Adult social care is primarily about decision-making and people’s stories. Right now, councils are looking more closely at how decisions are made - and how confidently those decisions can be explained, defended and evidenced.

In our recent webinar, Ending postcode variation: How shared assessment practice improves outcomes, we explored a challenge many councils recognise instinctively but don’t always have space to step back and address: how inconsistent assessment practice is quietly shaping outcomes, assurance and trust.

Why inconsistency is harder to ignore

Rising demand, workforce pressures and heightened scrutiny mean councils must explain and evidence decisions more confidently than ever.

Councils are seeing:

• Similar needs leading to very different assessment experiences
• Decisions that are difficult to explain and defend
• Increased scrutiny from CQC and assurance teams

When assessment practice varies widely, explaining differences in outcomes becomes harder - increasing risk for organisations and for practitioners individually.

Professional judgement needs structure to thrive

A common concern is that standardisation could undermine professional judgement. The webinar addressed this directly. Under the Care Act, assessment is an intervention in its own right: it shapes what is explored, what is prioritised and what support looks like.

Professional judgement remains essential - but it works best within a shared framework. When structures vary widely, it becomes harder to demonstrate that decisions are proportionate, strengths-based and person-centred, even when good work is happening. Clear structure supports clarity, not constraint.

Closing the assurance gap

The session highlighted how inconsistent assessment practice creates a hidden assurance gap. While CQC does not inspect forms, assessment structures shape the evidence organisations can provide. When practice is aligned, councils are better able to explain decisions, demonstrate consistency and evidence statutory intent under scrutiny. This alignment strengthens confidence for practitioners, leaders and assurance teams alike.

The reality of designing assessments locally

The webinar also surfaced an important reality: designing good assessment templates is complex, skilled work. Councils described investing months of effort, multi-disciplinary working groups, extensive consultation and repeated iteration. Good design draws on real assessments, deep legislative alignment and lived experience. It is not quick - and it is not superficial.

Well-designed templates support practice through proportionality, reduced repetition and clearer structure. This intelligence makes standardisation workable in the real world and lays the groundwork for AI readiness. Without it, technology risks scaling inconsistency rather than efficiency.

Why councils are choosing not to redesign the wheel

Many councils are now questioning whether they need to design assessment templates from scratch at all. Designing locally often involves months of multi-disciplinary effort, repeated iteration and significant opportunity cost - drawing senior practitioners, performance leads and system teams away from delivery.

Shared templates remove that hidden burden. They reduce duplication, accelerate implementation and provide confidence that legislative requirements and best practice are already embedded.

They also continue to evolve as learning is gathered across councils.

Crucially, this doesn’t mean losing local control. Councils can still reflect local policy and pathways - but within a consistent core that supports learning, comparison and assurance. Instead of repeatedly reinventing foundations, teams can focus on delivery and improvement.

The human impact: fairness, trust and outcomes

Beyond systems and data, the webinar repeatedly returned to human impact. For practitioners, shared assessment practice reduces cognitive load, clarifies expectations, supports onboarding and frees up time for meaningful conversations. For people who draw on care and support, consistency supports fairness and trust. When decisions are easier to understand and explain, engagement improves, and better engagement leads to better outcomes.

From consistency to prevention

Finally, the session explored what becomes possible when assessment data is consistent.

When assessment practice is aligned, data becomes genuinely comparable across councils. That enables shared learning at scale - understanding what works not just locally, but nationally.

Councils can see where people get stuck, identify patterns of escalation, and learn from approaches that are delivering better outcomes elsewhere. This is where prevention moves from aspiration to reality - not just within one authority, but across the system.

Continuing the conversation

The closing reflection from the webinar was simple but powerful: confidence, clarity and fairness. Aligning Care Act assessment practice isn’t a technical exercise - it’s a practice reform. One that supports equity, assurance and better outcomes, while still respecting local context.

If you’d like to explore what this could look like for your council, we’re always happy to share what we’re seeing work well across the sector and talk through proportionate next steps.

‍Learn from councils already making this shift

We’re working with councils across the country who are tackling variation, strengthening assurance and improving outcomes - without losing local context.

Speak to our Adult Social Care experts to understand what approaches are gaining traction, what pitfalls to avoid, and what proportionate next steps could look like for your council.

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