Using OT Principles to Strengthen Care Package Reviews
A strengths-based practice session was facilitated with a social worker locality team reviewing care packages. The session explored how occupational therapy principles could support proportionate, enabling and client-centred decision-making within adult social care.
Strengths-based practice really sits at the heart of occupational therapy. Occupational therapists routinely assess function, independence, risk, routines and the impact of the environment in day-to-day practice. The focus is not simply on what a client cannot do, but on what they can do, what could be rebuilt, and what support, equipment or environmental changes may allow them to regain, retain or improve independence.
The session encouraged social workers to view care package reviews as more than a process of managing risk or confirming existing support. Instead, reviews were considered as opportunities to identify potential, reduce unnecessary dependency, and ensure care remained aligned with the client’s actual functional abilities, routines and goals.
Particular attention was given to helping social workers feel more confident identifying care packages where strengths-based principles could realistically be applied. Discussions focused on balancing safety with enablement, recognising existing abilities, and considering whether some elements of care could be delivered differently to promote greater independence over time.
Using practical examples, the team explored how small changes in approach could make care plans more enabling, while still remaining safe, realistic and defensible. This included considering how clients could be supported to participate more actively in daily tasks, where appropriate.
The session reinforced the value of care package reviews as a positive opportunity to balance risk management with enablement, reflect on what is working well, identify where independence can be supported, and ensure care remains safe, proportionate and centred around the client’s day-to-day life.
Feedback from the session was positive, with several team members reflecting that the occupational therapy perspective helped broaden discussions around independence, function and long-term outcomes.
This type of collaborative working can help strengthen multidisciplinary decision-making, improve confidence within teams, and support more balanced and defensible care planning across adult social care services.
This case study shows how occupational therapy principles can strengthen professional decision-making, support proportionate care planning and help teams balance safety with enablement.
Following the session, practitioners reported feeling more confident applying occupational therapy principles within their own care package reviews. This was reflected in subsequent examples where workers were able to look beyond existing care arrangements, consider what clients could safely do for themselves, and identify opportunities to promote independence.
In some cases, this supported more proportionate care planning, with clients achieving greater confidence and involvement in their daily routines while support remained focused on the areas where it was genuinely required.
Related services
Training & Learning→ For occupational therapy-led training that strengthens professional confidence, functional reasoning and safer care planning.
Care Package Review & Optimisation → For reviewing care packages where safety, independence, proportionality and long-term sustainability need to be considered.
Consultancy Services→ For organisations needing specialist occupational therapy input, service development or support with complex adult social care practice.
Services for Professionals→ For local authorities, care providers and organisations seeking specialist occupational therapy support.
