Moving from children’s to Adult Social Care

Cheshire East Preparing for Adulthood Vision

All Cheshire East young people with special educational needs and disabilities will benefit from a seamless transition process which builds on high aspirations as they become adult citizens. 

We do this by undertaking a Transition Assessment if you are likely to have needs for care and support after you turn 18, regardless of whether you or your child is currently receiving any services. 

Who this applies to

This will apply to you if you are: 

• under 18 years old and are currently receiving support through children’s services
• under 18 years old and are likely to have needs for adult care and support when you turn 18
• a child’s carer
• a young carer

What a transition assessment involves

A transition assessment will be carried out with you, your family and any other professionals that you are involved with. The purpose is to provide you and your family with information so that you know what to expect in the future and can prepare for adulthood. This will build on the information in your Education, Health and Care Plan and preparing for adulthood transition plan if you already have one.   

The transition assessment may not always result in services, but whatever happens, we will give you good advice and a plan for meeting your identified needs.

The assessment will consider the following issues: 

• what your needs are
• what your needs are likely to be when you have turned 18
• what is important to you
• what you want to achieve in your life
• what types of adult care and support may be of benefit to you (this can include care and support for independent  living, training, employment, good health, and having friends)
• what other informal support is available that may help you to achieve your goals

Planning for your transition will start at the right time for you.  In most cases this will be before you turn 14 but this will vary from person to person. We would not assess you when you are preparing for exams or coping with medical treatment.  

If you have an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan

If you have an EHC Plan, you will have started to prepare for adulthood through your EHC Plan annual review from Year 9 onwards. This is where you, your parents/carers, school and other professionals who know you, will talk about what is important and what you would like to happen in the future. This information will be put into a preparing for adulthood plan and will be updated every year at the school review/ EHC Plan review. The transition assessment will probably be undertaken at the same time as your EHC Plan annual review and should inform the plan for moving from children’s services to adults care and support. 

If you have an EHC Plan and are over 18, the ‘care’ part of your plan will be provided for by adult services, under the Care Act 2014.

After we have completed your transition assessment

We will share your assessment with you to give you an indication of the sort of support that you can expect. This will include: 

• what care and support you will be eligible for from adult social care (some services that are currently provided by children’s services may not be provided by adults social care)
• advice and information about what can be done to meet or reduce any needs you are likely to have
• advice and information on what you can do to stay well

Transition assessment for young carers

If you are a young carer, we will assess your needs as you approach age 18. We will consider how we can support you to prepare for adulthood and how we can plan with you to raise and fulfil your aspirations such as going to university or gaining employment.

We will consider the impact on the other members of the family of the person you care for. We will identify anyone who may be part of the network of the person you care for, for example your siblings. 

The transition assessment will also consider how any care and support plan for the person you care for would change as a result of the change in your circumstances. 

Transition assessment for carers 

When there is a likely need for support for your child after they turn 18, we will assess your needs as a carer, but only when the time is right for you. This may help you to remain in employment once your child has finished school.

How your current care and support may change 

If you are currently receiving support from children’s services, this will continue whilst the transition assessment is completed and eligibility for care and support under the Care Act 2014 is determined. If a young person is eligible then we will work with you on your adult care and support plan.  If you are not eligible for help from the Council we can provide advice and signpost you to services who can provide support.

The costs of adult care and support

You may be asked to make a contribution towards the cost of your care services. The amount you may be asked to pay will depend on your financial circumstances. Cheshire East Council operates a charging policy for non-residential services which meets the Care Act 2014 statutory regulations issued by the Department of Health.  You will never be charged more than you can reasonably afford to pay and we will also offer you advice on getting all the benefits due to you.

Contact details

If you are already receiving support from children’s services please contact your worker about making a referral to adult social care for a transition assessment.  If you are unsure who your worker is please contact ChECS - Cheshire East Children's Consultation Service  or call 0300 123 5012

If you or the person you care for are not currently receiving support from children’s services and want to make a referral to adult social care see Assessment of your care needs (cheshireeast.gov.uk)

Or call adult social care on 0300 123 5010