Social Services Charging Policy

Assessing and Meeting Needs

Part 3 of the SSWBA - Sections 19, 21 and 24 – imposes duties on a local authority to assess an adult’s needs for care and support, a child’s needs for care and support and a carer’s needs for support.

Part 4 of the SSWBA stipulates that Local Authorities have a duty to meet needs identified as part of a care and support assessment, on condition that the person is ordinarily resident in the local authority’s area or of no ordinary residence and within the authority’s area. This assessment will determine which needs must be met by the Local Authority and which needs will be met by the person or through services and support available in the community. How much a person will pay for a service will sometimes depend on a choice made by the person.  Where applicable, if a person is provided with a choice of two or more services that meets the assessed needs at the standard rate that the Local Authority pays and the person chooses a more expensive option; then the additional amount, over and above the charge levied by the Local Authority, will have to be paid by the person or a third party. For more details on these circumstances please refer to individual services further below.