2014 Care Act - The Overarching Principle - Wellbeing
1.22 "In order to ensure these conversations look at people holistically, local authorities and their partners must focus on joining up around an individual, making the person the starting point for planning, rather than what services are provided by what particular agency." SSSnogs = ABJECT FALURE
This chapter provides guidance on section 1 of the Care Act 2014 and covers:
Definition of wellbeing promoting wellbeing Wellbeing throughout the Care Act
1.1 The core purpose of adult care and support is to help people to achieve the outcomes that matter to them in their life. Throughout this guidance document, the different chapters set out how a local authority should go about performing its care and support responsibilities. Underpinning all of these individual ‘care and support functions’ (that is, any process, activity or broader responsibility that the local authority performs) is the need to ensure that doing so focuses on the needs and goals of the person concerned.
1.2 Local authorities must promote wellbeing when carrying out any of their care and support functions in respect of a person. This may sometimes be referred to as ‘the wellbeing principle’ because it is a guiding principle that puts wellbeing at the heart of care and support. 1.3 The wellbeing principle applies in all cases where a local authority is carrying out a care and support function, or making a decision, in relation to a person. For this reason it is referred to throughout this guidance. It applies equally to adults with care and support needs and their carers.
1.4 In some specific circumstances, it also applies to children, their carers and to young carers when they are subject to transition assessments (see chapter 16 on transition to adult care and support).
Definition of wellbeing
1.5 ‘Wellbeing’ is a broad concept, and it is described as relating to the following areas in particular:
personal dignity (including treatment of the individual with respect) physical and mental health and emotional wellbeing
protection from abuse and neglect
control by the individual over day-to-day life (including over care and support provided and the way it is provided)
participation in work, education, training or recreation
social and economic wellbeing
domestic, family and personal
suitability of living accommodation the
individual’s contribution to society
1.6 The individual aspects of wellbeing or outcomes above are those which are set out in the Care Act, and are most relevant to people with care and support needs and carers. There is no hierarchy, and all should be considered of equal importance when considering ‘wellbeing’ in the round.
Promoting wellbeing
1.7 Promoting wellbeing involves actively seeking improvements in the aspects of wellbeing set out above when carrying out a care and support function in relation to an individual at any stage of the process from the provision of information and advice to reviewing a care and support plan. Wellbeing covers an intentionally broad range of the aspects of a person’s life and will encompass a wide variety of specific considerations depending on the individual.
1.8 A local authority can promote a person’s wellbeing in many ways. How this happens will depend on the circumstances, including the person’s needs, goals and wishes, and how these impact on their wellbeing. There is no set approach – a local authority should consider each case on its own merits, consider what the person wants to achieve, and how the action which the local authority is taking may affect the wellbeing of the individual.
1.9 The Act therefore signifies a shift from existing duties on local authorities to provide particular services, to the concept of ‘meeting needs’ (set out in sections 8 and 18 to 20 of the Act). This is the core legal entitlement for adults to care and support, establishing one clear and consistent set of duties and power for all people who need care and support.
1.10 The concept of meeting needs recognises that everyone’s needs are different and personal to them. Local authorities must consider how to meet each person’s specific needs rather than simply considering what service they will fit into. The concept of meeting needs also recognises that modern care and support can be provided in any number of ways, with new models emerging all the time, rather than the previous legislation which focuses primarily on traditional models of residential and domiciliary care. 1.11 Whenever a local authority carries out any care and support functions relating to an individual, it must act to promote wellbeing – and it should consider all of the aspects above in looking at how to meet a person’s needs and support them to achieve their desired outcomes. However, in individual cases, it is likely that some aspects of wellbeing will be more relevant to the person than others. For example, for some people the ability to engage in work or education will be a more important outcome than for others, and in these cases ‘promoting their wellbeing’ effectively may mean taking particular consideration of this aspect. Local authorities should adopt a flexible approach that allows for a focus on which aspects of wellbeing matter most to the individual concerned.
1.12 The principle of promoting wellbeing should be embedded through the local authority care and support system, but how the local authority promotes wellbeing in practice will depend on the particular function being performed. During the assessment process, for instance, the local authority should explicitly consider the most relevant aspects of wellbeing to the individual concerned, and assess how their needs impact on them. Taking this approach will allow for the assessment to identify how care and support, or other services or resources in the local community, could help the person to achieve their outcomes. During care and support planning, when agreeing how needs are to be met, promoting the person’s wellbeing may mean making decisions about particular types or locations of care (for instance, to be closer to family). To give another example, the concept of wellbeing is very important when responding to someone who self-neglects, where it will be crucial to work alongside the person, understanding how their past experiences influence current behaviour. The duty to promote wellbeing applies equally to those who, for a variety of reasons, may be difficult to engage. 1.13 The wellbeing principle applies equally to those who do not have eligible needs but come into contact with the system in some other way (for example, via an assessment that does not lead to ongoing care and support) as it does to those who go on to receive care and support, and have an ongoing relationship with the local authority. It should inform the delivery of universal services which are provided to all people in the local population, as well as being considered when meeting eligible needs. Although the wellbeing principle applies specifically when the local authority performs an activity or task, or makes a decision, in relation to a person, the principle should also be considered by the local authority when it undertakes broader, strategic functions, such as planning, which are not in relation to one individual. As such, wellbeing should be seen as the common theme around which care and support is built at local and national level.
In Wooodsie World
Like it or Lump It
"The overall impact of how we currently arrange care is lack of value, with people treated as passive recipients of care. Citizens are not routinely involved in shaping policy decisions."
Mrs Service User Solihull
Lazize Ednwoods
A clique Local Authority in pursuit of a misguided attempt to cut short term costs, resulting in worse services and poorer terms and conditions for those that provide them, those that pay for them and those that use them - But all designed for the Benefit of the Sssngos.
Solihull Council chief who quit after Arthur murder condemnation earned almost double the PM