Overview of Adult Social Care Services

Reading Adult Social Care Services help adults with social care needs find care and support so they can live as independently as possible in their own homes. This includes older people, people with physical disabilities or learning disabilities, and mental health service users. We can arrange for someone to work with you if you need help to understand what your needs are and how to access services you need.

Social care needs are:

• Making sure you eat well
• Looking after yourself
• Help with day to day living
• Emotional wellbeing and mental health
• Staying safe
• Supporting your family and friends to care for you

We also provide help for carers who look after relatives or friends who can’t manage on their own.

These are the services we offer

Information and advice

We can provide information and advice and help connect you to people and services in the community. Use the Reading Service Guide to find out what help is available in your area. Information and advice is FREE and available to all Reading residents.

Preventative services

We can connect you to services which could help maintain or improve your independence so that you can continue to live in your own home for as long as possible.

We will support you to manage and maintain your health and wellbeing. This might include reablement services to help you regain your independence, providing alarms, adaptations and equipment for your home to help keep you safe.

Short-term/urgent support

If you need urgent help, we can offer some short-term care and support to keep you safe and well until your situation is more stable, and you are in a better position to make decisions about your long-term care.

Ongoing care and support at home

We can help you choose and plan the services you want to meet your eligible needs.

If you have social care needs, we’ll carry out a financial assessment to see if you need to pay towards your care and support, including information on direct payments.

We can arrange and manage your care and support services for you or, if you would like more choice and control over your care arrangements, we can give you the money we would normally contribute towards your care costs, and you can make your own arrangements. This is called a Direct Payment.

Please not: we will only suggest a permanent move to a care home if your assessment shows you have substantial and complex care and support needs which can’t be met at home.

How do I get help?

You can contact us yourself or on behalf of someone you are concerned about.

For older people and adults with disabilities including mental health issues who have care and support needs:

Call Adult Social Care on 0118 937 3747 or visit: How to ask for help to complete our online assessment form.

Complaints and feedback

Your feedback is important to us. We would like you to tell us when you are pleased with the services provided by Reading Borough Council. We also need to know when things could be improved, so that we can make improvements.

If you are unhappy with the service you receive, please let us know as soon as possible – you can talk to your social care worker or their manager or you can call our Customer Relations Team.

Contact the Customer Relations Team:

Freepost RTLS–CKGX–RKLL, Reading Borough Council, Customer Relations Team, Civic Offices, Bridge Street, Reading RG1 2LU

Tel: 0118 937 2905
Email: socialcare.complaints@reading.gov.uk