Adult Social Care Team

What is the Adult Social Care team?

The Adult Social Care team is a large social work team based across the Sefton borough including hospitals. The team has close links with; health professionals; Sefton Carers Centre and voluntary and charitable organisations.

The Care Act 2014, which came into force on 1 April 2015, introduces a number of changes that will impact existing and new care users, their carers and families. It helps make care and support more consistent across the country. Anyone currently receiving care or supporting an adult family member or friend as an unpaid carer, could be affected by the national changes being introduced by the Care Act. 

The Care Act has set a national level of care and support that all councils must consider when they assess what help, if any, they can provide for people. 

Who can access the Adult Social Care Team? 

To see if you are eligible for care in Sefton we will we use the National Eligibility Threshold, which is a national set of guidelines that all Local Authorities in England must follow. There are two sets of guidelines one for people who are in need of care and support and the other for people who care for someone. 

The national eligibility threshold consists of three criteria, which must ALL be met for your needs to be eligible. 

The eligibility threshold is based on identifying:

• whether your needs are due to a physical or mental impairment or illness
• to what extent your needs affect their ability to achieve two or more specified outcomes
• Whether and to what extent this impacts on your well being. 

The process of Assessment

A needs assessment is a discussion between you and a trained person either from the council or another organisation that the council works with. You will be able to talk about your care and support needs and the goals you want to achieve.

We will use the assessment to plan your care and support needs, and to discuss how these could be met. This might mean that we will give you help or put you in touch with other organisations, such as voluntary, faith and community group, who may be able to give you the support you need, help you keep well and live independently. Further information about this can be obtained from Social Care process

The role of the Transitions Co-ordinate's 

The Transitions Co-ordinate's play a vital part in supporting people moving from Children’s to Adult Social Care. Apart from attending meetings at schools and academies where young people are likely to be making a transition to adult social care, the transition team builds relationships across a wide range of agencies to ensure the process is seamless and efficient for the young person involved and their families. These agencies include amongst others; Health/Social Care; Children’s Services including Education; Children and Adult Health Services; Career Connect.

These agencies work together to ensure social inclusion and avoid simply transferring people into existing specialist services. Young people and their families are central to this process.  

Click here to visit Sefton's Transitions Co-Ordinators Local Offer Page.

Services you could receive from the Adult Social Care Team: 

• Social work and support to address specific issues
• Community support
• Short breaks in a residential unit or at home
• Domiciliary care in the home
• Access to direct payments 

What happens if there are Safeguarding concerns about a vulnerable adult? 

Sefton has a multi-agency framework for action to safeguard adults, which Sefton Council, along with Merseyside Police, when appropriate, will take the lead in investigating issues of alleged concern.

Initial contact can be made to the Sefton Council Contact Centre on: 0345 140 0845. An operator will take some brief details so that a Customer Access Officer can call back.

Sefton’s Emergency Duty Team can be contacted out of hours on 0151 934 3555.

A health professional, district nurse or solicitor etc., can also make a referral. 

Financial Assessment: 

All commissioned services provided by Sefton to adults are subject to Sefton’s charging policy. You will need to complete a financial assessment to determine what the charge may be or whether they are exempt. Proof of earnings, tax credits, allowances and benefits are needed as part of this assessment. Further information about this can be obtained from Paying for Care in Sefton.

 Carers Assessments:

Carer’s needs are taken in to account when undertaking an assessment of a vulnerable adult. Carers are also entitled to a Carers Assessment in their own right. Further information about this can be obtained from Sefton Carers Centre.