Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004

3 Co-operation between authorities

(1) If a local authority requests an authority mentioned in subsection (5) to assist it in planning the provision of services to persons—

(a) entitled to an assessment under any of the provisions mentioned in subsection (4), or

(b) for whom those persons provide, or intend to provide, a substantial amount of care on a regular basis,

the authority mentioned in subsection (5) must give due consideration to the request.

(2) Subsection (3) applies if—

(a) under a provision mentioned in subsection (4) a local authority is assessing, or has assessed, the ability of a person (“the carer”) to provide and to continue to provide care for another person (“the person cared for”), and

(b) the local authority forms the view that the carer’s ability to provide and to continue to provide care for the person cared for might be enhanced by the provision of services (whether for the carer or the person cared for) by an authority mentioned in subsection (5).

(3) If the local authority requests such an authority to provide any such services the authority or person must give due consideration to the request.

(4) The provisions are—

(a) section 1 of the Carers (Recognition and Services) Act 1995 (c. 12), and

(b) sections 1 and 6 of the Carers and Disabled Children Act 2000 (c. 16).

(5) The authorities are—

(a) any other local authority,

(b) any local education authority,

(c) any local housing authority, and

(d) any Special Health Authority, Local Health Board, Primary Care Trust, National Health Service Trust or NHS foundation trust.

(6) Subsections (1) and (3) do not apply in relation to any action which could be the subject of a request by the local authority to the authority mentioned in subsection (5) under section 27 of the Children Act 1989 (c. 41).

(7) In this section—

• “local authority” has the same meaning as in section 46 of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 (c. 19),

• “local education authority” has the same meaning as in the Education Act 1996 (c. 56), and

• “local housing authority” has the same meaning as in the Housing Act 1985 (c. 68).