'Managing by prioritisation' is the buzz phrase when it comes to assessments. In ordinary language, that means waiting lists. People with less urgent needs can expect to wait longer for their needs to be assessed, whether it be for aids and adaptations or for community care packages.

Sefton was heavily criticised by the SSI and Audit Commission joint review in October 1997 for a whole host of shortcomings - including its long waiting lists for people who needed assessments as a matter of priority.

Director Steve Wilds, who has taken over since the crisis, says the authority no longer has waiting lists for assessments. But it took some very careful management to achieve that. 'The financial position of the authority was very tight - and still is,' he says. 'There was a whole series of ways the authority was trying to balance the books. One was controlling recruitment of staff.'

That, rather than a deliberate decision to force needy people to wait for assessments, was the main reason for Sefton's problem, he argues. Only after a thorough review of spending across the whole council did the authority manage to find an extra £1 million to recruit more staff. Whereas six months ago it had 150 people waiting in hospital for assessments, it now only has a backlog of the existing week's work.

'But if you haven't got the money, then you haven't got the money,' Wilds says, arguing that Sefton, with the retirement area of Southport, has hit crisis point sooner than most other departments. 'Others will be getting there very, very quickly,' he warns.