Equipment and Adaptations

• Consultation Results
• Practical advice on daily living equipment

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If you:

• have a disability,
• are elderly,
• or have a long term illness which causes you to have difficulties coping with daily living tasks

then you may be entitled to help with equipment or adaptations for your home.

If you or your partner or a friend contacts the Access Team or downloads and completes the Self-Assessment form on the Occupational Therapy website page, we will arrange a convenient time for someone from the Council to visit you to talk about what you need.

What kind of help is there?

• We can advise on suitable equipment for you or adaptations for your home that will meet your needs.
• We may be able to supply some equipment on loan; for example, a raised toilet seat or bathing equipment.
• We can recommend minor adaptations to your home, like stair rails or outside hand rails.
• If we feel that major adaptations are needed, such as a lift or a ramp for wheelchair access, we can discuss how these can be funded.
• We want to help you live independently in your present home. But if we, or you, feel that you would be better off moving to different accommodation, we will discuss all the options with you.

Everyone's needs are different so the services offered to each individual will be different and based on assessed need with the current eligibility criteria. Together we will try to agree on the best way to provide the help that you need.

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Practical advice on daily living equipment

Living made easy is a website that provides practical advice on daily living equipment. It is supported by the Disabled Living Foundation (DLF), a national charity that is the leading source of impartial advice, information and training on independent living for disabled adults and children, older people, carers and care professionals.

http://www.livingmadeeasy.org.uk/

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Consultation Results

Summary of Social Care Survey of Adults receiving community equipment and minor adaptations in the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead 2009-10

This survey was targeted at service users aged 18 and over who are receiving equipment or have had an adaptation to their home. The aim of the survey was to learn more about whether the piece of equipment is helping them to live safely and independently in their own home.

348 surveys were sent out, of those 176 responses were received. This is a response rate of 50.6%. The national average response rate was 51%. Not all respondents answered all questions on the survey. The majority of responses were positive and more details can be found on the pdf below.

Key Headlines:

• 80% of respondents said they were either extremely or very satisfied with the piece of equipment or minor adaptation received.
• 72% of respondents said the piece of equipment/minor adaptation had made their quality of life 'much better'. A further 21% said their quality of life had been made a 'little better'.
• 80% of respondents stated that they either chose the piece of equipment they received or their choice played a role in what they got.
• The survey also asked respondents how they had been treated. 84% of respondents stated they were 'very happy' with they way they were treated. A further 14% stated they were 'fairly happy' with the way they were treated. Only 1 respondent stated they were 'fairly unhappy' with the way they were treated, the remaining 2 respondents stated this was question was not applicable as they hadn't spoken to anyone.

If you are interested in further information, then the NHS Information Centre for Health and Social Care has published a national report along with a number of supporting documents on their website.

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