Adult Social Care Glossary, v 0.6

3.8 In this section of guidance, the term ‘information’ means the communication of knowledge and facts regarding care and support. ‘Advice’ means helping a person to identify choices and/or providing an opinion or recommendation regarding a course of action in relation to care and support.

3.9 This section of guidance also uses the term ‘advocacy’ to mean supporting a person to understand information, express their needs and wishes, secure their rights, represent their interests and obtain the care and support they need.

3.10 This guidance talks about ‘financial information and advice’ which includes a broad spectrum of services whose purpose is to help people plan, prepare and pay for their care costs. In places it talks of ‘independent’ financial information or advice which in this document means services independent of the local authority. This guidance also refers to ‘regulated’ financial advice which means advice from an organisation regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) which can extend to individual recommendations about specific financial products. Local authorities should ensure that people are able to access all of these types of financial information and advice which help people plan and pay for their care.