1. Bolton Five Year Supporting People Strategy
Easy Read Version
If you think you need some support to
live independently, or someone you
know does then this Strategy will help
you.

2. What is Supporting People? What is a Supporting People Strategy?
Support to live independently, wherever you live and whoever you are
A Supporting People Strategy is a big plan written by the council, the Primary Care Trust and Probation Services.
It is written for everyone who works with
people who need help and support. This
includes people who work in social
services, probation services, housing and
health care.
It tells everyone what sort of housing
related support people need to live
independently in Bolton. It tells them what
needs to be changed so it can be made
available to everyone.
This will make it easier for you to get
support that meets your needs.
Supporting People pays for any housing
related support you get and is paid for the
organisation that gives you support.
Housing related support includes: -
Help to contact other people like social
services, health, doctors and colleges
Help to make sure your home is safe and secure
Help provided by a warden in
sheltered housing

3. Help and support for different people
Everyone has different needs.
You may only want support once or
you may need it everyday
You may want someone to support
you in your own home, wherever you
live
You may want to live somewhere
where support is available when you
need it most
The council, Primary Care Trust and Probation Services have been learning about what support people living in Bolton
need.
They have also been learning about the services that already provide support in Bolton.
They have spoken to lots of people to see what needs to be improved.
They have had to decide if the services that already exist offer everyone the support they need.
The Supporting People Strategy plans to make services available to people who are not able to get support at the moment.
The Supporting People Strategy says
There should be a number of
different types of support available
to you
You should be able to choose
You should be able to access
support when you need it

4. What’s in the Bolton Supporting Strategy?
Making Bolton a safer place
If you have left prison or have been in
trouble with the police, support to live
independently may help you stay out
of trouble in the future
If you use drugs or have an alcohol
problem, support to live independently
may help you stop using drugs or
drinking
Improving your health and wellbeing
If you have a disability or mental
health problem, support may help you
manage a home on your own
If you are a young person, support
may help you learn how to look after
yourself and look after a home of your
own
The Supporting People Strategy is split into five parts.
Making Bolton a better place to live
The first part of the Strategy describes how the council, Primary Care Trust and Probation Services wrote the Strategy.
They look at how helping you to live independently could make Bolton a better place to live.
These are examples: -
Living in a nice home
Support should help you to live in
home that is safe and warm and in a
nice area

5. Good help and support that meets your needs
Everyone working together to help you
The second part of the Strategy is about how the council, Primary Care Trust and Probation Services make sure that you get good support.
You will get good support if the people
working in social services, housing and
health care work together.
People have worked together for two
years so far and support has already
improved. The Strategy says that people
should keep working together.
Good support services
should: -
Help you live
independently
Help you find out quickly
what support you need
and give you the right
support when you need it
Help you find out about
other people who can
help you
Ask you what you want
and listen to what you say
When people work together you will find: -
It is easier for you to find out about
services that can give you support
They will be better at telling you
what you need to know to choose
support
You don’t have to keep telling
different people about yourself
The help and support you get will be
better

6. What we know about help and support in Bolton How changes will be made
The third part of the Strategy tells you
what the council, Primary Care Trust and
Probation Services found out about
Bolton. This helped them decide what to
do. They found out: -
About people in Bolton
About the help and support that is
already available to you
About people who cannot get help and
support at the moment
What changes need to be made so
everyone can get help and support
Who will be involved in making the
changes
The fourth part of the Strategy is about the
things that the council, Primary Care Trust
and Probation Services need to think
about when they are making changes.
The Government gives Bolton a pot of
money every year to pay for support.
The council, Primary Care Trust and
Probation Services have to decide how
to spend the money to help you and to
make Bolton a better place to live.
There is not enough money to make
all the changes at once.

7. How changes will be made How changes will be made
The council, Primary
Care Trust and
Probation Services
has made plans for if
something
unexpected happens
to a service that may
affect you.
The type of help and support you and
other people need might change over time.
The council, Primary Care Trust and
Probation Services plan to keep taking to people and learning about what support is needed by talking to you about what you want.
They will change services so you can always get support.
This could be something like a flood or because the people giving you support could run out of money. These are called risks.
The council, Primary Care Trust and Probation Services may want to change a service to help other people or to improve support.
You will be asked to be involved in any
changes that are made to the support
that you receive

8. What will happen in 2005?
You will be able to get access to support
and somewhere to live more easily
If you use drugs or alcohol
If you are an offender
If you need support for a number of
reasons
You will be able to live where you choose
and get access to support there
If you are an older person
If you have a disability
You will be able to get support that suits your needs
If you are a single person who is
homeless, or may be in the future
Whoever you are, you will be invited to say what you think about
the support you get now, or
the support that you need now, or in
the future
The final part of the
Strategy explains
what the council,
Primary Care Trust and
Probation Services will
do in 2005.
Their work will include
developing new support services
improving access to support and
housing
finding out more about your support
needs
The main changes that will happen in
2005 will mean: -

9. What you say can make a difference
Who can I contact?
The council, Primary Care Trust and
Probation Services want to find out
what support you need and
what you think about the support you
already get
They will use this information to improve
support for you. There are lots of ways for
you to speak to them.
You can speak to the people who give
you support now and they will pass the
information on
You can come to a meeting with other
people
Or you can contact the Supporting People Team…
Write to
Supporting People Team
2nd Floor
Arndale Chambers
Civic Centre
Bolton
BL1 1SA
Phone