Getting a Care Needs Assessment From Essex or Hertfordshire County Council: How It Works and What to Say

To get a care needs assessment in Essex or Hertfordshire, you ask the county council's adult social care team. In Essex, call Essex County Council on 0345 603 7630. In Hertfordshire, ask for an assessment on the Hertfordshire County Council website or call 0300 123 4042. Anyone who may need care and support can ask, whatever their income or savings, and the assessment is free. The council then decides whether their needs meet the national eligibility rules.

A council assessment is separate from arranging care, and it can take weeks. If your relative needs help now, a private agency can start care while the assessment is still waiting. We explain how below.

Who can ask for a care needs assessment

Any adult who may have care and support needs can ask. You can ask for your parent or relative, though the assessment works best when they are involved and you are there with them. Councils must assess any adult who appears to need care, regardless of their finances and before anyone decides whether they are eligible for help, as the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has said in its decisions.

If you are the one doing the caring, you can ask for your own carer's assessment at the same time.

How a council assessment works, step by step

The route is the same in both counties, with different phone numbers and forms.

You do not have to wait for the council before care can start. A private agency can begin while the assessment is being arranged.

1. Request the assessment. In Essex, call Adult Social Care on 0345 603 7630 (textphone 0345 758 5592), use the online form or email socialcaredirect@essex.gov.uk. In Hertfordshire, use the ask us for a social care assessment form or call 0300 123 4042. Say clearly if the situation is urgent.
2. The assessment itself. A social worker or an occupational therapist (a health professional who looks at how someone manages daily tasks and which equipment helps) talks through your relative's day, usually at home. Hertfordshire says it usually takes 30 minutes to 2 hours, and that a friend or family member can be there, or an advocate to help your relative understand what is going on.
3. The eligibility decision. The council decides whether your relative's needs meet the national rules below. If they do not, the council should still give free information and advice about other support.
4. A support plan and a financial check. If your relative has eligible needs, the council agrees a care and support plan with them. Hertfordshire then arranges a financial assessment to see whether they need to pay towards their care. Essex also means-tests care it arranges, so your relative may be asked to pay some or all of the cost.
5. Reviews. Hertfordshire says the first review is usually within 6 weeks of care starting and then yearly, and you can ask for one at any time, for example when something changes.

What the council is deciding: three tests and ten outcomes

The national rules are in the Care and Support (Eligibility Criteria) Regulations 2015. Your relative's needs are eligible when all three of these are true:

1. Their needs come from a physical or mental impairment or illness. They do not need a formal diagnosis.
2. Because of those needs, they cannot achieve two or more of ten listed outcomes.
3. As a result, there is, or is likely to be, a significant impact on their wellbeing.

The ten outcomes are:

• Managing and maintaining nutrition.
• Maintaining personal hygiene.
• Managing toilet needs.
• Being appropriately clothed.
• Making use of their home safely.
• Keeping their home habitable.
• Developing and maintaining family or other personal relationships.
• Accessing and engaging in work, training, education or volunteering.
• Making use of necessary facilities or services in the community, including public transport.
• Carrying out any caring responsibilities they have for a child.

The word that matters most is "unable". The regulations say a person counts as unable to achieve an outcome if they cannot do it without help, or if they can do it alone but it causes significant pain, distress or anxiety, or it endangers their health or safety or anyone else's, or it takes significantly longer than normal. They also say that when someone's needs go up and down, the council must look at their circumstances over whatever period it needs to see the true level of need. That is why describing the bad days matters.

What to say at the assessment: describe the bad day, not the good one

The assessor will ask about your relative's day-to-day activities, personal care and mobility, such as managing meals, washing, toilet needs, getting dressed, getting around, falls and transfers. These questions follow the ten outcomes above.

"A parent will often get dressed, put the kettle on and chat brightly for the assessor, because they want to be seen to be coping. We tell families to say it plainly and kindly before the visit: "Mum, I am going to tell them about the nights as well." The assessment is only as accurate as the picture it is given." - Patience Maisiri, Managing Director & Registered Manager

• Keep a diary for a week before the visit: meals eaten, washing, toilet trips, falls and near misses, and how long each task took.
• Describe a typical bad day and say how often it happens. Do not describe the best day.
• Say what happens when nobody is there: missed meals, missed medication, the cooker left on, getting lost, a fall that nobody saw.
• Say how long things take. Dressing that takes an hour counts, even if your relative manages it alone.
• Mention pain, distress and anxiety. Doing a task alone while in pain or frightened counts as being unable to do it.
• Mention safety risks to your relative or anyone else, such as stairs, bathing or a gas hob.
• Explain that needs go up and down, and ask the assessor to consider the whole picture over several weeks.
• Say what you and the family do now, and what you cannot keep doing.
• Have someone with you, or ask about an advocate.
• Ask for a copy of the written assessment and the date you will hear the outcome.

While you wait: how long it takes and how private care can start straight away

The Care Act sets no fixed deadline for an assessment. Councils must carry it out over a suitable and reasonable timescale, taking account of how urgent the needs are. The Ombudsman has said it normally expects 28 calendar days and has described around six weeks as a typical timescale, so you are entitled to ask where your relative is in the queue.

• Tell the council if anything has got worse, because urgency changes the timescale.
• Ask for the expected date, and note the date, time and name of everyone you speak to.
• If the wait becomes unreasonable, complain to the council first. If that does not work, you can take it to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.

You do not need the council's permission to arrange care yourself. We can start while the assessment is booked, and we are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for urgent enquiries. Many families begin small, with a few single handed care visits a week, a sit-in or a wake night, and add more as the picture becomes clear. If your relative has multiple or specialist needs, our complex care team will talk through what is possible. The notes the carers keep give the assessor a record of how your relative actually manages. Paying for care privately does not stop your relative being assessed, and no package is too small.

Who to contact: Essex and Hertfordshire

Essex County Council covers Harlow, Epping, Loughton, Waltham Abbey, Saffron Walden and Great Dunmow. Hertfordshire County Council covers Bishop's Stortford, Sawbridgeworth, Hertford, Ware and Stevenage. Use the council for the area your relative lives in.

Questions families ask about care needs assessments

Can I ask for an assessment if my parent has savings?

Yes. The assessment is free and does not depend on income or savings. The council looks at money afterwards, in a separate financial assessment, and only if your parent has eligible needs.

What if my parent says they do not need help?

An adult can decline, and an assessment works best when they take part. Start with what bothers them, not with the word "care". Our guide to talking to a parent about getting help at home may help. If you believe a parent is being neglected or is at risk of harm, call Essex County Council on 0345 603 7630 (out of hours 0345 606 1212) or Hertfordshire County Council on 0300 123 4042.

What if the council says my parent is not eligible?

Ask for the decision and the reasons in writing. The council should still give free information and advice about other support. If you disagree with the outcome or how the assessment was done, complain to the council first and then, if necessary, to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Your parent can also arrange private care whatever the decision.

Can I take part if I live a long way away?

Ask the council whether you can join by phone or video, and whether the assessment can be arranged for a time when you can be on the line. Send your notes and your diary in advance, and ask for a copy of the written assessment afterwards.

Talking it through with us

If you are not sure where to start, call us on 01279 437923. We are happy to talk things through before you make any decisions, and we can tell you honestly whether care now, an assessment first, or both makes sense for your relative. There is no pressure and no obligation. You can also send us an enquiry.

We provide care at home across West Essex, Epping Forest and East and North Hertfordshire, including Harlow, Epping and Stevenage.

Sources and when they were last checked

All sources below were checked in October 2026.

• Legislation.gov.uk, The Care and Support (Eligibility Criteria) Regulations 2015, regulation 2: the three tests, the ten outcomes, the meaning of unable and fluctuating needs.
• Hertfordshire County Council, Adult care: how to get care and support from us: requesting an assessment, visit length, advocates, financial assessment, review timing.
• Essex County Council, Contact us, and Age Space's guide to care needs assessments in Essex: phone numbers and who carries out the assessment.
• Essex County Council, Adult Social Care induction pack 2026: council-arranged care is means-tested.
• Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, decisions on Bristol City Council, London Borough of Bromley and Calderdale: assessments regardless of finances and the expected timescale.
• Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, social care assessment leaflet, April 2024, and the Hertfordshire County Council Adult Care Services CQC contact record: HertsHelp number and the Hertfordshire safeguarding line.