Assesment Gaps

I worked in social services for 4 years at least (and many years with social service clients outside of local government).

Assessments are riddled with social injustices and there are huge numbers of organisations pointing out how and what’s wrong including many individuals.

Firstly UK and European law says the ‘injustice’ is just. i.e. by law social services assessments do not have to be ‘fair’ beyond basic needs – they have to give the most in need enough help to live (i.e. breathe, eat, toilet) or rather to remain alive.

People have the right to be assessed but then it’s up to local interpretation (and individual practitioner’s interpretation) to make the rules on who gets what.

Most assessments breach human rights to some extent and are challenged as such.

Assessment techniques are applied to everyone equally (doesn’t matter about age or impairment) – at least they are supposed to be. Once you are aged 18 + then the same rules apply.

There is lots of info available on how assessments are carried out and the criteria – your local area will have your local criteria which is based on ‘banding’.

The trouble is, there are thousands of people who can’t get dressed without pain or fatigue – but only a limited amount of money – so many thousands don’t get support. That’s an issue for national government and the public purse (it is national government who decide how much money each area has to spend and it’s never enough).

Someone has to go without. It’s not fair but both money and assessment practice are so variable that it becomes a bit of a lottery if you get help and to what degree.

The NHS is the same…

You have to become expert in social care law to challenge – or find advocacy or someone who can look individually to see if someone has a case for a challenge. I’ve challenged every assessment I’ve ever had to get what I get :-/.

I was even told last year I should just lay in bed (and effectively die) by my local social services and tell the NHS to come and help. You don’t get a bigger breach of rights than that …. but that’s the sort of thing that happens. It’s very distressing and frustrating.