Caring for the vulnerable is a key role for Kirklees Council and its partners.
But such services are often hidden from the public view.
As Kirklees currently pores over its budget, with an extra £69m of savings to find, it has been said the cuts needed equal a similar amount to annual social care spend.
Yet that social care money is money that has to be spent and it is vital those in most need are not left behind.
The sums involved in looking after the vulnerable run into millions – far more than councils spend on some of the higher profile, more visible services like clearing waste and managing libraries.
The authority will be making crucial decisions in the coming days and weeks over where the huge cuts will fall and which services could disappear from the local landscape.
Some services such as village libraries could pay a heavy price and other areas where funding could be cut include Kirklees Music School, the Free Town Bus service and school transport.
Here we take a look at real life stories of how people’s lives can change in a moment – and the support they rely on to help them continue to live their life in the fullest possible way.
Maureen Slingsby had always been active.
The 80-year-old was a charity shop volunteer and a member of the Women’s Institute – but life changed forever when she was knocked over on a zebra crossing.
She was in hospital with broken ankles and shattered bones sticking out from her legs.
From being a healthy and dynamic pensioner, Maureen suddenly faced five weeks in hospital and the prospect of biological scaffolding on both her legs for 13 weeks.
Sadly her husband Alan, who had been battling cancer for 18 months, had to go into care at Newsome Nursing Home. Macmillan nurses fought hard for Maureen to go there too and they were able to spend his last few days together until he passed away on August 4.
Maureen went on to spend a few more weeks there before moving to Moorlands Grange care home.
She said: “I can’t praise Moorland highly enough, all the support I’ve received has been wonderful.
“After Alan died I had to come back to an empty house, but with the care I’ve received it’s helped all the way.”
During her transfer Maureen needed the help of four carers and was in a lot of pain.
While at Moorlands Grange support workers helped with her personal, social and mental wellbeing. They have also helped her to deal with the accident and come to terms with the changes that will affect her future.
Maureen had the scaffolding on her legs removed and she has had physiotherapy every day with two or three staff.
The partnership between social care staff at Moorlands Grange and the staff from Calderdale and Huddersfield Foundation Trust has meant Maureen has made progress and only needs one assistant.
Now back in her Colne Valley home, she hopes to resume her busy life, including charity work and travelling.
Support after an accident and fostering are just two forms of care provided by Kirklees Council.
Here’s a series of other types of care they provide.
Care in the home: A retired firefighter suffered a severe stroke and was determined to live with minimal help.
Kirklees Council’s reablement service worked helped him and the Early Support Discharge team identified his extensive needs when he left hospital.
He needed two carers four times a day to help with personal care, meals, dressing and lifting from his wheelchair to bed.
A four-week plan was put in place and by week two he was able to step from his bed to his wheelchair with the help of two carers. By week three he could complete some personal care tasks and dress independently. By week four he needed just one carer and had began to walk short distances.
He continues to receive minor support and community rehabilitation.
Transition workers: A former looked after child once needed the support of two care workers 24 hours a day.
With selective mutism and difficulty developing relationships, he was placed outside of Kirklees but he wanted to return.
There was a risk he would return to his family, who had previously abused and neglected him, and 24 hour residential care was considered.
But he wanted to be independent so a transition worker helped find him secure housing and build up a rapport with him, which made sure the young man’s views were considered.
He is now able to live independently with limited support.
Shared lived project: A woman was diagnosed with a brain disorder linked to drinking.
She was referred to the Shared Lives scheme and matched with a carer who provided a residential placement for the woman, who also had memory problems.
Support was identified to lead that would lead to future independent living instead of residential care. She no longer needs support from Kirklees Council, and her family and friends have been given support to manage any situation that arises.
Stronger Families: a multi-agency programme involving Kirklees Council, housing, youth support, education and careers service, among others.
A mum and dad, both long term unemployed, were assisted along with children aged 18, 15, and 11.
After complaints by neighbours about the behaviour of their sons, which had involved the police, a family support worker visited and saw the family’s home-life difficulties.
A youth worker spend time with the youngest son to control his behaviour and the mother was referred to a Safer Healthier Homes programme which led to an improvement in their living standard, plus she sought help for depression and isolation.
The family support worker spent time with the parents to help improve their parenting skills. Overcoming fears of eviction, the family thanked the team who helped them.
Foster family on giving youngsters a bright future - could you do the same?
Foster parents Jane and Andrew Bottomley have welcomed more than 50 vulnerable children into their home by providing long and short-term foster care through Kirklees Council.
The Cleckheaton foster parents also help other people become foster carers through the Kirklees Fostering Network.
And with year-on-year increases in the number of children entering the care system both locally and nationally, the need for more foster parents has never been greater.
Courtney Hodgson is testament to what a stable environment can help to achieve.
The 19-year-old Newcastle University undergraduate hopes to become a secondary school teacher and has remained in the Bottomley family home since he was 12.
He said: “I remember clearly the night I went into foster care. Having arrived at Jane and Andrew’s house in the small hours, I had no idea of what to expect. It was a strange feeling, being in unfamiliar surroundings and in a house full of people I’d never met before. It was a lot to take on board but despite this I settled in immediately, largely because I was made to feel welcome and like one of the family right from the start.
“After several months it became increasingly apparent that it wouldn’t be possible for me to return home, which was something I had to come to terms with. But by this point I felt settled enough to be able to get on with my life and focus on the positives, such as my foster family, my school work and my friends.
“Jane and Andrew have been – and continue to be – brilliant foster parents; from welcoming me into their home that first night, through to supporting me in my studies and into adulthood, they have been with me every step of the way.”
Jane said it was “humbling to see the benefits” of fostering adding: “Courtney is just one example of this and it is heartening to see how you can play a part in helping to shape and nurture a person’s future.”
She added: “Many of the children we’ve looked after have come to us from troubled backgrounds and have been in desperate need of some normality.
“Our own children were just seven and 10 when we began fostering and we were ourselves a young couple. Our daughters were also very hands-on with our foster children, which is something that has shaped their lives into adulthood, as they have chosen various careers within the care profession.
“Foster caring has definitely been – and continues to be – a learning process for us all. Every child brings a new set of challenges and, although there are often no quick fixes, there is a lot of support for foster families in Kirklees.”
Kirklees Council is looking for people like Jane and Andrew to foster, for details visit www.kirklees.gov.uk/fostering or call 0800 389 0086.
