Care Act 2014: Assessment and eligibility is changing.

The Care Act 2014, which comes into force on April 1st, sets out in one place, local authorities’ duties in relation to assessing people’s needs and their eligibility for publicly funded care and support. Under the act, from April, local authorities must ensure that any adult who appears to require care and support – including carers with support needs – has their needs assessed. This is regardless of their likely eligibility for state-funded care. New resources from the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) have been designed to support local authority staff, social workers and others involved in assessment and eligibility.