Rutland County Council is carrying out work to prepare for major changes to the way adult social care services will be provided across England in the future. 

The UK Government first announced plans to reform adult social care in England in October 2021. Adult social care covers a range of vital services which allow people to live as independently as possible and keep them safe and well. These services are important now but will become even more critical in the future as people live longer and our population of older adults grows. 

Social care is not an NHS service. Unlike healthcare, it is local councils who assess people's social care needs and, if individuals are eligible, pay for their care. This is why a third of Rutland County Council's latest budget (almost £14million) is set aside just for adult social care and why Council Tax in Rutland and other areas has been increasing year-on-year, as demand for social care has grown.

Throughout England, most social care services are delivered by an independent home care sector and residential care providers. Many people will also have this care organised and purchased for them by their council. Although some services are available to anyone, most publicly funded social care in England is only for people with the highest needs and lowest assets. People with assets worth more than £23,250 are not normally eligible for publicly funded care. This is called the upper capital limit, or UCL.

The main aim of the government's new adult social care reforms is to shift the balance of who pays for social care. The changes are meant to reduce the costs to individuals, although the cost to councils will increase. To achieve this, there are four key components:

1. A limit of £86,000 on the amount that any individual can spend on their personal care over a lifetime
2. A more generous means-test for local authority financial support, whereby the UCL will rise from £23,250 to £100,000
3. Establishing a 'fair' cost of care to support social care providers
4. Changes to the Care Act that will mean anyone can ask a local authority to arrange their care for them. 

These reforms are due to be implemented in October 2023, requiring councils to recruit more staff and develop new ways to manage the number of people looking to access care. A 'Fair Cost of Care' exercise is also needed to decide the rates that councils will pay independent care providers in their area, to create a sustainable care market.

Cllr Samantha Harvey, Cabinet Member for Health, Wellbeing and Adult Care at Rutland County Council, said: "Local authorities like Rutland are keen to embrace the potential of these national reforms, which are an opportunity to develop even more efficient and effective care practices.

"Rutland County Council is carrying out work to cover all the requirements of the new social care reforms – making sure people have choice, control and support to live independently, as well as being able to access quality care and support that's fair and tailored to their needs. This is all extremely promising. However, local authorities must also consider the impact these reforms are likely to have on our staff resources and our budgets."

Work to prepare for the introduction of the government's adult social care reforms in October 2023 will continue in the coming months and further information will be made available on the Rutland County Council website.