Care Act 2014 (Part 1)

Thursday 23rd October 2014 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Department of Health (Norman Lamb)]

Today I am publishing the statutory guidance to support implementation of part 1 of the Care Act 2014 in 2015/16. Also today the Government’s “Response to the consultation on draft regulations and guidance for implementation of part 1 of the Care Act 2014 (Cm 8955)” has been laid before Parliament. Published alongside this document are proposed final versions of the regulations which will underpin the new legal framework, in order to provide this information to local authorities as soon as possible to support their preparations for implementation in April 2015.

Regulations subject to the negative procedure will be laid before Parliament shortly, and those subject to the affirmative procedure will be subject to the approval of Parliament in due course.

The Care Act will make a difference to some of the most vulnerable people in society for many years to come. It provides for the most substantial reform of the care and support system in England for over 65 years, enshrining individual rights and clarifying the roles and responsibilities of local authorities and other partners. The guidance and regulations associated with the Act set out how the Act will work in practice when the first phase of the reforms comes into effect next year.

Consultation on draft regulations and guidance over summer 2014 drew over 4,000 responses. We are very grateful to all who took time to contribute to this consultation process. The consultation response document summarises the many ways in which those responses have helped to shape the final guidance and regulations.

This consultation and final package published today relates to those parts of the care and support reforms which come into effect from 2015/16. A second consultation will be held later this year in relation to the reforms which are due to be implemented from April 2016, including the reforms to the funding system for care and support and the cap on care costs.

Response to the consultation on draft regulations and guidance for implementation of part 1 of the Care Act 2014 is available in the Library.

The statutory guidance and proposed regulations have been placed in the Library of the House.

Today’s publications can also be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/updating-our-care-and-support-system-draft-regulations-and-guidance