To think the PALS website should be funded

[saintlyjimjams]

Interesting message on the PALS website

www.pals.nhs.uk

www.pals.nhs.uk

He

Oh wow. I had assumed they got some funding for it but it seems not. It should be funded, I agree.

Another sad loss.

OMG, disgusting that it wasn't funded :(

It's up to PALS how it prioritises its budget/activities. It is a shame that it doesn't value this online service enough to continue it.

Because the argument "DoH should do this" is a weak one, as DoH should do everything PALS does. If however it wants to be independent, then it should fund what it believes most important up to the ceiling of its budget.

They have decided this doesn't reach the threshold any longer. I think it would be better to own that decision, not try to blame the level of central Government funding.

I agree scaveola

Does anyone have further information about PALS funding? Where it comes fr

Where it comes from? I know friends who have volunteered in services that work alongside the NHS have often ended up very pissed off with NHS expectations (and put of pocket themselves).

It's quite right that it isn't funded by the NHS, as it enables it to remain independent.

PALS services are (as far I can see) funded by the NHS, although admittedly it's hard to find the information. It appears as if they have been funded by local trusts on the whole (using ring fenced money from the dept of health?) . From this document

The NHS Plan (Department of Health, 2000) set out a ten-year framework to modernise England?s health service. One of the aims of the Plan was to enable patients and the public to have a greater say in the NHS. Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) were set up for this purpose, to enable patients and the public to access information and raise issues they are concerned about with their Trust. Together with the development of an Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (ICAS), PALS forms part of a new system of user involvement in the NHS. Funding of £10m was made available for PALS from 2001, and implementation began with the establishment of over 100 Pathfinder PALS. From April 2002, this funding was added to NHS baseline allocations with the expectation that it would be used for PALS

I wonder whether that's the problem with the website - it doesn't fall under a particular trust.

Surely PALS is similar to parent partnerships. Each LEA has to have one and there is a duty on each LEA to fund it (so they can never be completely independent). But how else would they be funded?