Adult Social Care Finance Return
ASCFR collects detailed information on expenditure, income and service provision within adult social care in England. All local authorities are required to submit an ASCFR annually.
Contents
The standard
- Documentation
About this standard
- Publisher
- Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)
- Publication date
- 1 May 2021
- Status
- Active
Show definitions of statuses
Active. Active standards are stable, maintained and have been approved, assured or endorsed for use by qualified bodies.
Deprecated Deprecated standards are available for use and are maintained, but are being phased out, so new functionality will not be added.
Retired standards Retired standards are not being maintained or supported and should not be used.
- Standard type
- Collections
Show definitions of standard types
Collections. A Collection is a systematic gathering of a specified selection of data or information for a particular stated purpose from existing records held within health and care systems and electronic devices.
Extractions. An extraction is a type of collection that is pulled from an operational system by the data controller and transmitted to the receiver without additional processing or transcription by the sender.
Information standards. Information standards are agreed ways of doing something, written down as a set of precise criteria so they can be used as rules, guidelines, or definitions.
Technical Standards and specifications. Technical standards and specifications specify how to make information available technically including how the data is structured and transported.
- Frequency
Dataset publication or collection occurs once a year.
- Contact point
ascfr@dhsc.gov.uk
Using this standard
- Associated medias
- Applies to
- Community or integrated healthcare : Community healthcare services
- Is part of
- Social care collection materials
Topics and care settings
- Topic
- Adult
- Financial management
- Care setting
- Social care
Review Information
- Scope
- All local authorities.
More information
ASCFR provides a consistent, national framework for reporting social care finances, supporting transparency, comparability and accountability. It enables local authorities and central government to:
- monitor and benchmark costs and funding across local authorities
- understand financial trends in adult social care provision
- inform commissioning, planning and delivery of services locally
- ensure value for money in adult social care spending
Page last updated: 27 May 2026