Untrue - No, that's not what it is about. Personalisation is about people having control over their lives. To have that overall control, people need more control over their money and support. Personalisation is a way of helping local authorities to use money better so more people can get support in a way that suits them. It moves money for back office processes to less wasteful, smarter approaches. This is not surprising. When people control their own money it is likely that they will tend to spend it more effectively, partly because they understand their own needs and circumstances better than the system ever can. However, it is unlikely that this will lead to any overall savings in local authority budgets. This is partly because any savings are likely to be re-directed to people who are excluded from getting services at the moment or who need support, but don't like the limited services on offer.

Untrue - This is not correct. We believe that people should be able to choose the option that is right for them. If someone chooses residential care (or any other form of support) it should be their real choice. Personalisation means open information. So, when choosing or using residential care (or any other option), the person should know how much it costs and that they can use that money to choose a different option if and when they want.

Untrue - Personalisation doesn't dictate the lifestyle that people must lead. Rather, it offers people the means to tailor their support to their preferred lifestyle. This may be as simple as choosing when to get up and when to go to bed. The current system can struggle to make sure even these simple things are right for people who need support.

Untrue - Not everyone choosing Personalistion has an expensive support package. The benefits of control do not disappear for people with more modest packages.

Untrue - Everyone can have control over their support. Some people can do it themselves, but some people need help to be in control.

If you do need help to be in control then you may (or you may not) choose to use your family and friends to help you. For those people who have good networks of family and friends this is a common way of organising things because we often turn to those we trust the most for help with things that are very personal. Not everybody makes this choice. Some people like to get help from people they pay or with whom they have a more independent relationship. Some people don't have good networks or family or friends. This doesn't mean they can't be in control. If they don't have these networks they can use other options. These include:

• other people with disabilities, peer supporters
• paid independent brokers
• people who work for free community advocacy or advice services
• service providers
• care managers or social workers
• intermediary organisations

Untrue - It is very important that people are allowed to spend their money flexibly. One role of the local authority is to work out who is the best person to control the Personal Budget. Often this will be the person or someone close to them that they trust. Sometimes it may be a professional. In exceptional circumstances an authority may have reason to think it may be right to agree a specific restriction on how someone's money is spent. This may be right if there is a good reason, but such restrictions must not be generalised and applied to everybody.