Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the number of people resident in Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport constituency who have unmet social care needs.

An estimate of the number of people resident in Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport constituency who have unmet social care needs is not held centrally.

The Care Act 2014 requires that where an adult or carer appears to have care and support needs the local authority must carry out an assessment. It must then decide if the person has eligible needs by considering the outcomes the person wants to achieve, what needs they have, and how these impact on their wellbeing. Where a person is assessed as having eligible care and support needs, these must be met by their local authority. For those who do not meet the eligibility criteria, local authorities should signpost people to relevant services.