A social care charity has launched a new service in Aberdeenshire to help people take control over the care they receive.
More than 1,700 people will be supported by Cornerstone SDS Aberdeenshire.
The scheme – which Aberdeenshire Council tasked Cornerstone with managing – will give people as much ongoing control as they want over the individual budget spent on their support.
Cornerstone chief executive Edel Harris said that individuals can choose support that helps them achieve individual outcomes that are important to them and which have been agreed and costed in their support plan.
She added: “SDS will enable the individual to have more choice over the support they receive.
“Our advisors will help the individual make the right choice for them and their family and be there to help them at each stage of setting up the support.”
Councillor Karen Clark, chairwoman of the local authority’s social work and housing committee, said the scheme would “significantly” change the way the council provided services.
She added: “It provides a challenging new model for the delivery of social care services and empowers service users with control over their required services.
“It gives a person who needs care and support more choice and control over the kind of support they receive and how it is delivered.”
Lindy Young, from Huntly, whose 21-year-old son has complex support needs, said: “Using this method of SDS has allowed for total control over the way his budget is used, he can pick and choose the services and carers he wants, and has the ability to simply change these if he find he is not enjoying or getting the most from them.
“The scheme has allowed my son to tailor his ideal programme of support to his needs and he now employs carers of his own, which we have had great success with.”