Care and support plans

It will use the information from your assessment such as:

• your needs
  
  
• what is important to you and your family
  
  
• how best to meet your needs
  
  
• what you want to achieve
  
  
• what you can do yourself
  
  
• whether you have support already in place
  
  
• what types of care and support might be available to help you

Once your care needs have been assessed and a care and support plan is in place we have a duty under section 27 of the Care Act 2014 for this care and support plan to be kept under review.

What is a review?

Once care and support is provided, it must be checked or reviewed regularly to confirm that it is appropriate and safe, that there haven't been any changes in your needs. This process is an ongoing one and ensures that care and support plans are kept up to date and relevant to the person’s needs and aspirations.

It is expected that reviews are carried out no later than every 12 months and a 'light touch' review at 6 to 8 weeks after a new or revised care or support plan is put in place.

A review may also be triggered by the local authority, by a crisis, or by a 'reasonable request' from an adult or carer. A reasonable request will usually be one that is prompted by a material change in your health or other circumstances that may affect the level of care or support you need.

What will a review involve?

The review should be a positive opportunity to take stock and consider if the plan is helping the person to meet their needs. It will ask questions such as:

• have the person's circumstances and/or care and support or support needs changed?
• what is working in the plan, what is not working, and what might need to change?
• have the outcomes identified in the plan been achieved or not?
• could improvements be made? 
• is the person's personal budget enabling them to meet their needs and the outcomes identified in their plan?
• are there any changes in the person's informal and community support networks which might impact negatively or positively on the plan?
• is the person, carer, independent advocate satisfied with the plan?

How often is it reviewed?

Your plan will be reviewed after 6 to 8 weeks. After that, they are usually reviewed annually, but this can vary.

If you think your needs have changed, you can also request a review at any time.

Who do I contact to request a review?

For more information on the reviews and if you already have the phone number for the appropriate community wellbeing team or worker then you should call directly.

If you are in doubt of who to talk to please contact our Staffordshire Cares team.

If your needs have changed, or you don’t think the care and support detailed in your plan is helping you achieve your outcomes, you can ask for a review of your plan.

Depending on the reason for the review you may need to be re-assessed and, if your needs or circumstances have changed significantly, a new care and support plan will need to be drawn up.

If you only want to change providers, the types or service you use or how you arrange and pay for care and support, this can be discussed with the person who drew up the care plan. They can agree any changes and help you arrange alternative care and support.