Occupational Therapy News OTnews February 2019_Joomag | Page 8

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Housing and health partnership boards should be set up in every The annual DFG budget has increased substantially in recent
years and enables thousands of vulnerable people to adapt their
homes and live independently, but demand for adaptations is
outstripping supply and this is set to continue as the population
ages.  
Other key recommendations include:  
• including DFG in personal budgets and making spending on
adaptations part of the social care cap, if the cap is adopted;
• a further five-year funding programme for DFG before the
current programme ends in 2020;
• health and wellbeing boards should report separately on
DFG funding based on ‘the number of people helped to
remain independent at home’. They should also review and
sign off a single adaptations policy based on local needs;
• renaming DFG as part of a national campaign to raise
awareness of the support available; and 
• introducing a national accreditation scheme for builders and
tradespeople carrying out adaptations.
area of England to maximise the impact of disabled facilities grants
(DFGs), according to an independent review.
Similar in structure to local safeguarding children’s boards,
they would bring together representatives from health, housing
and social care to develop local strategies for adaptations and
accessible housing.
It is one of a raft of measures designed to make the grants
‘all-encompassing’ and go beyond their main uses for level access
showers, stair lifts and ramps.
The report also recommends an overhaul of the means test to
adopt a version already used to assess entitlements to social care,
and also to raise the £30,000 upper cost limit in line with inflation.
The report also recommends a new Home Independence
Transformation Fund, equivalent to one per cent of the DFG budget,
be set up to help areas develop more integrated services.
The authors found the delivery of adaptations varies enormously
from area to area and there is often a lack of integrated decision
making and tracking of impact on those receiving grants. Paul Smith, director of Foundations, the national body for
home improvement agencies and DFG, said: ‘This review sets out
a number of practical ways we can improve the delivery of home
adaptations and ensure they are tailored to the individual. DFG
will be 30 years old next year. In many ways it was ahead of its
time – recognising the importance of supporting independence.
The preventative approach it embodies is now becoming the
norm and we have an opportunity to bring health, housing and
social care practitioners closer together to make DFG more
effective.’
The review was conducted by the University of the West of
England, Foundations, the Building Research Establishment
(BRE) and Ferret Information Systems, and the authors included
occupational therapist Dr Rachel Russell.
The report is available at: www.bit.ly/2QplwRY. Members are
advised that Chapter 11, on effective ways of working, will be of
particular relevance, as it looks to improve the assessment and
work to a collaborative model.
Review calls for overhaul
to improve England’s
DFG scheme
© GettyImages/Onur Döngel
Paid research internship on offer at RCOT this summer
RCOT’s education and research team is offering one
final-year student or recent graduate a new research
internship this summer.
The paid internship will run for eight weeks from 1 July, offering
the intern first-hand experience of working on real-world projects
to help members to enhance their research skills. 
The role will include the opportunity to contribute to
development and evaluation of a new continuing professional
development short course, learn about research skills
including data collection and analysis, and receive supervision
and mentoring.
Dr Gillian Ward, RCOT research and development manager,
said: ‘We are thrilled to offer a student or graduate the chance
8 OTnews February 2019
to contribute to the exciting range of projects we are currently
working on here to support members to strengthen their
research skills. It is a great opportunity for someone who has
a strong interest in research and development and we look
forward to welcoming them to the team. 
‘This internship forms part of our commitment to support
members to engage in and with research, from bolstering
pre-registration research requirements to new resources for all
our members to enhance their skills. We look forward to sharing
more exciting work throughout the year.’ 
For full details on the role and how to apply, visit: 
www.rcot.co.uk/about-us/work-for-us. Applications close
on 11 March.