E.L.I.T.E (Enabling Living Independently Today and Everyday) is a peer support organisation run by and for disabled people and carers across Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent. We provide a wide range of support, information and guidance services for those who have support needs including;

• older people
• people with disabilities or impairments
• people on direct payments or personal budgets and those who fund their own care and support
• carers

We want people to have more and better choices about the services and support available to them. We can do this by bringing more people together to talk about what is needed, support each other and take action together to make change happen.

As a user led organisation;

• we bring together people with shared experiences of disabilities or impairments
• we use these shared experiences to build a stronger voice and campaign for change
• we value the unique support that people with shared experiences can offer each other

We are an organisation of disabled people and carers working to elimate the barriers preventing disabled people from living full and independent lives.

What is Independent Living?

Many people believe that independence is doing everything for yourself, and therefore as disabled people often need assistance in their daily life, they cannot be independent. Disabled people challenge this assumption. We say that independence is not about doing everything for yourself, no-one lives in isolation from the rest of the world, we all depend on each other, this is why we all live as a society.

It is this fundemental understanding that gave birth to the independent living movement. Choice and control are two of the most important factors denied to many disabled people. Disabled people refuse to accept that non-disabled people have the right to deny them choice and control over their own lives.

Having the finance and support to enable disabled people to employ their own assistants to assist them with their daily lives is a good way of facilitating independence. By employing their own staff, disabled people can control how the assistance they need is provided, allowing them to lead the lifestyle of their choice.

The concept of Direct Payments was 'invented' by disabled people to facilitate control of the assistance they require and therefore facilitate Independent Living.

Personalised Support

Personalised support is often called 'self-directed support', as it is support which is directed, or managed by the individual rather than by the Council, a family member or anyone else. Self-directed support is essential for independent living as it enables disabled people to control their own lives and make the kind of choices that non-disabled people take for granted.

Both personal budgets and direct payments are methods of self-directed support which enable the individual to decide how their support needs will be met.

Personalisation means thinking about public services and social care in an entirely different way - starting with the person rather than the service.