Adult social care provides advice and services to people over the age of 18 who may need help because of their age, a disability or learning difficulty.

This may include:

• frailty due to age
  
• visual and/or hearing impairments
  
• physical and/or learning disabilities
  
• mental health issues

If you are caring for an adult or child affected by any of the above issues it is important that you are aware of the support available to carers.

Within this section you will find information on Putting Essex People First Information Gateway and advice for everyone in the county:

• staying safe
• staying independent in your home and equipment and adaptations to help you
• alternative living options you may want to know more about or consider for the future.  These can include warden assisted living and care homes
• continuing healthcare, please also see the NHS continuing healthcare and NHS funded nursing care booklet
• Essex Guardians, providing financial, property and motability services
• getting financial advice when paying for your care
• advocacy
• Blue badges

Our first priority is that you are able to stay independent and in your own home for as long as possible. If you need help with this we will carry out an assessment in line with the Department of Health guidance to find out what services you may be eligible for. 

How we provide social care is underpinned by a suite of  policy documents that are also available to read.

You can find out more about Adult Social Care services in Essex, and how we're performing, by viewing our 2010-11 'Local Account'.