Daily living component activity 9 descriptor C (4 points)
Needs social support to be able to engage socially with other people.
Who it applies to
Daily living component activity 9 descriptor C is most likely to apply to an individual whose needs relate to mental health and/or cognitive conditions.
It may also apply to someone with a sensory impairment alone.
Social support
Social support means support from another person who is either:
- trained in assisting individuals to engage in social situations (e.g. a sign language interpreter)
- directly experienced in supporting the individual, for example a family member or carer
An individual must require the support to be given by person(s) who meet the definition. If the support can still be effective if given by someone who does not meet that definition, then daily living component activity 9 descriptor C is not likely to apply.
Social support may take many forms, depending on the needs of an individual and the type of face to face engagement taking place.
Prompting can qualify as social support if it must be delivered by someone with training or experience.
Social support may be provided in advance of the activity or after it, depending on the type of support provided and the nature of the face to face engagement. How far in advance or after the activity support can be provided may be established on a case by case basis, with the focus being on the needs of the individual.
If an individual is either vulnerable to the actions of others or is likely to cause vulnerability for the person being engaged then daily living component activity 9 descriptor C may be considered to be appropriate.
If the client has a mental health condition
The threshold for awarding daily living component activity 9 descriptor C for mental health conditions is much higher. Supporting information required to support this may be expected to include one or more of the following including but not limited to:
- mental health care plans
- higher levels of mental health professional input
- potent medication prescribed by a qualified health care professional.
Example: an individual with autism who satisfies daily living component activity 9 descriptor C
Hannah has autism and her ADP application completed by her partner describes the support from a Community Learning Disability Nurse whom she sees every week.
Supporting information
The nurse has written a supporting letter which shows that:
- Hannah finds it difficult to read other peoples’ behaviour and body language, and that
- this has caused misunderstanding in the past when she interacted with people that she did not know
Application form
In her application form her partner gives an example of being in the supermarket and seeing a small puppy that Hannah wanted to pet, but the owner was angry because she was in a rush to leave. Hannah could not understand the owner’s reaction and this upset her.
As Hannah lacks insight into other peoples’ behaviour she needs encouragement and reminding from other people to ensure that she interacts with people reliably.
Case manager’s decision
The case manager determines that Hannah satisfies daily living component activity 9 descriptor C because of her need for this encouragement and it would not be appropriate for her to be alone in situations to engage with others.