Adult Social Care Reforms
As of October 2023, there will be a variety of Adult Social Care reforms that aim to address some of the current concerns in social care, such as –
- Rise in individuals whose care requirements are not being met
- Workforce staffing issues, fuelled by inadequate pay and employment conditions
- Unlimited social care costs, leaving some individuals with no option but to sell their home
- The impact on healthcare services such as delayed hospital discharge and unnecessary trips to A&E
The Adult Social Care reforms see a cap of £86,000 on the money that any individual will contribute to their own care costs throughout their lifetime. This change will be implemented using legislation that is already in place under the 2014 Care Act. Additionally, the thresholds for local authority funding will be changing from October 2023, meaning that partial funding will now be available for those with assets between £20,000 – £100,000 (previously, there was no funding support for those with assets above £23,250).
The impact on Local Government
These changes to the charging thresholds mean that far more individuals will be eligible for partially or fully funded care – it is expected to lead to a fourfold rise in individuals contacting their local authorities in order to undertake financial assessments and care & support assessments.
Many local authorities will find the increase in workload off the back of the Adult Social Care reforms will have a significant impact on staff and their ability to process assessments in a timely manner. If you work for a local authority and are looking for ways to reduce the impact of the Adult Social Care reforms on the workforce, please take a look below at our two digital, self-serve assessment platforms – BetterCare Finance (financial assessment) and BetterCare Support (care & support assessment).
Digital, self-service financial assessments
BetterCare Finance is a digital, self-serve financial assessment platform that provides the tools for citizens to complete their own financial assessment, it is bespoke to local charging rulebases and will provide citizens with a 100% accurate cost of care, based on the information that they have provided. BetterCare Finance will remain completely bespoke to local rulebases when the Adult Social Care reforms begin, our expert team of analysts and developers will ensure that the product reflects the changes to charging policies.
Digital, self-service care needs assessments
BetterCare Support is a digital, self-serve care & support assessment platform. Similarly to BetterCare Finance, it has been built to provide a self-assessment option for citizens needing to find out what sort of care they may require. The platform features 40+ relatable animations that guide users through the 10 areas of the Care Act and coax best answers. The benefits of going self-serve with Care & Support assessments in a significant reduction in home visits, creating financial and time savings. Staff have the time to focus on those most in need as well as eliminate backlog.
We are encouraging local authorities to get set up with these platforms prior to October 2023 – this will ensure online self-service platforms are “business as usual”, creating less of an impact when the Adult Social Care reforms and subsequent changes begin.
Please use the form below to get in contact regarding our online financial assessment or care needs assessment platforms.
