Adult Social Care Glossary, v 0.6

1. Paragraph 2.30 of CASSG refers to aggregate unmet needs across the population, not individual need. The only reference in CASSG to individual unmet need is in 10.25. Unmet need is more often referred to in relation to individuals, so this distinction should be made clear. 2. Paragraph 10.25 is reasonably clear, by inference, that an individual should not have any unmet eligible need because a local authority is under a duty to meet any such need. Also, sections 18 and 20 of the Care Act are clear about the duty to meet eligible need. However, whilst the law is clear about whether or not a need must be met, it is understandably less clear about how, and the extent to which, need must/should be met, as this requires the exercise of judgement. 3. Unmet need is often used to describe eligible need that is not being met satisfactorily, but of course this is technically inaccurate. Sometimes this is better described as under-met need. It can happen when the personal budget is judged as not meeting the requirement in the statutory guidance for the personal budget to be 'sufficient' (see CASSG 11.24). BASW's document An Ethical Approach to Meeting Needs in Adult Social Care clarifies this. 4. The data in NHS Digital's Health Survey relates to need that is below the eligibility threshold, i.e. non-eligible need.