We’re delighted to share that Independent Lives has been awarded the contract to continue delivering Direct Payment support across West Sussex for the third time.
The new contract started in April 2026 and will run for at least five years.
This means that if you already use our service, nothing changes for you. Your named adviser, your payroll support, and all the help you rely on will continue exactly as before.
What is a Direct Payment?
A Direct Payment is money from your local council that you can use to arrange your own care and support — giving you choice and control over how you live your life. Independent Lives has been helping people in West Sussex use Direct Payments since 2001, and we’re proud to be continuing that work.
What does the new contract mean for you?
As well as everything we already offer — including advice and guidance, help recruiting a Personal Assistant, payroll, managed bank accounts, and DBS checks — we’ll be developing and improving the service over the coming years.
That includes making our online platform, PA Pages, even better; expanding our training offer for Direct Payment holders and Personal Assistants; and making sure more people across West Sussex know that Direct Payments are an option for them.
We know that nearly 96% of the people we support say they would recommend our service. We don’t take that lightly — and we’re committed to making sure that number stays high.
We want to hear from you
Your feedback shapes what we do. If there’s something we could do better, or something you’d like to see from our service, please tell us.
