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Taking Control of your Self-Directed Support.
If you’re new to Self-Directed support, to put it simply it’s the way social care is delivered in Scotland. It’s purpose is simple: to give you choice and control over the support you receive.
But what many people don’t know is that they can choose the type of support they want and who provides it.
Traditionally and still to this day, many people in Scotland work directly with the social work department who arranges and provides services for them. This is essentially the NHS taking charge of organising your support package for you.
While this may work for some, there are other options that better allow people to gain more control of their own support package to ensure it’s tailored to their needs.
About Us at Centred
Centred Scotland has been supporting people to live independently in their own homes since 1987. As the largest mental health charity in the Highlands, we already deliver more than 1,500 hours of care across Inverness-shire, Easter Ross, Lochaber and Caithness.
This care is mainly delivered in the traditional way, directly through the NHS but in our experience, we know the traditional approach doesn’t work best for everyone.
Our aim is to enable people to live the best lives they can, by providing information to allow them to understand the choices they have, giving them the ability to choose the support that is right for them.
Your Self-Directed Support Options
Here’s the choices available to everyone.
Option 1 – Total Control
This is referred to as Direct Payment, which means the NHS gives you the money to arrange your own support. You (or your representative) control the budget and take responsibility for purchasing the care or support services you need.
This gives you the most control, but also the most responsibility.
Option 2 – Supported Control
Like option 1 except you don’t handle the money directly which can be more reassuring for many. Instead, the NHS or a care organisation like Centred holds the budget for you and pays for the services you direct them to.
This gives you control without the administrative burden.
Option 3 – Traditional Method
This is the arrangement you may already be familiar with, where the local authority or NHS identifies a service that you would be happy to use, and they arrange this for you.
This gives you less control over the service you get but has the least involvement from you.
Option 4 – Mix and Match
You don’t have to stick with any one of the above options. You have the choice to mix and match too. You can use a combination of the options for different parts of your support.
Here’s a real example of care provided by our Caithness Support Service where someone used Option 2 to plan a personalised short break:
I recently went for a night away with my support workers. I had such a great time, mainly because we actually had a plan in place on what we were going to do and I got to help plan as well.
Although the weekend was planned around my needs and preferences, it felt very relaxed and comfortable. I felt comfortable around my support workers, and this made me enjoy myself even more.
I enjoyed the activities that were planned and pushed me out of my comfort zone in a good way! I also enjoyed a break from my day-to-day life.
I would definitely do a trip with self-directed support again and I have not stopped talking about it since.
Dylan, February 2026
How Does Centred Perform?
We understand how important it is to choose the right care provider. Our most recent Care Inspectorate Report, available in full on our website, rated our services Good to Very Good across all areas.
