When it comes to social care, Julia Winter is one of the lucky ones. Thanks to “an enlightened social worker” she has been given a generous individual budget by Essex County Council to spend on round-the-clock care in a way that suits her and her family.

“I was diagnosed with myopathy and brittle asthma in 1993 and the condition got a lot worse after I had my son 12 years ago,” she told The Times yesterday.

“I need oxygen and I use a wheelchair. I need help with everything from getting up in the morning to going to bed at night. At first I got help directly from the council, but that meant six different people coming on six different days. When my son came along it no longer worked. We didn’t want all those different people in the house.

“But an enlightened social worker suggested I move to direct payments in 1997 and life has got much better. I employed the staff directly and they can helped with everything from picking my son up from school and driving me to meetings. I have gone back to work one day a week.”

A few years ago, Mrs Winter, 43, moved to an individual budget, which means even greater flexibility. For example, she decided to give up buying in care and use the money instead to install air conditioning in the family’s Chelmsford home, which helps to head off breathing problems in hot weather.

“It is a very flexible system. It means I can get a friend to come and pick me up for an evening out, and I can pay for dinner as a way of saying thank you for looking after me that evening, rather than having to bring along a personal assistant all the time. In my job I see other people with the same needs that I have who get nothing or very little from their local authority.”

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