Information and advice - Care Act 2014
A vital component
 Information and advice help to promote people’s wellbeing
by increasing their ability to exercise choice and control and
form a vital component of preventing or delaying people’s
need for care and support
 Information and advice is fundamental to enabling people
to take control of, and make well-informed choices about,
their care and support and how they fund it
 They are an essential building block of the Care Act
reforms
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Types of information and advice
Self-help
information
Assisted
information
Advice
Specialist
advice and
advocacy
Websites,
leaflets, NHS
Choices etc
Telephone
helplines,
directories,
libraries, one
stop shops,
CAB, charities,
information
centres, GPs,
frontline staff
etc
Telephone lines,
information
centres, one
stop shops,
CAB, support
groups, carers
centres, CIL,
social workers,
GPs, outreach
staff/workers etc
Independent
financial
advisers, legal
help on
complex
matters in
specific areas
of law,
independent
advocates
No interaction
Limited to
moderate
interaction
Moderate to high
interaction
High interaction
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Problems which people identify with
information and advice
1. The social care system is too complex and localised to comprehend
2. Decisions are typically taken in a crisis
3. There are problems with the quality and availability of information,
advice and referral
4. The availability and quality of all council information services is patchy
and is not linked up
5. There is a lack of independent support for the assessment process
6. There is a lack of joined-up advice covering care and housing/benefits
options
7. There is a lack of information about service availability and quality
8. There is a lack of signposting to financial advice
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A duty on local authorities
 Section 4 of the Care Act places a duty on local authorities to ensure
the availability of information and advice services for all people in its
area, regardless of whether or not they have eligible care needs
 A wide definition including care and support related aspects of health,
housing, benefits, employment and the environment
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Provision of information and advice
 Local authorities do not have to provide all elements of this service
 They are expected to:
 Understand, coordinate and make effective use of all the
information and advice resources that are available locally and
nationally
 Think about how they are reaching out and joining up with other
providers of information and advice to ensure the coherence of the
overall ‘offer’
 Signpost or refer people to relevant independent and impartial
sources of information and advice
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Range of Information and advice required
 Information about how the local care and support system works
 How people can access care and support services
 What types of care and support are available, and the choice of
providers (resource directory etc.)
 Care and support related financial information and advice, including
how to access independent financial advice
 How to raise concerns about the safety or wellbeing of someone who
has care and support needs
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Financial information and advice
 The local authority must provide financial information
and advice, including:
 understanding care charges
 ways to pay
 money management
 As well as identifying those who may benefit from
independent financial advice or information and help
them to access it
 Broader awareness raising about how care and
support is funded
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Users of information and advice
Transitioning to
adulthood
Wanting to plan
for their future
Subject to
safeguarding
concerns
Who contact the
local authority
People
Who are family
members or
carers
In prison
Who are assessed
as being in need of
care and support
Who may develop
care and support
needs in the
future
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Self funders
 Self funders often not well served for information and advice by
many councils in the past:
 many do not seek help
 those that do find little information was offered and that
signposting to other sources of support was a negative
experience
• There is a duty for the Council to ensure self – funders are well
informed and can make appropriate decisions as a result of effective
information and advice
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Accessibility
 Information and advice must be open to everyone who would
benefit from it. They authority should ensure that:
 There are a range of delivery mechanisms that are accurate and
up-to-date
 Staff are aware of accessibility issues and appropriately trained
 Websites meet accessibility standards
 Printed materials are clear and in plain English
 Materials are adapted as necessary e.g. easy read versions,
translations, appropriate formats, Braille etc.
 Help from independent person is available
to help people access information and advice
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A strategic approach to information and
advice
Coproduction
Impact
Develop
and
implement
a strategy/
plan
Mapping
Coordination
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Information and advice principles (1)
1. Involve people who use services and carers in determining
what is needed and how it is provided
2. Be available at the right time for people who need it, in a
range of accessible formats and through a range of
channels
3. Meet the needs of everyone in the community served
4. Be clear, comprehensive and impartial
5. Be consistent, accurate and up-to-date
6. Meet quality standards
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Information and advice principles (2)
7. Be based on a detailed analysis of the needs of the local
population
8. Be commissioned in tandem with other relevant support
and advocacy services
9. Avoid reinventing the wheel
10. Signpost people to sources of further information
11. Provide consistent information throughout individuals`
social care journey
12. Be used to inform future planning
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Summary
 Information should be available to all, regardless of whether or how
their care is paid for
 Good quality, easily accessible information will help people to make
good decisions about the care and support they need or may need in
the future
 Local authorities have a key role in ensuring good quality advice is
available locally and for sign posting people to independent advice
 Information and advice needs to be targeted at key ‘trigger’ points in
people’s lives
 Information and advice should be accessible, timely and proportionate
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