Before having a Personal Budget, Shirley's life was "very institutionalised". She suffers a chronic health condition and used to have no choice over the type of care she received in Barnsley.

"Nothing was flexible," Shirley said. "A carer couldn't do anything for me other than the things that were laid down by the rules. She couldn't do any medication... she didn't understand my illnesses and she could only come at specific times. There were no outings... we didn't have any talk or chat. We didn't have any interests in common at all."

Now Shirley has chosen her own carer, who is "brighter and much more knowledgeable". Her daughter provides support with filling in the forms and keeping the paperwork in order.

"Life is much pleasanter now... I know that she understands things, and gets on well with the rest of my family. She anticipates what needs doing and has made an effort to learn about the different aspects of my health... It's nice to know that somebody else understands and can take over the responsibility of looking after my medication and all aspects of it if I am feeling very ill."

"Not working and living a typical service user lifestyle is something I can't bear," he said.

Shirley said having a Personal Budget and choosing her own carer made a big difference to her life.

"I'm much more relaxed and I'm more confident. Although my chronic condition has worsened, which was inevitable anyway, my actual health and well-being is much better. I haven't had to see the doctor or have any emergency admissions to the hospital... I have a very good GP practice and a community matron. Everybody works together (and) supports each other. So I think it's due to a lot of factors but mostly because of the control I have over my care."

Shirley recommends people shouldn't be daunted by the paper work of a Personal Budget.

"It is much better for you than care put in place by someone else," she said. "It's not difficult at all and once you have the initial paperwork up and running, it's no problem... It's very easy to understand and there is always someone who can help you."