifying what a person's needs are and then determining how those needs are best addressed. Many public/statutory bodies (such as local authorities) have key legal obligations to assess people's needs and then look for the right services to meet those needs. If you are looking for care and support for a particular individual, often the most important thing to do is to find out who can assess the individual's needs and then check to make sure that the assessment duly takes place. Additionally services are also provided by voluntary and private organisations - such as residentail homes, housing associations, home care firms, employement agencies, counselling organisations, helplines and hotlines, day centres, nursing homes, etc.

Looking for help - getting the vocabulary right
When trying to find support or care for someone its worth having the right vocabulary at one's fingertips. For example, being "worried" about someone may not be as effective as stating that one is ringing to "make a referal." Basically, "making a referral" simply means informing an agency about someone in need. In any event, being ready with the right form of words often makes things move more quiclky.

Here are some key terms to be aware of:
- Making a referral - first step in contacting social care agency
- Advocacy - asking for help on a particular person's behalf
Assessment - the formal process of identifying a individual's needs and circumstances.
- "At risk" - is the in question at risk in anyway? That is, is she or he exposed to a potential hazard? If so, this is an important point to make at the onset.
- Need - try to focus on the individual's needs rather than your own worries.
- Vulnerability - another key concept, to quite closely related to being "at risk"
- Acute - if the situationis particularly urgent, describe the person's needs as "acute"
- Commissioning - the process by whihc authorities such as Social Services and Primary care Trust may decide whihc organisations get contacted to provide care servicies.

Race, religion,culture - the authorities are obligated to find services whihc address people's particular cultural and religious circumstances, so Jewish people in need, (once assessed), should have access to care and support from service providers in the Jewish community (if that is what they prefer and these services are available).

Getting help... obtainging an assessment ans accessing services
It is pssible to make a direct approach to many of the organisations lister later in this guide. They may be able to offer a service, or at least information. However, genarally speaking it is imprtant to ensure that an individual / family in need get a proper assessemtn first.

For most categories of people in need, whether adults or children, the central route of assessemtn is though the Social Services Departemnt of the local authority (Council), and these departemtns where appropriate will work very closely togther with the Primary care Trust (the PCT's part of the NHS). These two types of agency cover almost every type of care and support other than in-patient, hospital services. Increasingly, Social Services and the PCT's aim to work as one unified team. Between them, they employ a vasy range of professional who have key responsibilities under the law to identify the needs of different types of people requiring help and support. These groups include: frail older people, children at risk, individuals with mental health problems, the homeless, people with disabilities, those who have HIV, alcohol or drug dependency problems. Local authorities responsibilities also include Housing Departments that find accommodation for homeless people and assess people's entitlement to a range of specialist sheltered accommodations for individuals with "special needs".

Finally, if what is being looked for is financial support in the shape of benefits) or allowances, then the most important role is played by the Benefirts Agency and Department of Work and Pensions, whihc is part if central Government. This Department is responsible for delivering support and advice for people working age, employers, pensioners, families and children and disabled people.