Personal Care at Home Bill

House of Commons

Session 2009 - 10
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Personal Care at Home Bill

Personal Care at Home Bill

EXPLANATORY NOTES
Explanatory notes to the Bill, prepared by the Department of Health, are published
separately as Bill 11—EN.
EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Secretary Andy Burnham has made the following statement under section 19(1)(a) of
the Human Rights Act 1998:
In my view the provisions of the Personal Care at Home Bill are compatible with the
Convention rights.

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Personal Care at Home Bill

Contents
1
Free provision of personal care at home
2
Extent and short title

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Personal Care at Home Bill
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A
Bill
To
Amend section 15 of the Community Care (Delayed Discharges etc.) Act 2003
so as to remove the restriction on the period for which personal care may be
provided free of charge to persons living at home; and to make consequential
provision.
Be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and
consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present
Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
1
Free provision of personal care at home
(1)
Section 15 of the Community Care (Delayed Discharges etc.) Act 2003 (power
to require free provision of local authority care services in England) is
amended as set out in subsections (2) to (5).
(2)
In subsection (4) (six-week restriction on free provision of certain services), for
5
paragraph (b) substitute—
“(b)
the provision of personal care to a person living in accommodation that
an establishment provides to the person together with the care;”.
(3)
After subsection (4) insert—
“(4A)
Subsection (4)(b) does not apply to the provision of personal care under
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arrangements made in connection with an adult placement scheme (within the
meaning given by section 22(6) of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act
2006).”
(4)
After subsection (4A) insert—
“(4B)
Regulations requiring the provision of personal care to a person living at home
15
to be free of charge for more than six weeks may, in particular—
(a)
impose on a local authority functions (including the exercise of a
discretion) relating to eligibility for the free provision;
(b)
make provision by reference to guidance given under section 7 of the
Local Authority Social Services Act 1970.
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(4C)
Provision by virtue of subsection (4B)(a) may, in particular, authorise a local
authority to make a person’s eligibility for the free provision conditional on the

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person undergoing a process designed to maximise the person’s ability to live
independently.
(4D)
For the purposes of this section, a provision of personal care is to a person
living at home if the provision does not come within subsection (4)(a) or (b).”
(5)
After subsection (4D) insert—
5
“(4E)
Section 21(5) of the National Assistance Act 1948 (references to
accommodation provided under Part 3 of that Act to include services
etc. provided in connection with the accommodation) applies for the
purposes of this section as it applies for the purposes of that Act.”
(6)
In Schedule 1 to the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970 (list of social services
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functions), in the entry for the Community Care (Delayed Discharges etc.) Act 2003,
after the entry for Part 1, insert—

“Part 2
Functions imposed by regulations

relating to eligibility for free provision

of personal care to persons living at

15

home.”

(7)
In Part 3 of the National Assistance Act 1948 (local authority services)—
(a)
in section 22 (charges for accommodation), in subsection (8A), after
“section 15” insert “or 16”, and
(b)
in section 26 (recovery of costs of accommodation in voluntary
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organisations’ premises), in subsection (4AA), after “section 15” insert
“or 16”.
(8)
In section 17 of the Health and Social Services and Social Security
Adjudications Act 1983 (recovery of charges for local authority services), in
subsection (5), after “section 15” insert “or 16”.
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2
Extent and short title
(1)
This Act extends to England and Wales only.
(2)
This Act may be cited as the Personal Care at Home Act 2010.