Getting ready for the Care Act 2014
Clara Swinson
17 September 2014
1
A brief history of care and support
Social care law and policy has evolved over more than 65 years, incorporating around 30
Acts of Parliament, but reform has usually been piecemeal.
National
Assistance Act
1948: established
the welfare state
and abolished the
Poor Laws
1948
NHS and Community Care
Act 1990: first major set
of reforms, including first
right to assessments and
start of commissioner/
provider split.
1960…
1970…
Chronically Sick and
Disabled Persons Act
1970: reforms to key
entitlements to
community services
2
The Care Act: reforming care and support
1980…
Community Care
(Direct Payments)
Act 1996: new
powers to make
direct payments
1990…
Carers (Recognition
and Services) Act
1995: the first Act
to recognise carers
Health and Social
Care Act 2001:
updates on direct
payments
2000…
Carers and Disabled
Children Act 2000:
extending direct
payments to carers
2010…
What does the Care Act do?
The Act is built around people, it:
• ensures that people’s well-being, and the outcomes which matter to them, will be at
the heart of every decision that is made;
• puts carers on the same footing as those they care for;
• creates a new focus on preventing and delaying needs for care and support, rather
than only intervening at crisis point, and building on the strengths in the community;
• embeds rights to choice, through care plans and personal budgets, and ensuring a
range of high quality services are available locally.
The Act makes care and support clearer and fairer, it:
• extends financial support to those who need it most, and protects everyone from
catastrophic care costs though a cap on the care costs that people will incur.
• will ensure that people do not have to sell their homes in their lifetime to pay for
residential care, by providing for a new deferred payments scheme;
• provides for a single national threshold for eligibility to care and support;
• supports people with information, advice and advocacy to understand their rights
and responsibilities, access care when they need it, and plan for their future needs;
• gives new guarantees to ensure continuity of care when people move between areas,
to remove the fear that people will be left without the care they need;
• includes new protections to ensure that no one goes without care if their provider
fails, regardless of who pays for their care.
3
The Care Act: reforming care and support
The legal framework
The primary legislation - the Care Act 2014 sets
the legal duties and powers
The secondary legislation - the regulations. The
scope of regulations is set by the Care Act.
The statutory guidance on how to meet legal
obligations in the Bill. This sets out the
expectations of local authorities when exercising
their functions
We are also developing practice guidance,
toolkits and other products which help
support implementation.
4
The Care Act: reforming care and support
Affordability of the Care Act reforms
•
The Government has provided £470m to fund LAs to implement the Care Act in 15/16
•
The overall funding position for social care is very tight. We will use data from the BCF
plans on:
• National condition to protect social care services
• LA’s access to money in the BCF for Care Act implementation
•
Revisions to the impact assessment to reflect changed assumptions on costs
•
•
5
Greater costs for carers in 2015/16 and beyond
Reduced costs for DPAs and early assessment of self funders
•
Regulations and guidance on eligibility have been amended following consultation to
ensure that they are cost-neutral
•
Delayed implementation of the new right of self funders in residential care to
request that a LA arrange care on their behalf
DH – Leading the nation’s health and care
Key dates
6
Date
Action
October 2014
•
•
•
•
Publication of 2015/16 regulations and guidance
Launch of Skills for Care learning and development materials
Publication of implementation support products
Report on second LA stocktake survey
November/December 2014
•
•
•
•
•
Ongoing publication of implementation support products
Parliamentary debates on regulations
Public awareness campaign (phase 1 – local)
Launch of consultation on 2016/17 regulations and guidance
Response to consultation on funding formulae
January 2015
•
•
Third LA stocktake survey
Public awareness campaign (phase 1 – national)
April 2015
•
Implementation of first phase of reforms
October 2015
•
•
Publication of final 2016/17 regulations and guidance
Public awareness campaign (phase 2)
April 2016
•
Implementation of second phase of reforms
The Care Act: reforming care and support