The Care Act

The Care Act received Royal Assent on 14th May 2014

From April 2015:

• Duties on prevention and wellbeing • Duties on information and advice (including paying for care) • Duties on market shaping • Assessments (including carers’ assessments) • National minimum threshold for eligibility • Personal budgets and care and support plans • Safeguarding • Universal deferred payment agreements

From April 2016: Extended means test; Care accounts; Capped charging system

The Care Act

National Assistance Act 1948

NHS and Community Care Act 1990

Chronically Sick and Disabled Person Act 1970

Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 1995

Community Care (Direct Payments) Act 1996

The Care Act

The Care Act

Assessment and eligibility

Charging and financial assessment

Care and support planning

Personal budgets and direct payments

Review

Key processes

Prevention

Integration, partnerships and transitions

Information, advice and advocacy

Diversity of provision and market oversight

Safeguarding

General responsibilities and key duties

Wellbeing

Underpinning principle

The Care Act – well being principle

Wellbeing is a broad concept, and the statutory guidance defines it as relating to nine areas in particular

The core purpose of adult care and support is to help people to achieve the outcomes that matter to them in their life... the need to focus on the needs and goals of the person. Local authorities must promote wellbeing when carrying out any of their care and support functions in respect of a person.

The Care Act – prevention

Local authorities (and their partners in health, housing, welfare and employment services) must now take steps to prevent, reduce or delay the need for care and support for all local people.

investing in preventative services

fully utilising any existing community resources, facilities and assets to prevent people’s needs escalating unnecessarily.

see both information & shaping the market

The Care Act – shaping the market

• requires local authorities to help develop a market that delivers a wide range of sustainable high-quality care and support services, that will be available to their communities.

• engage with local providers, to help each other understand what services are likely to be needed in the future, and what new types of support should be developed.

• authorities should engage with local people about their needs and aspirations.

• protection from market failure; CQC overview

The Care Act – personal budgets

• The Care Act places personal budgets into law for the first time, making them the norm for people with care and support needs.

• The overall cost must be broken down into:the amount the person must pay (following the financial assessment) the remainder of the budget that the authority will pay

• Record kept of care cost met by the person – 100% if self-funder – to be calculated towards capped care costs in future. (Care accounts 2016)

• The final budget should be agreed at the end of the planning process if the plan is within the indicative budget (or justifiably above it) the proposed use of the money is:

•appropriate•legal •meets the needs identified in assessment