Nellie Supports · NHS Continuing Healthcare
Independent Social Care Needs Assessment and Care Plan for CHC
Make the care picture clear before your next CHC step. Our independent social work assessment records the person's needs, the support required and the evidence behind the recommendations. It provides the assessment and care plan used in Nellie's casework, with updates included for the same continuing case. The assessment fee is £1,320 including VAT and is included where specified in your new client package.
Make the care picture clear before your next CHC step. Our independent social work assessment records the person's needs, the support required and the evidence behind the recommendations. It provides the assessment and care plan used in Nellie's casework, with updates included for the same continuing case. The assessment fee is £1,320 including VAT and is included where specified in your new client package.
An independent account of care needs and a written care plan to support CHC preparation in England.
Assessment fee: £1,320 including VAT
Your next step: Scope agreed before booking
Cover throughout the country: England
Registered professionals: Social work led
At a glance
Role
Independent assessment of day-to-day care needs by a registered professional
Framework
Care Act 2014 approach, prepared for the National Framework for NHS CHC (2022 revision)
Format
Assessment arrangements matched to current needs or the historical period under review.
Deliverable
An assessment and care plan, with relevant evidence mapped to the CHC domains.
Coverage
England only. Wales has a separate Continuing NHS Healthcare framework.
Who are you arranging this for?
We agree how the person will be involved, who can instruct us and who should receive updates.
I am supporting a family member
You have someone to explain the process, organise the relevant evidence and help you put the person's needs into words. The work and fee are agreed before we start.
I am instructing as a professional
We agree the instruction, authority to act, evidence required, reporting arrangements and timetable with you. Written work links each point to its source.
What an independent needs assessment is
Nellie Supports is an independent social work practice. Our NHS Continuing Healthcare support helps families and professionals in England explain care needs and present relevant evidence.
What an independent needs assessment is
A clear, independent account of care needs, the support required and how the evidence relates to CHC.
For current needs, we agree how to involve the person, review relevant records and hear from those providing care. For an appeal, the assessment must reconstruct needs at the time of the disputed decision.
The written work connects everyday care, risks and interventions with the relevant CHC domains and the four characteristics of need.
When you need this assessment
This assessment underpins Nellie's casework at screening, full assessment, review or appeal. It is not required to request NHS assessment, and the optional consultation is a separate service.
The new client package specifies the assessment included. New appeal clients also need a merits review. Updates for the same continuing case are included; historical reconstruction is scoped separately.
A first Checklist is coming
A screening has been arranged and there is no independent record of the person’s needs.
A DST meeting is booked
The multidisciplinary team will score the twelve domains, and the evidence needs to be in front of them.
A refusal has arrived
You need an account of needs during the disputed assessment period, supported by records from that time.
Care has changed quickly
You need a current account of changed needs and the appropriate NHS review or fresh assessment route.
Nobody agrees on the needs
Family, care home and health professionals are each working from a different version of the picture.
A care package is being reviewed
Funding is being reconsidered and the person’s needs have never been independently recorded.
The twelve care domains your care plan is written against
The assessment explains everyday needs and, where relevant, maps evidence to the twelve DST domains. The care plan also sets out the support needed and the person's preferences.
Breathing
Nutrition, food and drink
Continence
Skin integrity, including wounds, ulcers and tissue viability
Mobility
Communication
Psychological and emotional needs
Cognition
Behaviour
Drug therapies and medication, including symptom control
Altered states of consciousness
Other significant care needs
The relevant period matters
Current assessment describes present needs. Appeal evidence must address needs at the time of the disputed decision. We keep later changes separate so the right NHS route can be considered.
Understand both needs and the care meeting them
An existing care plan can be useful evidence. We consider it alongside records and the person's experience, looking at what support is required and what happens when needs change.
The framework for assessing care and support needs
An independent social care assessment considers the person’s needs, the effect on their wellbeing, and the outcomes they want to achieve. It can support care planning and provide relevant evidence for a CHC assessment. The local authority retains its statutory assessment responsibilities.
The assessment can record care tasks, risks and the support required in a way that helps the CHC team understand the person’s needs. CHC eligibility remains a separate decision under the National Framework, considering the nature, intensity, complexity and unpredictability of those needs.
Framework: Care Act 2014; National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care (2022 revision); the primary health need test
Read the supporting guidance
The person’s needs and their effect on everyday life
The outcomes, preferences and priorities that matter to the person
The support required and the risks it needs to address
How the proposed care plan supports needs and wellbeing
Our assessment process
Initial enquiry and triage
Tell us the CHC stage, relevant dates and care arrangements. We confirm the assessment needed and the package it belongs to.
Scope and fee
We confirm the scope, total fee including VAT, payment stages and any additional costs in writing before you instruct us. Further work is agreed before it starts. Travel is charged separately.
All travel is charged separately at £48 per hour including VAT (£40 excluding VAT). The travel cost and any additional work are confirmed in your written quotation before booking.
The assessment
We assess the relevant care needs using appropriate records, accounts and participation arrangements. Historical work reconstructs the period in question rather than substituting today's presentation.
The written care plan
You receive an assessment and care plan explaining needs, support and recommendations, with the evidence and any limitations clearly identified.
Your next CHC step
We explain how the assessment can be used at the agreed CHC stage and identify any separate service you may want to consider.
What we look at
The work brings together the person, relevant accounts and records. It distinguishes observed needs from information reported by others.
Time with the person
For current assessment, we agree suitable arrangements and any communication or access support needed.
The care records
Daily notes, charts, incident records and handover notes.
The people who provide the care
Family carers, care staff and anyone who knows the day-to-day picture.
Medical and therapy input
GP, community nursing, SALT, physiotherapy and specialist letters where relevant.
The existing care plan
What is being provided, and where it falls short of what is needed.
Risk and unpredictability
Changes, incidents, monitoring and interventions relevant to the person's needs.
What you receive
The assessment is practical and evidence led. You receive:
An independent assessment of day-to-day care needs
A written care plan setting out needs and how to meet them
Evidence mapped to the twelve care domains
A clear recommendation on the next CHC stage
Written reasons and any limits in the evidence
The assessment and care plan
Assessment included where specified in your package
- Assessment by a registered professional, at home or in the care setting
- Needs written against the twelve care domains
- A written care plan as a document in its own right
- Updates included for the same person and continuing case
- Written reasons and any limits in the evidence
£1,320 including VAT
Fees
£1,320 including VAT
The assessment fee is £1,320 including VAT. It is included where specified in the new client casework package. We confirm the whole instruction and any attendance costs before booking.
Fee confirmed in writing
The total fee including VAT, scope and any additional attendance costs are agreed before instruction.
Assessment by a registered professional
Records, needs and family input, assessed properly.
A written care plan
The person's needs and how to meet them, in plain English.
Evidence in the language of the domains
Mapped to the twelve care domains from day one.
Updates for the continuing case
Included for the same person and case. Separate historical reconstruction is agreed before it starts.
Evidence and reasons explained
The written work identifies the records used, the reasons for our view and any gaps that could affect it.
How the needs assessment works in practice
A family supporting someone at home has several care records but no shared account of daily and night-time needs.
In this example, the assessment would bring together the person's views, carer accounts and relevant records, with a care plan explaining the support required.
The family could use that independent account alongside the NHS assessment evidence. Any funding decision would remain with the NHS.
The value would be a clearer care picture, with the source of each significant recommendation explained.
Illustrative example only. This does not describe a client or predict an NHS or Ombudsman decision.
For solicitors, deputies, care providers and advisers
We agree a clear instruction and reporting arrangements before starting work.
Scope confirmed in writing
The stage, the fee and the timescale are confirmed in writing before instruction.
Evidence in the language of the framework
Needs are described against the twelve care domains and the four key characteristics, not in general terms.
Evidence and reasons explained
The written work identifies the records used, the reasons for our view and any gaps that could affect it.
A reasoned next step
We explain where the evidence does not support further work and what other route may be relevant.
Why choose Nellie Supports for the needs assessment
Social work assessment that connects what daily care involves with the evidence needed for CHC consideration.
For families
You have someone to explain the process, organise the relevant evidence and help you put the person's needs into words. The work and fee are agreed before we start.
For professionals
We agree the instruction, authority to act, evidence required, reporting arrangements and timetable with you. Written work links each point to its source.
Why families and professionals choose Nellie Supports
Independent social work support
Our social work approach connects the person's everyday needs with the evidence and questions relevant to the CHC stage.
One assessment, one fee
The assessment supports the continuing case, with included updates for the same person. A different historical period is scoped separately.
Fees including VAT
Your scope and total fee including VAT are confirmed before instruction. Additional work is agreed before it starts.
A clear point of contact
A named contact helps you understand the agreed work, the information needed and the next step.
Written work you can follow
The written work identifies the records used, the reasons for our view and any gaps that could affect it.
Honest about outcomes
Eligibility is the Integrated Care Board's decision. We never promise a result, and we say so plainly.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Social Care Needs Assessment
Why does every case start with this assessment?
It is the evidence base for Nellie's casework, included where specified in your new client package. You do not need to buy it to access NHS assessment, and the optional consultation is separate.
Is this the same as the council's care needs assessment?
The council retains its statutory assessment duties under the Care Act. Our privately commissioned assessment can provide independent evidence, but does not replace the council's process or the NHS eligibility decision.
Do we need this if care is already in place?
Existing care records can be valuable. We consider whether they give a clear, current picture and explain what further assessment is needed for Nellie's agreed casework.
What does the fee include?
£1,320 including VAT covers the agreed assessment and written care plan. Your scope confirms the relevant period, records, participation arrangements and any additional costs.
Is this legal advice?
No. Nellie Supports provides independent social work assessment, evidence and advocacy support in England. We do not provide regulated legal advice. We explain when a solicitor's advice is needed.
Related NHS Continuing Healthcare guides
The NHS Continuing Healthcare process explained
A plain English guide to the Checklist, the Decision Support Tool, the MDT and the ICB decision.
CHC eligibility and primary health need
What a primary health need is and how the four key characteristics are judged.
The CHC assessment process
What happens at each stage of the assessment, from screening to decision.
Where your case can go next
Once the assessment is complete, our team supports the full NHS Continuing Healthcare pathway.
CHC Assessment Support: DST and MDT Meeting
Evidence prepared across the twelve care domains of the Decision Support Tool (DST) and representation at the multi-disciplinary team (MDT) meeting.
CHC Appeal Support: Local Resolution
Written submission and representation at local resolution with the Integrated Care Board, the first stage of a CHC appeal. The Independent Review Panel is a separate service.
Nellie Supports provides independent social work assessment, evidence and advocacy support in England. We do not provide regulated legal advice. We explain when a solicitor's advice is needed.
Ready to take the first step?
Contact Nellie Supports to arrange an independent social care needs assessment. We will confirm the scope, the fee and the next steps in writing.
Tell us about any urgent date at first contact so we can confirm whether the required timetable can be met.
The twelve care domains your care plan is written against
Needs, wellbeing and care planning
How the assessment informs CHC evidence
For more, read our guide: The NHS Continuing Healthcare process explained
£1,320 including VAT
Our independent needs assessment and care plan underpin Nellie's casework and are included where specified in the new client package. They are not a requirement for accessing NHS assessment.
Evidence and support for care package reviews, with routine review and eligibility reassessment clearly distinguished.
Ready to take the first step?
Practice leadership: Ben Slater, Founder and Managing Director, Nellie Supports. Read our editorial policy.