Traditionally, people living in the community who were eligible for assistance from social services in their daily lives were assessed and then placed into the services on offer.

An elderly woman living alone might be told she could have a carer to come in and help her get washed in the morning as well as someone to deliver a hot meal to her in the evening.

Someone who suffered a head injury might also be allocated an hour or two of assistance from a carer in the home as well as perhaps the cost of transport to get to a nearby day centre once or twice a week to reduce the risk of them becoming isolated.

The ethos of the Government-led personal budget system was to turn the system on its head and instead of fitting the users into the existing services, allow them to create what they need.

Under the personal budget system people are assessed to see if they qualify for help from social services and a figure placed on the expected costs of their requirements.

The amount is then signed over to them to allocate in the ways agreed in their personal budget plan.

Personal budgets have been around for a number of years but got a renewed push when local authorities were set a target to transfer all eligible people on to them by 2013.

Margaret Howard, 60, of Waterside, North Lynn, suffered a stroke 17 years ago, which combined with other health problems, means she needs help to wash and dress and carry out everyday tasks and is confined to a wheelchair when she goes out.

Social services used to supply staff via an agency to come in for an hour morning and evening as well as funding for her to go to a day centre two days a week.

She moved to a personal budget 18 months ago and has found she can stretch the money by directly employing carers instead of paying inflated agency fees, which allows her to get more hours of care, including someone to take her out a day a week, as well as choice over who cares for her and how and when they do it.

She said: “Sometimes under the old system the carers would say they were coming at 6pm and you’d say ‘it’s summer could you come a bit later?’ But the answer would be ‘no, we’ve got to fit everyone in’.

“Now I employ my own carers and we are working as a team. It’s so much easier because you have picked them yourself.

“I did panic at first over paying wages and things but one of my carers helps me with all the paperwork and through the budget you have to have insurance.

“The personal budget gives you your independence back. I don’t know what I would do if I lost it.”

On top of the funds for carers, Mrs Howard also receives an allowance for theatre trips and holidays.

Jonathan Toye, coordinator at West Norfolk Disability Information Service, said allocating funding for life-enhancing services for people who could easily become isolated and depressed otherwise affords savings in the long term.

He knows of one case where an individual was given funds to buy a Norwich City Football Club season ticket.

He said: “There have been all sorts of awful headlines about what sorts of things people go for, but if it’s something that is going to improve their quality of life and help them stay healthy and happy and safe from needing any more expensive medical treatment that is justifiable.

“The whole concept of personal budgets is brilliant. There is a finite amount of money but it is how you spend it. Rather than having somebody rushing in and shoving something in the microwave for you, you might be able to organise for them to take you out in the car or go shopping with you because you can organise your care around your life rather than the other way around.”

In the past clubs and services for social care users have evolved in all different ways then been allocated funding from local authorities to provide services to users.

Under the personal budget system the groups will have to convince users to sign up for their services and pay for them from their funding allocation.

Sylvia Pomeroy is coordinator of Phobbies, a Lynn-based craft group for the disabled, which is in its 29th year.

Members, who are referred by social services, pay a nominal fee and benefit from free transport and whatever assistance they need to attend, including one-on-one care in some cases.

It costs £14,000 a year to run and around two-thirds of that has been paid in grants previously with the majority of the rest generated through independent fundraising.

Mrs Pomeroy said the new system creates a massive new administration burden for invoicing and creation of pricing structures, marketing and advertising.

She said; “We are having to turn from a one-day-a-week arts and craft group into a business to be able to do this.

“I hope that other people are going to hang on like we are. We are determined not to let our members down.”

A Norfolk County Council spokesman said of 3,270 people eligible for a personal budget in West Norfolk, 1,669 have transferred so far.

David Harwood, cabinet member for adult and community services, said: “In the past, the way people’s care was provided was limited to a relatively small number of options, dictated by what services local authorities bought or provided.

“Personal budgets give individuals the freedom of choice and flexibility about how their social care funding is spent, and allow them to receive support that is tailored to them and have the biggest impact on their quality of life.

“It’s also important to mention that people who don’t want or aren’t able to choose for themselves can still ask us to arrange and manage the care they receive for them, so personal budgets really can work for anyone. People can choose whether they want Community Services to buy a service on their behalf or they can choose a direct payment, where the money is paid to them or to someone they trust to manage the money on their behalf – such as a family member or a voluntary organisation.

“We know anecdotally that a lot of people who have transferred onto a personal budget in Norfolk really appreciate the benefits and the freedom they offer, and this has the biggest impact on their quality of lives.

“However we also know that change of this kind can be difficult and we are here to do whatever we can to make the transition for people as easy as possible.”

Anyone can request an assessment of their care needs by contacting Norfolk County Council on 0344 800 8020.

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