Commentary on Sections Meeting needs for care etc. Section 8 – How to meet needs
87.The needs which adults have for care and support will be specific to that individual, and there are many ways in which local authorities can meet such needs. This section is intended to provide some indication of the range of what a local authority can do to meet an adult’s needs.
88.Subsection (1) lists some general examples of the types of care and support that could be arranged or provided to meet the needs of both adults needing care and carers. This is not intended to be a definition of care and support or an exhaustive list, but to give a partial description for clarity. Local authorities may arrange or provide for any combination or type of service to meet needs, other than those services which they are prohibited from providing because they fall their outside their care and support functions (see sections 22 and 23). The examples in subsection (1) are applicable both to carers and to adults needing care.
89.In meeting any adult’s needs, a local authority may provide a service itself or arrange for a service to be provided by another organisation. The local authority may also make a direct payment in lieu of a service (as detailed in sections 31 and 32), or undertake any combination of these approaches.