An outline of the role of social work services in Scotland, and the types of help they can offer.

Caring for a person with an autism spectrum disorder can be challenging at times. The typical breaks that parents get when their child goes to visit friends, gets a job or does things by themselves are not always an option either. In these circumstances, families may find that they need to get additional help.

The role of social work departments is to support and help people to live more independently, particularly members of society who are disadvantaged in some way. But although the pathway to services should be straightforward, in reality it can sometimes be a long, drawn-out process to receive the help that you need. There are a number of reasons why this might be the case - for example, some local authorities do not have the provisions to offer a particular service or they may disagree with the amount of help that they think is needed. It can take a lot of determination and effort to get the help needed by the person/child you care for, but it is worth being persistent.

What type of services can social work departments provide?

If you currently live at home with your family or by yourself and are happy where you are then the social work department may be able to offer home-based services. The range of home-based services that a local authority can provide are outlined in the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970. These services can be made available to both children and adults and include the provision of:

  • practical assistance in the home
    This might mean having someone to help you with cleaning or cooking, or with paperwork such as bills and letters. If you have physical needs, practical assistance could mean helping you to wash, dress or get out and about.
  • wireless [radio], TV, library etc
    This could include the purchase of a personal computer or a hi-fi system.
  • lectures, games outings and other recreational/educational facilities
    Recreational/educational facilities include day centres. These services must be provided outside the home.
  • assistance in travelling to community-based care services
    The local authority is entitled to charge for transport provision. However, they must ignore the mobility component of DLA (if you get it) when making their assessment.
  • home adaptations
  • holidays
  • meals (at home or elsewhere)
  • a telephone.

Further help for children

The Children (Scotland) Act 1995 has set out a range of support services that local authorities should be available to provide to children. Family support services should also be available to assist and support other family members. Parents are entitled to a carer's assessment to determine their own needs as a carer.

The transition to adult services is a time of particular concern and tension for a person with autism and their parents. The Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002 makes clear that local authorities should also offer a range of provisions to anticipate the persons needs throughout this time.
Social work departments are able to offer a range of services including:

  • advice on benefits, welfare rights and funding for special equipment
  • day services
  • occupational, social and recreational activities
  • residential services/housing
  • home help
  • respite care
  • assistance with holidays and out of school provision
  • aids, equipment and grants for housing repairs and adaptations.


In most cases, they should be able to advise you on a range of other services and provide you with appropriate contacts for further help. A number of services should be made available to account for the wide range of needs that autism spectrum disorders present.

Further support for adults

If you are living at home with your parents and it is more appropriate for you to live independently, you should ask your social worker for advice. They may refer you to your local housing department who will try to find somewhere for you to live. The housing department may put you in touch with local housing associations or with an advice centre which can help you find housing.

If you need to live in a supportive environment where help is on hand throughout the day, then the social work department can help you find a place in a residential service. Residential services vary in the level of support they offer. In some services there will be carers available to help the people living in the service throughout the day and night. In other services, carers may be around for just part of the day or be on call if you need them. Some services are run just for people with autism, while others cater for people with learning disabilities or mental heath needs as well.

If you want details of services that are just for people with autism, the NAS has a searchable database. At present there are only a few services which are specifically for people with high-functioning autism or Asperger syndrome. Contact our Autism Helpline for more information.

Health Services

Services that cannot be provided by the social work department may still be available through local health services, such as your GP. Many GP surgeries provide services that include:

  • health visitors
  • physiotherapists (who use physical methods to sustain and improve mental and physical well-being)
  • speech and language therapists (who help promote language and communication in people with developmental disorders such as autism)
  • occupational therapists (OTs) (who have an understanding of how developmental disorders can affect activities relating to daily living and can give practical advice to parents and carers about how to reduce everyday problems)
  • psychiatrists/psychologists (can help individuals to overcome mental health and emotional problems)
  • dieticians (who advise about diet and eating habits)
  • community care nurses (for people with learning disabilities).

How do I get help from social work services?

The first step is to write to your local social work department, explaining that your child or the person you care for (or yourself if you are an independent adult) has autism and you wish to have an assessment. A child's school or adults tutor/employer, GP or any other professional involved with them, can also refer them for an assessment. You can download template letters for requesting a child or adult assessment below.

When you write to the authority asking for an assessment, make sure you keep a copy of the letter you send. Keep all subsequent correspondence between yourself and the authority in a safe place. If you have any problems, the correspondence will make it easier to investigate these problems later on.

However the referral is made, the social work department has a duty to carry out an assessment where there is an apparent need. If you have a disability then you have an apparent need. If you have made a request for a community care assessment or you know someone else has and you or they haven't heard from the social work department within two weeks, you should give the social work department a call to find out what is happening.

If the social work department decides not to assess your needs, you are entitled to make a complaint. To find out more about complaining, go to the section 'How do I make a complaint?'.

What is a social services assessment?

A social services assessment is used to identify the needs of an individual who is disabled and to create a support plan to decide how these needs can be met.

Children's procedure

It is a requirement under the Children Act 1989 and Children (Scotland) Act 1995 that social work departments provide a needs assessment for children with disabilities.

Once a referral has come into a social work department, it should be decided which of two responses is required:

  1. If the social work department decides to take no action (maybe because the service user is already known to the team, or it is not service provision that is required but information about another agency etc), you should be notified promptly and given reasons for this.
    If the social work department decides that intervention is appropriate, a social worker should contact you via telephone or letter to say that they have received the referral and that someone will be contacting you soon to arrange a visit to carry out an assessment.

When the social worker visits to complete the assessment, they identify whether or not the child with autism is in need, what services may be needed and whether the case is urgent or not. They will speak to you and your child (if applicable) to get a better idea of his or her needs.

After the first assessment, the social worker may decide that a more detailed assessment has to be conducted. This is known as the core or in-depth assessment.

The core or in-depth assessment is much more thorough and will require social work services to fully evaluate the level of the person's needs and the help that their parents or carers are able to offer, as well as the services the person might need. They may consult other professionals with whom they have contact (eg school teachers, employers, GP, etc) to find out more about the person. The social worker should get the person's permission before speaking to any other professionals. At the end of the assessment they should inform you of what services, if any, they are going to provide, and you should be given the opportunity to respond to this.

Please see the next section for information about the complaints procedure if you are unhappy with the way the assessment has been conducted or the decisions that have been made.

Following this, the local authority has a duty to provide any services necessary to meet their needs. In theory, this means that the local authority could fund virtually anything if it is necessary for the child's development. In practice, disabled children and their families tend to be offered residential and home-based respite care but very little else.

Adult procedure

Adults have a right to an assessment under the NHS and Community Care Act 1990 and the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968.

A social worker will visit you at home to carry out an assessment. They will complete some forms about how much care you need each day.

The social worker should look at the impact your needs have on your day-to-day life; they shouldn't just look at the needs themselves. For example, if you have high levels of anxiety you may need someone to be with you to calm you down when you get agitated. You may also need help with going out to the shops or to work because these activities make you anxious. The assessment should be comprehensive and should include consideration of the following needs:

  • personal/social care
  • health
  • accommodation
  • finance
  • education/employment/leisure
  • transport/access
  • any communication, psychological or other needs associated with your autism.


The social worker should try and find out what your likes and dislikes are. If you hate noise it would not be appropriate for the social worker to suggest you go to a day centre near a busy main road. If you find it hard to express your likes and dislikes then you may want a friend or advocate to be with you during the assessment. The social worker should also speak to your parents or carers to find out about your likes and dislikes.

Assessments should be carried out within a reasonable time period and you should be informed if there is likely to be any delay.

All social work departments will use slightly different assessment tools so it is hard to predict exactly what questions they will ask. It is important that they get the fullest possible picture of your family's situation. Prepare for the visit by thinking about the things which might help you and your child. You might want to take some notes and write down any questions you may have.

Once the assessment has been completed, the social worker should draw up a plan outlining the needs that have come to light through the assessment process and the services that will be offered to your child as a consequence. It is important to mention that they will not list services which need to be obtained from other statutory bodies, such as the health authority or local education authority, although they may make reference to the fact that you will be approaching these departments for further help as well.

It is an unfortunate reality that many local authorities lack the money, personnel or equipment to offer the services that are needed. However, the social work department should liaise with other agencies to find out if they can provide the support needed. They should provide some financial assistance for this.

Under the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968, the local authority can offer direct payments to you as an alternative so that you can arrange your own support services instead of using social work services.

Direct payments scheme

A direct payment is a cash imbursement made by social work departments to a disabled person (or their parent/guardian) so they can organise their own support and provision rather than being dependent on social work services. Direct payments can also be used to arrange care for children.

Before receiving a direct payment, the individual will need to be assessed to review what their needs are and the type of support they would benefit from. The types of support they need may include:

  • practical help/assistance in the home
  • support at work
  • support with educational activities
  • respite care
  • support with parenting
  • equipment.


The money cannot be spent on things that the individual has not been assessed as needing. This needs to be clarified and decided with the social work department. The local authority will also check that the money given out is being spent appropriately and will require evidence of any expenditure.

What is a carer's assessment?

Under the Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 1995 and the Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002, local authorities are required to assess the needs of carers and, where necessary, provide services to meet those needs.

If you, as a parent or carer, request an assessment for your child or the person you care for, you should also request a carer's assessment to establish your own needs.

What if the social work department refuses to carry out an assessment?

If a person is disabled and has special care needs, then they cannot legally be refused an assessment. Your local authority should have a complaints procedure (see below) if this happens.

Will I have to pay for the services provided?

Each local authority has its own charging policy but you should not be asked to pay more than you can afford.

Children's services

Guidance from the Scottish Executive also states that local authorities should consider carefully whether to charge for disabled children's services if supporting the disability of a child will impose significant additional costs on the parents. However, where there is a charge, it will be based on the parents' financial situation. When a child reaches 16, they are considered to be an adult and so are assessed in their own right. This means it is their ability to pay, rather than their parents, that is taken into account.

Adult services

Under the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968, if the social work department provides any community care services, equipment or adaptations to the home, they can make you pay for them. The department would determine this by conducting a financial assessment of your income and savings. The value of your home will not be taken into consideration for non-residential services.

Your need for services should not be based on your ability to pay for services. The services that the local authority has a duty to provide must be made available whether you can afford to pay or not.

You should not be made to pay more than you can afford and your carers and relatives should not be asked to pay for services you receive.

People over the age of 65 years who require help with personal care cannot be charged.

How do I make a complaint?

You have a right to make a complaint about any aspect of a social work or health service you are not happy with. Complaints can be about an assessment of your child’s need, provision of services (or lack of it) for your family and child, problems with your GP not making the right referrals etc. Some people worry about making a complaint because they fear that the services already provided will be taken away or established relationships will be effected. You could always contact a local parent support group or advocacy service for extra advice and support if necessary.

Local authority complaints

Each local authority will have their own complaints procedure. You should ask your social worker or someone at the social work department to send you a copy of this. All complaints procedures are slightly different but they all divide up into informal and formal stages.

Stage 1: Informal complaint procedure

At the informal stage you need to let someone at your social work department know that there is something wrong. You can make either a verbal or a written complaint to them, although it is advisable to put the complaint in writing or keep a note of your complaint if you use the telephone. An informal complaint can be made to any officer at the social work department and they should try and sort out the problem.

Stage 2: Formal complaint procedure

If the problem is not resolved at an informal level, you can make a formal complaint. At the formal complaint stage, you will need to speak to someone who is higher up within your local authority (such as the Director of Social Work) who will then arrange for your complaint to be investigated. Once a formal complaint has been made, the social work department has to investigate the matter within four weeks.

Stage 3: Complaints Review Committee

If you are still not satisfied or the problem is still not resolved, you can request a review hearing before a panel. The panel can re-examine the decision the local authority made when they investigated your complaint. If you are not happy with the decision of the review panel, there are various other options, such as taking the issue up with a local councillor, MSP, solicitor or the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). The SPSO investigates the way the local authority has dealt with the complaint and focuses on any issues of maladministration. 

You can skip the informal stage if you feel your complaint is serious and needs to be investigated urgently. In particular, if you feel you or your child need help urgently and that it is not being offered.

If you write a letter of complaint, send a copy to the social services complaints officer. The complaints officer logs all complaints on a database. The complaints officer also guides patients and staff through the complaints procedure and promotes changes in the service where they are thought to be needed.

NHS complaints procedure

You should make your complaint as soon as possible - usually six months from when the matter occurred, or from when you became aware of the problem. Some complaints may be accepted after six months, but only if there is a reasonable explanation for the delay.

You cannot use the NHS complaints system to get any financial compensation. If you are seeking financial compensation you will need to get independent legal advice. The NAS Autism Helpline (0845 070 4004) has a small database of solicitors with an understanding of autism.

Resolving complaints locally

You should always try and resolve your complaint through your local service’s own complaints procedure in the first instance. Contact the health practice, hospital or NHS Trust concerned (we’ll refer to them as ‘services’ from now on) and ask for a copy of their complaints procedure. You should also ask why you have been refused a referral or assessment and whether the decision is based on clinical or financial grounds. You could request this information over the phone or in writing.

Complaints about any service provided by the NHS should be addressed to the Chief Executive of the NHS Trust, the Complaints Manager or to whoever is stated as the appropriate contact in the service’s complaints procedure.

A large service will probably have a designated person who deals with complaints but smaller services may not. If the complaints procedure does not state who to address the complaint to, you should address it to the Chief Executive of the relevant NHS Trust (who may not deal with the complaint directly but would forward it to the most relevant person) or the Complaints Manager.

You should receive acknowledgement of your letter within three working days and a full response to your letter within 20 working days. If you do not receive a full response within this time limit, you should be informed of why.

Hopefully your complaint will be resolved at this level.

Independent investigation

If you are unhappy with the final response you receive or you have waited longer for a response than was expected or agreed (without being told why), you can ask the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) to investigate the matter.

Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO)

The SPSO is a free, independent organisation that investigates complaints against local authorities and NHS trusts by looking into maladministration that has caused injustice. Maladministration is where the correct procedures and considerations in setting up a service, delivering a service or making decisions have not been kept too. This would have resulted in injustice to the person who needed help. 

Examples of maladministration include unreasonable delay, unfairness, failure to follow procedure and poor methods of making decisions.

If you are approaching the SPSO, your complaint must be made within 12 months of the incident occurring. In most cases, the SPSO will only investigate your complaint after you have followed the complaints procedure but not had a satisfactory response. You can also contact the SPSO on the basis of a delayed response.

The SPSO has wide investigative powers and can look at all social work and NHS documents. After the investigation, they can also make policy recommendations and arrange for compensation to be made to the complainant.

The Independent Advice and Support Service run by Citizens Advice Scotland is a free, independent service that can offer advice and support to make an NHS complaint. You can find out more about the service at www.cas.org.uk/iass.aspx  

Download template letters of complaint here.

Further reading

A guide to assessments and services in Scotland (2004). Contact a Family.
(Available from Contact a Family www.cafamily.org.uk/pdfs/AssessScot.pdf)

A Parents Guide to Direct Payments in Scotland. Contact a Family.
(Available from Contact a Family www.cafamily.org.uk/pdfs/directpaymentsscotland.pdf)

Useful contacts

The Independent Living Fund (ILF)
The Independent Living Fund pays extra funds to people with severe disabilities whose needs may not be met fully by the social work assessment. For further information you should ask your social worker or contact the following organisations.

The Independent Living Fund
PO Box 7525
Nottingham
NG2 4ZT
Tel: 0845 6018815
Email: funds@ilf.org.uk
Website: www.ilf.org.uk

Carers Scotland
91 Mitchell Street
Glasgow
G1 3LN
Tel: 0141 221 9141
Fax: 0141 221 9140
Email: information@carerscotland.org
Website: www.carersscotland.org

Citizens Advice Scotland
Spectrum House
2 Powderhall Road
Edinburgh
EH7 4GB
Tel: 0131 550 1000
Fax: 0131 550 1001
Email: info@cas.org.uk
Website: www.cas.org.uk

Scottish Public Services Ombudsman
4 Melville Street
Edinburgh
EH3 7NS
Tel: 0800 377 7330
Email: ask@spso.org.uk
Website: www.spso.org.uk

Scottish Association of Law Centres
C/o Govan Law Centre
47 Burleigh Street
Govan
Glasgow
G15 8TE
Tel: 0141 440 2503
Email: m@govanlc.com
Website: www.govanlc.com

Law Society of Scotland
LP1 - Edinburgh
26 Drumsheugh Gardens
Edinburgh
EH3 7YR
Tel: 0131 226 7411
Fax: 0131 225 2934
Email: lawscot@lawscot.org.uk
Website: www.lawscot.org.uk (includes online list of solicitors)

Scottish Child Law Centre
54 East Crosscauseway
Edinburgh
EH8 9HD
Tel: 0131 667 6333
Freephone for under 18s: 0800 328 8970
Email: enquiries@sclc.org.uk
Website: www.sclc.org.uk

Relevant legislation

 

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