PhD Study : Self directed support and adult social care services

Summary

Within the UK and internationally the effectiveness and sustainability of adult social care services has become a pressing concern.  In the UK evidence points to social care systems in crisis financially and growing inequalities as a result of variation in access and provision and variation in opportunities for genuinely person centred care.  Across the jurisdictions of the UK the rhetoric of personalisation, user choice and co-production has seen a focus on individualised models of care within which the individual user is encouraged to ‘direct’ their own care.  In England, Scotland and Wales, self directed support has been legislated for as part of wider reform to adult care services.  However, in NI, self directed supported is being rolled out in a context where there has been no substantive legislative reform of the social care system since the 1990 community Care Act.

The Northern Ireland Health and Social Care Board describes self directed support as “a way of providing social care support that empowers individuals to have informed choice about how support is provided to them with a focus on working together to achieve individual outcomes… It enables individuals to choose how their support is provided and gives them as much control as they want over their Personal Budget”. Beyond statistical data on the uptake of self directed support (and previously Direct Payments), there has been very little research exploring the concept or the impact of self directed support on users, unpaid carers or on care workers.  We therefore know little about how the concept of ‘self directed support’ is being interpreted or understood by policy makers or professionals in Northern Ireland.  There has been no published research to date on how users, their families and carers are experiencing self directed support.  In the coming years NI will embark on a process of transforming health and social care services and this work will make a significant contribution to that debate. We welcome proposals for empirical studies that contribute to knowledge and understanding in the area of self directed support.

We are open to proposals which focus on the following areas (although this list is not exhaustive), which are conceptually informed and methodologically innovative:

1. Personal experiences of self directed support amongst individuals, unpaid carers and families who access social care and support – this could be across a range of users or a specific user group (for example older people; people with a physical disability; people with an intellectual disability);

2. The concept of co-production and how this is being developed with regard to the outworking of self directed support;

3. Personal experience of self directed support among care workers contracted under the system of direct payments;

4. Personal experience of social workers or other professional staff responsible for carrying out assessment of needs and supporting the take up of self directed support;

5. Comparative work which assesses how self directed support is envisioned in NI compared to other areas of the UK or other countries.

Essential:

A minimum of a 2:1 first degree in a relevant discipline/subject from a UK institution (or overseas award deemed to be equivalent via UK NARIC); and desirable: A Masters’ degree in a relevant subject, or equivalent professional experience.

Essential criteria

Applicants should hold, or expect to obtain, a First or Upper Second Class Honours Degree in a subject relevant to the proposed area of study.

We may also consider applications from those who hold equivalent qualifications, for example, a Lower Second Class Honours Degree plus a Master’s Degree with Distinction.

In exceptional circumstances, the University may consider a portfolio of evidence from applicants who have appropriate professional experience which is equivalent to the learning outcomes of an Honours degree in lieu of academic qualifications.

Funding and eligibility

The University offers the following levels of support:

Vice Chancellors Research Studentship (VCRS)

The following scholarship options are available to applicants worldwide:

• Full Award: (full-time tuition fees + £19,000 (tbc))
• Part Award: (full-time tuition fees + £9,500)
• Fees Only Award: (full-time tuition fees)

These scholarships will cover full-time PhD tuition fees for three years (subject to satisfactory academic performance) and will provide a £900 per annum research training support grant (RTSG) to help support the PhD researcher.

Applicants who already hold a doctoral degree or who have been registered on a programme of research leading to the award of a doctoral degree on a full-time basis for more than one year (or part-time equivalent) are NOT eligible to apply for an award.

Please note: you will automatically be entered into the competition for the Full Award, unless you state otherwise in your application.

Department for the Economy (DFE)

The scholarship will cover tuition fees at the Home rate and a maintenance allowance of £19,000 (tbc) per annum for three years (subject to satisfactory academic performance).

This scholarship also comes with £900 per annum for three years as a research training support grant (RTSG) allocation to help support the PhD researcher.

• Candidates with pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, who also satisfy a three year residency requirement in the UK prior to the start of the course for which a Studentship is held MAY receive a Studentship covering fees and maintenance.
• Republic of Ireland (ROI) nationals who satisfy three years’ residency in the UK prior to the start of the course MAY receive a Studentship covering fees and maintenance (ROI nationals don’t need to have pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme to qualify).
• Other non-ROI EU applicants are ‘International’ are not eligible for this source of funding.
• Applicants who already hold a doctoral degree or who have been registered on a programme of research leading to the award of a doctoral degree on a full-time basis for more than one year (or part-time equivalent) are NOT eligible to apply for an award.

Due consideration should be given to financing your studies. Further information on cost of living