Adult social care services may provide care and support for someone with an illness or disability. This may be a physical or a mental condition.
The law about adult social care services in England is set out in The Care Act 2014.
Section 9(1) of The Care Act 2014 says if a local council thinks someone needs care and support they must do a needs assessment. This aims to find out if the adult has care and support needs. And if they do work out those needs are. This is usually carried out by a social worker from the council’s adult services department.
At the same time there should be an assessment of any adult carer if they may have care and support needs (see section 10, Care Act 2014).
Local adult services departments will have their own assessment protocols that they follow. These will guide them in the way they approach and carry out their work. But they must also follow nationally set ‘eligibility criteria.
These criteria set a minimum level of need that all local councils must meet. There are three questions the assessment must answer. The questions aim to work out if someone meets this minimum level of need (see regulation 2(1)):
- Does the person have care and support needs as a result of a physical or mental condition?
- Are they unable to achieve two or more desired goals or eligibility outcomes as a result of their care and support needs?
- Is there, or likely to be, a significant impact on their wellbeing.
The eligibility outcomes are listed in regulation 2(2) of The Care and Support (Eligibility Criteria) Regulations 2015. They include being able to:
- Manage meals and eating
- Manage personal hygiene
- Cope with going to the toilet
- Dress
- Carry out caring responsibility for any child in their care
- Keep the home clean and safe
- See and be in contact with family and friends
- Take part in work, volunteering, education or training
- Access and use local services.
Someone will be classed as unable to achieve an activity if:
- They need help to do it
- When they try to do it it’s painful, or makes them feel distressed or anxious
- If the activity is dangerous to them or to others
- It takes a much longer time than it should.
If the assessment finds that someone has eligible needs, the local council has a duty to meet those needs. A care plan will be drawn up (see section 24(1) and section 25 Care Act 2014). And then a means test will be done. This looks at what financial resources the person has. The means test will decide if the council should contribute to the costs of the care and support.
Examples of the type of help that adult social care may provide (following assessment) include respite care, help with travel, and adaptations to the home. Help may be provided by the council directly or in the form of direct payments. Direct payments allow the disabled adult to arrange and pay for their own care and support.
Where none of the needs a parent or carer has meet the eligibility criteria then the local council must still provide them with written advice and information about:
- What can be done to meet or reduce their needs
- What can be done to prevent or delay them developing a need for care and support in the future (see section 13(5) The Care Act 2014).
Government statutory guidance about children called Working Together 2018 says when someone from adult social care is working with an adult, they should:
- Ask if there are any children in the family
- Consider whether any child needs help or is at risk of harm.
Important note:
Parents and carers needing information and advice about adult social care law and services should seek advice from a specialist organisation. This is sometimes called ‘community care law’. See the Disability (including learning disability) and the Mental health sections of our Useful links page for some relevant organisations.