Adult Social Care
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Adult Social Care and Health is a department of East Sussex County Council. Working with people aged 18 or over who live in East Sussex.
Their role is to enable you to live as healthy and independent a life as you can, for as long as you can. Looking at your strengths, capabilities, wider support network and community, as well as the difficulties you’re experiencing, and work with you to find solutions.
Examples of people they work with include those who:
You should also contact us if you are at risk of harm, or are concerned about someone else at risk of harm by calling 0345 60 80 191.
If you call outside of normal office hours, our Emergency Duty Service will respond if your situation requires urgent adult social care intervention before the next working day.
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We may be able to assist you through information, advice, and help to access community support.
There may be short-term solutions or support that we can help you to access to prevent you having greater difficulties in the longer term.
We may be able to provide some equipment or minor changes to your home to help to keep you safe and independent.
If you need ongoing support, you may wish to have a social care needs assessment. This is where we look in more detail with you at your needs and strengths, to find out if you have eligible needs and what sort of social care support would help.
To confirm if you are eligible for support we use ‘eligibility criteria’ set by the government.
To be eligible:
You must have care and support needs as a result of a physical impairment, a mental impairment or an illness.
These needs must impact on at least two areas of your daily life and have a significant impact on your wellbeing.
For more information on the eligibility criteria you can read our factsheet: Who qualifies for our support?
If your social care needs assessment shows that you have eligible needs, we’ll also complete a financial assessment with you, to tell you what you will need to pay. Most people pay some or all of the cost of their care.
Even if you do not have eligible social care needs, we will give you information about your options and recommend support that could help you.
We have lots of sources of information available.
There’s a broad range of information available on our website, as well as links to other helpful websites and directories.
You can fill in an online application for social care support, apply for a Blue Badge, apply for a Carers Card, register a disability, read our guide on going into or leaving hospital, and much more.
Use our directories to learn more about local services, service providers and community and voluntary organisations that could support you. You can also find out how to get more involved in your community.
If you’d like to speak to someone you can contact us.
If you’re not sure what help you need, we will have an initial conversation with you, usually over the phone. This will help us to understand your needs and to discuss possible options, including ways to build on your strengths, and support that might be available to maximise your independence.
For example, we can talk to you about:
organisations that can help you improve your health and wellbeing or live more independently
ways to connect with your community or get support from your wider network
equipment that could help you
if you have sight or hearing difficulties, or are deafblind, we may be able to recommend or provide equipment or other support, such as mobility training
how to access support with your finances, debt or benefits
These are just some examples. Our conversation and suggestions for support will depend on your needs and what you would like to achieve.
Depending on your needs, you may be invited to an Occupational Therapy Clinic. Advice can be given at a clinic on managing at home. A clinic may also provide equipment and small adaptations to support you (some equipment and adaptations under £1,000 are free). The clinics can offer advice for carers and undertake carer’s assessments where appropriate.
You may be offered a period of reablement, depending on your needs. This is a short-term service that helps you get back daily living skills that you may have lost because of an accident, illness or disability – for example, support after you’ve come out of hospital.
Reablement is provided by several different professionals who can help you to regain your confidence and daily living skills. This could include finding alternative ways of managing everyday tasks. The team will help you set goals and monitor your progress.
The support you receive can be in your own home or in another residential setting. We aim to be flexible in what we offer to meet your needs.
Reablement is always time limited. It’s normally for between two and three weeks, but may be slightly longer, depending on your needs and progress.
You will not be charged for the agreed period of reablement, but you may be charged for any care and support you need after this. The amount you will pay will be determined by a financial assessment. See our leaflet: What you will need to pay towards the cost of your care and support.
If our initial conversations suggest that you need ongoing social care support we can complete a more detailed assessment of your needs. This needs assessment helps us to understand more about you, including your daily life, your strengths and your support needs, to see if you are eligible for support from us.
To be eligible, you must meet the national eligibility criteria set by the government. These criteria enable us to ensure that the limited budget local authorities have is spent on the people who most need care and support, and that all adults across the country have equal access to support.
For more information you can read our factsheet: Who qualifies for our support?
Unlike NHS healthcare, social care and support is not free, and most people pay some or all of the costs of their care. We will assess your finances to see what you’ll need to pay.
If you have more than £23,250 in capital and assets, you’ll be expected to pay for your care yourself. This does not include the value of your property unless you’re moving into a care home.
If you need social care support and have less than £23,250 in capital and assets, we will complete a financial assessment and let you know what you need to contribute towards your care.
For further information see our leaflet: What you will need to pay towards the cost of your care and support.
When you contact us we will talk to you about what will happen next and how long it is likely to take.
From working out your care and support needs, to deciding what support you get, you’ll be able to have your say at every stage.
For more information see our factsheet: Assessment, support planning and review.
If you are eligible for support and for us to contribute toward the cost of your care, one of the ways you can have control is by choosing direct payments. Direct payments are an agreed amount of money that we give you so that you can arrange your own care.
You can use this money to organise and buy the care and support you need, for example by employing your own personal assistant, to help you with personal care and household tasks. If you want to employ your own personal assistant, we can support you to do this legally and safely.
If you’re paying for your own care and support, we can still help you find and arrange services.
If you tell us you no longer feel able to remain in your own home, we can talk to you about accommodation and support options.
There are various organisations that provide different types of housing and accommodation support. These include sheltered housing schemes, supported housing, supported living and extra care schemes (which have 24-hour on-site care staff), or residential care homes. Your eligibility for these types of accommodation may depend on the outcome of a social care assessment.
For more information you can contact us.
You can also find more information about paying for residential care in our leaflet: What you will need to pay towards the cost of your care and support.
You can find more information on housing and accommodation options, including local residential care and nursing homes, in our directory, East Sussex 1Space.
Website: 1Space housing and accommodation
You can look up or request information on registered care homes from the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the organisation that regulates health and social care services.
Website: Care Quality Commission
Phone: 03000 616 161
Care Choices produces directories of care services and includes advice on choosing a care home.
Website: Care Choices
Email: enquiries@carechoices.co.uk
Phone: 0800 389 2077
There is support available to help adults aged 16 and over (single people, couples and families) to live independently and to find or stay in their own home. This includes services which visit people in their own home, and specialist accommodation services for young people, young parents, people with a mental health condition or a learning disability, homeless people and women needing women’s refuges. For more information contact us.
If you or someone you know is homeless or about to become homeless, you should first contact the housing office at your local district or borough council.
Website: Lewes District Council
Phone: 01273 471 600
Website: Eastbourne Borough Council
Phone: 01323 410 000
Website: Hastings Borough Council
Phone: 01424 451 100
Website: Rother District Council
Phone: 01424 787 000
Website: Wealden District Council
Phone: 01323 443 380 or 01323 443 322
If you’re not sure which district or borough you are in, use Find your local council | GOV.UK.
