Financial matters

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Probably the single most important issue for elderly or vulnerable adult care is that of finances. This is likely to include:

  1. •

    whether they have and will have resources sufficient to cover their needs

  2. •

    where they can get extra finance when needed

Local authority—eligibility for support

Since the creation of the welfare state in the 1940s, local authorities (LAs) have been given powers and subjected to duties to provide care and attention for those in need. However, the law was developed in a piecemeal manner and spread across a myriad of statutes and statutory instruments which were supplemented by numerous guidance documents. The Care Act 2014 (CA 2014) was enacted as a single comprehensive statute to: bring together and harmonise the existing law; reflect modern practices; and implement the recommendations of the Commission on the Funding of Care and Support headed by Andrew Dilnot in 2011. It applies to all English LAs.

Detailed regulations are set out in a series of statutory instruments, the most important of which are:

  1. •

    the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014, SI 2014/2672

  2. •

    the

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The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has announced a package of reforms to the Building Safety Regulator (BSR), aimed at accelerating housebuilding and remediation work. Key changes include: (1) the introduction of a new Fast Track Process, designed to integrate building inspector and engineer capacity into the BSR to expedite the processing and review of existing newbuild cases and remediation decisions; (2) leadership changes, with Andy Roe KFSM appointed as non-executive chair of a new MHCLG shadow board, which will oversee the transition of the BSR’s functions from the Health and Safety Executive, as part of initial steps towards establishing a single construction regulator, and Charlie Pugsley named as the new Chief Executive Officer of the BSR; and (3) further investment, with the recruitment of over 100 new staff to enhance the BSR’s operational capacity.

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