If you do not know which department to approach, identify the Care Team for your locality and describe the actual difficulty. Asking for contact or referral help can identify a next step more clearly than asking only what money is available.
What to have ready
Current service, eligibility and entry point
HAD describes Care Teams' district support, visits to households in need, basic information and referral assistance. Second-term service began in October 2025. The current official directory organises contacts by district and sub-district, so confirm the responsible locality again after moving rather than relying on an old contact.
Home or other support depends on the local service scope and resources, rather than one universal package. Welfare, medical and housing decisions remain with the responsible authority. Ethnic Minority Care Teams can assist with relevant service connections; use their official coverage and contacts when language or access creates a difficulty.
From enquiry to follow-up
- Use HAD's directory to choose the district and check the residential area, retaining the team name and contact. Ask the District Office if the locality is unclear. Avoid sending identity or financial documents to an unknown social-media contact merely claiming to represent the team.
- Describe a concrete issue, such as difficulty booking online for an older relative, a basic home-support need or uncertainty about social-work services. Explain the person, location and timing, asking what this team can actually provide and whether the proposed arrangement involves any charge.
- For professional help, establish the receiving centre, contact process and necessary consent. Provide the minimum information for the referral, then prepare supporting evidence through the receiving service's formal requirements. A basic introduction need not involve giving complete bank records to everyone involved.
- Keep the contact, service or referral date and outstanding actions and follow up at the agreed time. If the need is outside the team's scope, use SWD, hospital or other responsible channels directly. Do not wait for a future household visit when immediate danger requires urgent assistance.
Limits to understand before applying
Visits, referrals and benefit decisions are different activities, and a team cannot promise altered statutory eligibility or guaranteed approval. Explain any existing social-work case so services can coordinate. Do not present the same difficulty as unrelated cases merely to obtain several inconsistent arrangements.
Help attending a service does not automatically authorise another person to sign, control an account or receive verification codes. Clarify the role and use the person concerned or a formally authorised representative for sensitive steps. Verify uncertain service claims with the District Office.
A practical support example
For an older person struggling with a medical booking, the family asks the local Care Team about the official entry point or referral. Clinicians handle care and medicines, while SWD assesses welfare eligibility. The useful result is a coordinated next step, with each service retaining its own responsibility.
Find basic help through the official local contact, then use the formal welfare or professional process.
Official information and enquiries
These are the reference and service entry points for this guide. Check current fees, eligibility, and schedules with the authority. The preparation date is not each source's official update date.