The Care Act – a new legal framework

The Care Act 2014 introduced significant and long-awaited reform. It represents the largest overhaul in the law governing care since the National Assistance Act 1948. The Act consolidates and aims to bring together 60 years of fragmentary legislation into one single statute. It also introduced a national eligibility threshold and undertook to establish a capped cost system in 2020 however advice should be taken since the lifetime ‘cap’ of no more than £72,000 for individuals can in practice mean they will need to spend more than double the ‘cap’ before qualifying for it. The Act does however signal major change and modernisation to care for disabled adults and older people.

At Thursfields, our care team understand the new Care Act and how it governs the provision of care and support by local councils to older and disabled people and how the “well-being principle” which governs all social care decisions operates. The Act brings new duties and responsibilities on local authorities and we understand the assessment system and when individuals are entitled as of right to care and support services.

Michelle Hetheridge, Director and Solicitor at Thursfields Solicitors, commented “reforms in the care sector were long overdue given the previous myriad of so many different laws governing care and support which often made it difficult if not impossible for clients to understand what care and support was available. The new regime brings all of this together moving statutory guidance onto a legislative framework. These changes impact on many of our clients and their carers and will no doubt lead to an increase in enquiries from clients seeking professional clarification and specialist advice, we have a team of solicitors who specialise in advising on care issues”.

For advice from Thursfields’ care team contact Michelle on 0121 227 3850 or email mhetheridge@thursfields.co.uk

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