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Home > Care Act: assessment and eligibility

Care Act: assessment and eligibility

The Care Act 2014 sets out local authorities’ duties when assessing people’s care and support needs.

This resource, updated December 2022, supports care practitioners and answers their questions about assessment and determination of eligibility under the Care Act. It also provides practical guidance over what they should do when applying the letter and spirit of this law.

Care Act 2014: the assessment and eligibility process

The Care Act gives clear guidance on the individual journey from the referral to the support plan, which includes screening, assessment and determination of eligibility. This chart explains how each stage of this journey relates to different needs, outcomes and forms.

View the full chart

Diagram showing the route through assessment and determination of eligibility under the Care Act 2014. Step 1 is Referral, step 2 is Assessment and screening, step 3 is Determination of Eligibility, and step 4 is a Support Plan.

Key duties

A guide to the Care Act duties that Local Authorities have towards individuals in their area, including duties relating to assessment of needs for care and support for adults and carers and determination of eligibility.

Key principles

The Care Act covers eight fundamental principles, which social care practitioners should be able to see in their practice.

Important concepts

A look at key concepts such as ‘outcomes’, ‘needs’ and ‘interventions’.

Assessment of needs

A guide to assessments of needs for care and support for adults and carers, how to prepare and how to undertake them as a social care practitioner.

Determination of eligibility

A look at what determination of eligibility is, what evidence is needed, and how to make a determination.

Practice examples

Selection of examples that have been taken direct from the frontline to support practitioners to carry out assessments and eligibility determination.

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