Assessment framework for local authority assurance

Page last updated: 5 March 2024

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Assessing needs

Quality statement

We maximise the effectiveness of people’s care and treatment by assessing and reviewing their health, care, wellbeing and communication needs with them.

  • I have care and support that is co-ordinated, and everyone works well together and with me.
  • I have care and support that enables me to live as I want to, seeing me as a unique person with skills, strengths and goals.

Summary

People with care and support needs, including unpaid carers, those who fund or arrange their own care and communities have the best possible wellbeing outcomes. This is because:

  • their care and support needs are assessed in a timely and consistent way
  • assessments and care and support plans are co-produced, up-to-date and regularly reviewed
  • support is co-ordinated across different agencies and services
  • decisions and outcomes are transparent.

People's care and support reflects their right to choice, builds on their strengths and assets, and reflects what they want to achieve and how they wish to live their lives.

Related sections of the Care Act

Care Act 2014:

  • Section 1: Wellbeing principle
  • Sections 9-13: Assessing needs
  • Section 14(1) and (3) to (8); Section 17(1) and (3) to (13): Charging and assessing financial resources
  • Section 18(1)(a), (c); (2) to (4), (6) and (7); Section 19-20: Duties and powers to meet needs
  • Sections 24(1), (2) and 25, sections 26(1) and (3) and 27: Next steps after assessment
  • Sections 60-64: Young carer's and child's carers assessments 
  • Section 67: Independent advocacy support (involvement in assessments, plans etc.)

Required evidence

People’s experience

  • Direct feedback from:
    • people with care and support needs
    • unpaid carers
    • people who fund or arrange their own care, those close to them and their advocates
  • Feedback from people obtained by community and voluntary groups. For example:
    • advocacy groups
    • adult and young person’s carers groups
    • faith groups
    • groups representing people who are more likely to have a poorer experience of care and poorer outcomes
    • people with protected equality characteristics
  • Feedback that people have sent to the local authority and feedback it has gathered itself through surveys or focus groups
  • Feedback from CQC's Give feedback on care facility (if available)
  • Compliments and complaints
  • Healthwatch
  • Survey of Adult Carers (SACE), Adult Social Care Survey (ASCS) - see detailed metrics
  • Case tracking

Feedback from staff and leaders

  • Principal social worker
  • Principal occupational therapist
  • Local authority initial contact teams or frontline triage team
  • Assessment and care management staff, social workers and any specialist teams
  • Out-of-hours duty teams
  • Commissioners
  • Council adult social care portfolio holder
  • Overview and scrutiny committee
  • Director of adult social services
  • The local authority’s self-assessment of its performance for the quality statement

If available, feedback from the local authority’s:

  • Staff carers network
  • Staff (from surveys)
  • Local authority equality, diversity and inclusion lead(s)
  • Peer review

Processes

Feedback from partners

  • Community and voluntary sector groups, including those representing:
    • people who are more likely to have a poorer experience of care and poorer outcomes
    • people with protected equality characteristics
    • unpaid carers
  • Local health partners
  • Allied health professionals
  • Care providers
  • Health and wellbeing board
  • Advocacy providers

If available:

  • Local Government Social Care Ombudsman feedback
  • SEND reviews.
  • Reports from Ofsted for inspecting local authority children's services (ILACS)

Outcomes

We will not look at evidence under this category.

Best practice and guidance