The Independent Living Advice Service is here to ensure all individuals in receipt of Personal Health Budget (PHB) or Personal Budget social care funding are supported. We currently support individuals funded by the following organisations
On this site you will find a range of information and resources designed to help you manage your budget in line with your individual support plan and agreement. PPL, who also operate Virtual Wallet, have a team of Independent Living Advisors (ILAs) who are able to offer the support and advice, which will help you to get the most from your budget.
From the earliest stages of arranging your support through to preparing for reviews and audits, the ILAs are here to help guide you through the necessary steps to help ensure your support is both safe and aligned to your individual support plan.
Through our team of Independent Living Advisors, the Independent Living Advice service is here to help you through your entire personal budget journey.
General support includes:
Where are you on your PHB journey...?
Early Days
In the early days of your journey, our Independent Living Advisors will help you to understand what you need to do to get your support up and running. They can explain the steps required to ensure the support you arrange is in line with your agreement and offer advice on how best to meet any statutory requirements.
6-8 Week Review
When your budget has been up and running for 6 to 8 weeks, our Independent Living Advisors will contact you to see how things are progressing and to ensure that everything is set-up and working in line with your support plan.
Annual Review
Every year, our Independent Living Advisors will contact you to support with a review of your arrangements to check that you are happy with your agreed level of support and that the arrangements you have in place are aligned to your support plan and agreement.
The first step on your PHB journey is a clinical assessment of your health needs. This is usually completed by a multi-disciplinary team and will result in a support plan being developed that outlines both your identified health needs and a plan as to how you intend to meet your health goals.
The support plan will be accompanied by a budget calculator that identifies the amount of funding the NHS has calculated is required to support you in achieving your health goals.
Once your support plan and budget calculator have been approved by your NHS case manager, they will create a digital referral to the PHB Support Service. That referral is sent to the team here at PPL. You don't need to do anything at this stage, we will contact you.
When a referral is received, our Independent Living Advisors (ILAs) will check to ensure we have all the information we require to properly support the setup of your Personal Health Budget on Virtual Wallet.
Our ILAs will then contact you by email or telephone to arrange a time for an initial discussion. During this conversation, the ILAs will look to understand a little more about you and your circumstances.
Hours of service: Monday to Friday 09:00 to 17:00
Email: ilateam@myvirtualwallet.co.uk
Phone: 03300 582 693
Following your initial discussion with our ILAs, they will understand more about how best to support you.
As the PHB holder or authorised representative, you remain in control and are responsible for ensuring the support you arrange is in line with the PHB agreement you have with the NHS.
Our ILAs' role is to offer advice, and support you through the process of setting-up your own care arrangements. The ILAs can help you understand the elements that must be in place to ensure your support is safe and meets the requirements of the PHB agreement.
During this phase you should identify the individuals and organisations that you wish to work with.
Once you have identified the individuals or organisations that you wish to work with, the ILAs will liaise with the Virtual Wallet support team to get your support arrangements set-up in Virtual Wallet.
The ILA's will ensure that individuals and organisations are registered on Virtual wallet. Once they are registered, you will be able to review and pay for the support you receive using your Virtual Wallet account.
Once the set-up is complete, your account is ready to receive your PHB funds.
Once your account is active, your NHS organisation will send the agreed amount of funding to your Virtual Wallet account.
Following the first payment, funding will be credited to your Virtual Wallet account on or around the 1st of each month.
Please be aware that it can take up to 6 weeks for the first payment to reach your Virtual Wallet account, from the date that your referral is received by the Virtual Wallet ILA team.
Once your support providers are set-up and funding is received, your Virtual Wallet account is live and ready to use.
Welcome to your Virtual Wallet!
The Virtual Wallet support team and the Independent Living Advisors are available Monday to Friday from 9am - 5:00pm, Monday - Friday (excluding public holidays).
Webchat: www.myvirtualwallet.co.uk
Email: info@myvirtualwallet.co.uk Phone: 03300 582 690
Our Independent Living Advisors understand that each individual is different and the support they offer can be altered to suit your personal circumstances. They will make sure the personal care arranged is within the budget available and will support you through the process.
Here are a few examples of the support they can offer: